Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-09-20-Speech-1-082"
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"en.20100920.18.1-082"2
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"Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, the catastrophic humanitarian situation which Pakistan is currently experiencing has obliged us to postpone the vote on the readmission agreement between the EU and that country by a fortnight, which, I must admit, is of little consolation.
Our choice is now critical. How can we actually approve this agreement when so many questions remain unanswered and when so many concerns still remain? It is pointless to review in detail Pakistan’s sad record in relation to respect for human rights, but I should still like to echo what other Members have already said: that country is a signatory to neither the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, signed in Geneva, nor the Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons.
This situation is all the more worrying because this agreement is primarily and clearly aimed at Afghans, and the statements from the Commission, which are confined to asking Pakistan to sign the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, do nothing to change the situation. This is why we must declare a clear prior position: the signing of the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and other texts relating to the protection of fundamental rights is a
of any negotiation.
This situation is combined with a chronic lack of precision surrounding the implementation of the agreement we are debating today, the scope, structure, objectives and technical arrangements of which, both with regard to the readmission procedure itself and to the exchange of personal data, I can only describe as vague. It is not only the implementation of this agreement which is the problem; it is also the entire negotiation process and readmission agreements in general.
We have asked the Commission on numerous occasions to provide an assessment of the agreements concluded so far. We have not received this, and what you are telling us today is insufficient. How could we reasonably and in all conscience approve this agreement if we have not seen any assessment? I would add that this is also the finding of the study requested by the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, which has been passed on to us. Parliament will not be able to fully exercise its powers if it is not duly informed during the process of negotiating and implementing these agreements.
As Parliament is now a colegislator, it must affirm its position. I would therefore emphasise that tomorrow’s vote will be of great symbolic significance for its role. At a time when partnership agreements are being negotiated with states such as Libya, for example, our role is to reject this agreement, thereby demonstrating Parliament’s concern for human rights and desire for greater transparency in negotiations."@en1
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