GwendalTsang/DEFT09-parquet huggingface dataset:
Mr President, I have followed developments in Malaysia for a number of years through visits and acquaintances there. It is depressing to see how Prime Minister Mahatir is increasingly doing violence to quite elementary democratic principles and general decency in order to put down his political rivals. This Internal Security Act, or ISA, is used and abused for the purpose of getting at the Prime Minister’s political and personal enemies, as in a dictatorship. The same applies to the paragraph in the Malaysian constitution, the intention of which was to secure peace in the country and between the ethnic groups and which is now being used for the government’s own purposes. The former Prime Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman, said as long as fourteen years ago that it looked as though Mr Mahatir was on the way towards authoritarian government. It can safely be said that he has since continued along the same path. That is deeply regrettable, and it is good that Parliament is today getting to debate the matter and that we are getting a strong statement from the government. Malaysia should know the truth when we meet with the Malaysians in the various fora during the coming weeks and months.

Political group: ELDR
Madam President, we have been in correspondence about Mr Titford's membership of the Committee on Fisheries, a very important committee for the United Kingdom. We have expressed the hope that, since he never attends meetings of that committee, he might stand down as a member of it. (Laughter)

Political group: PPE-DE
Mr President, Mongolia is developing into the democratic pearl of Central Asia. Without oil or other minerals, it is trying to gain a foothold in the new globalising economy. The country is making a name for itself in the world of sports, as was evident recently in the skating event in my own country, and it deals with political landslides well, as was apparent from the most recent elections. In the tough fight for a place in the world, the country is, for the second year running, afflicted by extreme cold after a summer which was too dry. One hundred thousand families and twelve million cattle are on the brink of starvation. That problem is made still worse by the fact that, in the past, Mongolia used to supply countries like Russia and Finland with large amounts of beef. The accession of Finland to the European Union closed off the Finnish market to a large degree, and massive European food aid to Russia meant that Mongolia was sidelined on that market too. The European Union thus owes Mongolia something. The ECHO funds are appropriate here, and it would be to the European Union’s credit if more TACIS funds were to be spent on stimulating this democratic rarity in Central Asia. Democratically speaking, too, a good example will be keenly followed. I would also like to find out from the Commission what concrete steps it intends to take in terms of ECHO funding, extra funding and emergency aid, but also – and mainly – by way of democratic encouragement of that country through making extra funding available to it through the TACIS programme, possibly in advance of the 2002 budget. I feel I am in good company with Mr Staes, but also with our Vice-President, Mr Wiebenga, who is also committed to this region. Commissioner, as far as this matter is concerned, you could make many people a lot happier this afternoon.

Political group: PPE-DE
Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, we are all familiar with the tragedy that unfolded in Vilnius recently. The tragic case of Marie Trintignant is no isolated incident. Thousands of women face the self-same fate every day. According to the British Crime Survey, half of the murdered women are killed by their violent partners. Despite this, domestic violence, sexual violence and violence perpetrated against women and children are still a huge taboo. This taboo must be broken. Politics has an important role to play in this. Fortunately, this issue has been on the European agenda and also on the agenda of the Member States for some years, but there is still a great deal left to do. Too many women and children are victims, as was mentioned earlier. Member States must get even more encouragement to tackle perpetrators and protect potential victims. Violence against women is a form of violation of women's rights and cannot be tolerated. Awareness in this area must increase and legislation should be adapted accordingly. This is why we welcome the DAPHNE Programme. DAPHNE I was a runaway success. Many organisations active in the fight against violence against women and children have found their way to DAPHNE and thanks to financial support, have managed to do a great deal of good. DAPHNE I had a budget of EUR 20 million, but that turned out to be insufficient. Only 13% of the requests could be honoured – not because the applications did not meet the requirements, not because the organisations were unable to find their way to the DAPHNE Programme, but because there was simply a lack of funds. Hence the appeal for an increase in the budget. Also, with a view to enlargement, more countries will make a bid for the budget. Agreement has now been reached on 50 million. This is, of course, not enough to be able to do everything that should be done, but I think that this is the best we can hope for at the moment. The new proposal to increase the budget to 65 million is honourable, but not, in my view, realistic. We risk a conciliation procedure and are putting progress with regard to the current activities on the line. An extra increase of the budget of this kind stands in the way of a smooth transition from DAPHNE I to DAPHNE II. Finally, I support the appeal for a European year against violence. The problem is so enormous that it deserves more attention, and in line with this, I hope that as soon as possible, a start can be made on an adequate legal basis for the fight against violence against women and children. Thank you, and thanks also to Mrs Gröner, whom we know to be an extremely committed Member of this House, and I should like to thank her for all the work she has done.

Political group: PPE-DE
Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, I am pleased to support Mr Brok’s motion on the approval of macro-financial assistance to Yugoslavia. I also believe that it is absolutely vital, given the country’s high level of debt, to provide an above-average level of lost subsidies here, i.e. above-average compared with the usual practice. I fully support the Commission on this point. One condition for cooperation, as has been mentioned, is cooperation with The Hague. This has always been the position of this House and also our group. There is no question that a great deal has been achieved through Milosevic’s extradition. This is a positive development. Yet positive developments can sometimes leave a stale after-taste. Firstly, it was all too clear that Milosevic was handed over in exchange for the funds pledged by the donors’ conference, not so much in exchange for direct assistance from the European Union. It was not a pretty sight. There are two sides responsible: those who demanded this step, but also the government in Belgrade, who was too hesitant at first. Secondly, it is interesting that particular pressure was applied by the Americans: the Americans, who persist in rejecting the notion that international courts could actually have jurisdiction over their citizens. This is an interesting point, and the European Union should bring pressure to bear on the Americans to recognise the international courts and their jurisdiction over American citizens at last. Thirdly, it does not resolve the issue of Yugoslavia’s critical examination of its own history. There are many individuals, such as those responsible for the destruction of Vukovar, who are still at large. This debate must continue in Yugoslavia. Fourthly, it is conceivable that the fragile balance established in Yugoslavia will undergo hard tests and could even be destroyed. On this point, I would like to make a comment about the future of the country. Over recent months and years, we have all witnessed what is often an antagonist mood towards Yugoslavia itself. Yet Yugoslavia has an important role to play in the region’s reconstruction, and thankfully, it now has responsible and sensible leaders who can set it on the right course. However, we must be patient here and help Yugoslavia fulfil its tasks in the region. Together with my group, I identify three key points in this context. Firstly, the critical debate in Yugoslavia about events in the country over recent decades must continue. Secondly, there must be reconciliation with its neighbours. Here, in particular, the extradition of a number of war criminals would undoubtedly help. Thirdly, and this is my final point, the economy must certainly be reconstructed, and we must give our support to this process. If we are able to link these three elements together, we will be able to look back in five or ten years’ time on the successful history of EU policy in Yugoslavia.

Political group: PSE
Mr President, I would like to thank all three institutions. Although Mrs Niebler is not an institution, she has behaved almost like one! I would like to thank her sincerely for her report. But I would also like to thank the Commission and the Council. I would like to thank the Council, because it has changed its position in a way that would have been unthinkable until recently, as I am sure the Commission will agree. However, thanks are also due to the Commission because it has shown such persistence in pursuing this subject over the years, although we did not expect that it would act so quickly. Nevertheless, I have to tell the Commission that to some extent it has been unnecessarily tough, not least regarding the amendments put forward by Parliament, and that it has not perhaps shown the institutional flexibility that it might have or that might have been expected from the Commission. Mrs Niebler has quite rightly pointed out that there is a considerable difference between technical measures and strategic decisions on policy, and that when it comes to strategic decisions the European Parliament really ought to play a greater role than provided for in the report, so that transparency is guaranteed and democratic structures are actually established. This is even more important if you bear in mind that the Council is by no means in agreement with the Commission that the Senior Official Group should be established. That only leaves us with the Senior Official Committee, which means that the institutional framework for taking democratic decisions will be distinctly limited. I personally would therefore support Mrs Niebler's new proposal in which she suggests establishing a 'call-back procedure' in the wake of Lamfalussy. My Group has, in any case, tabled certain amendments. I hope that the House will be able to accept these amendments. They will also be supplemented by an oral amendment which I hope the House will support. We can take on board the Council's proposal, in which it proposes that in cases going beyond technical measures the Commission should propose a legal instrument to Parliament and the Council. I hope that we will have your support for this and I hope that the Commission will be able to live with this amendment.

Political group: PSE
Mr President, in reality the draftsperson of the opinion was our colleague, Mrs Wallis, for whom I am a very unworthy replacement, since she cannot attend today. This will deprive you of a much more complete explanation, but please allow me nevertheless to thank Mrs Wallis on behalf of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market for her magnificent work and her willingness to take up all the suggestions of that committee. Naturally, the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market had to involve itself above all with the technical aspects of this directive, and has tried to introduce certain improvements: firstly, contrary to the line taken by the Council, extending its scope to those civil actions resulting from criminal acts, since we felt that there absolutely no reason to exclude them; secondly, trying to determine more precisely what is meant by judicial costs, what items should be included and also making it possible to maintain free justice in the event of appeal, insisting on the need for requests to be examined in good time and, to this end, laying down that the Member States should designate the competent authorities; and finally, providing for reimbursement, where there are private law mechanisms in that regard. The news given us today by Commissioner Vitorino – and which the Commission communicated in good time – does not exactly give us hope, but our Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market must remember – and the draftsperson who I am replacing insisted on this – that, in the event that the Council introduces these substantial modifications, the Treaties lay down that Parliament should be consulted again, and Parliament is not prepared to give up this right, but rather is prepared to defend it.

Political group: PPE-DE
Mr President, I speak as the Group spokesman on Islamic affairs and as a longstanding member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Human Rights, Common Security and Defence Policy. Let us look at the politics. The failure of the CFSP is our fault. The Bush administration has never hidden its determination to remove Saddam Hussein by force if necessary. Congress approved this and Europe largely ignored it. Instead of seeking common ground and leading the debate, France and Britain – the two countries most responsible for the mess in the Middle East after the First World War – have fallen out again. I have an interest here, as my kinsman T. E. Lawrence sought and expected Arab autonomy. Meanwhile, in speech after speech, Washington, with the security of a President in mid-term, has placed a vast army in the region and has explicitly talked about wider regime change. Indeed, the road map for peace between Israel and Palestine is published – it is on the Palestinian Authority's website. We all know that in the democracies public opinion is opposed to conflict. Who knows, however, what real public opinion is in the Arab countries? We can learn something from the comprehensive UNDP report written last year by Arabs, which states: 'Political participation in Arab countries remains weak, as manifested in the lack of genuine representative democracy and restrictions on liberties'. At the same time, people's aspirations for more freedom and greater participation in decision-making, have grown, fuelled by rising incomes, education and information flows. So speaks the United Nations. It should be observed that there is nothing inherently intolerant and oppressive in the letter of the Islamic faith and in earlier centuries Islam exercised a culturally progressive and civilising influence. Our efforts to promote democracy and human rights in the world are founded in the framework of the Democracy and Human Rights Programme. The core principles of the CFSP – promotion of democracy, human rights, the rule of law and fundamental freedoms – are absolutely crucial here.

Political group: PPE-DE
I welcome the initiative of tabling a motion for a resolution of the United Nations General Assembly, currently sitting in New York, requesting that a universal moratorium on the death penalty be adopted. This initiative will contribute to the future abolition of the death penalty in every country in the world. Thousands of men and women share this aspiration, while the number of countries that have abolished the death penalty from their legal systems is rising all the time. The abolition of the death penalty is an important step forward for civilisation, one that must be extended to every country. Just as crucial is doing away with the policy of double standards so often pursued by the US Administration. - Report: Menéndez del Valle (A5-0351/2003)

Political group: GUE-NGL
Mr President Prodi, I would like to begin by applauding the important reference you made at the beginning of your intervention today to the tragic situation in East Timor. I must ask you though, what specific action are you planning to take – in co-operation with the UN of course – in terms of consolidating Timor’s now irreversible independence and making it viable, and in terms of supplying emergency aid to the long-suffering people of Timor? As for your statement overall, I approve the fact that it touched on some very important points but I do not think that it emphasised sufficiently the social dimensions of the objectives of the Commission over which you preside. The fact that a word as symbolic as “cohesion” was removed from the Directorate-General for Regional Policy strikes me as rather unfortunate. I must admit that I was shocked that you were perfectly clear on the freedom of trade and on the demands of competition on businesses, but you were silent or vague on fighting unemployment, poverty and social exclusion, all veritable scourges of the European Union. Commissioner António Vitorino, who made an absolutely brilliant statement to this Parliament, highlighted the need to integrate refugees and to give effective protection to ethnic minorities. He presented an excellent programme for the area allocated to him and which deserved the agreement and applause of the majority of this Parliament. I would like to know if, as President of the Commission, you will attempt to commit yourself to resolving the very serious social problems which exist within the European Union, and which, to my mind, should be an absolute priority for the Commission. (Applause)

Political group: PSE
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, may I ask for a moment of your attention for a point of order. Mr President, I am speaking because I would like to put a request to you, as the acting President, one I submitted last Monday to the President of this House and would now like to repeat. It is as follows: a Member of this House has made extensive allegations against his fellow-Members, relating to various matters, which this person alleges to be directed at other Members. I am personally affected by this, as are also many other Members from my country. These are allegations that I think should be examined. (Applause) I make this request for myself personally, Mr President, but also on behalf of all 34 other German Social Democrat MEPs, and I am aware that Members of the other groups – the , the PDS and the CDU/CSU – will also certainly have something to say about this. Accordingly, for my own part and on behalf of all my other colleagues, I ask that each individual accusation that has been made should be examined by the competent bodies of this House, especially the legal service and the college of quaestors, in close collaboration with the Court of Auditors and OLAF – every single one of these allegations! (Applause) At the same time, Mr President, I request that the results of the examination of the objections should be made available before the end of the period of session of this Parliament – that is, by May – to the House and therefore the public. (Applause) It is not acceptable, Mr President, for anyone to come and make allegations, so that an entire institution then has to justify itself. I request that, by due process involving the legal service, the quaestors, the Court of Auditors and OLAF, each of the allegations made should be examined and the results published. I ask this for myself and for all the other Members concerned. (Applause)

Political group: PSE
I voted in favour of this directive and welcome this proposal. Unfortunately, we need to deal today with the lack of personnel within the European Union, and in particular in France, in all nautical occupations. We are, therefore, forced to call on third-country nationals and, consequently, we need to ensure that these people have received high-quality training. The level of training does in fact have a significant impact on maritime safety. Wear and tear on vessels is not the only factor responsible for the disasters that we have experienced. Human error, a lack of experience, a lack of communication between crew members all increase the risks at sea. In light of this situation, the rules for recognising training need to be harmonised and the use of a single language implemented aboard ships. We also need to look to the future. At a time when the European economy is stagnating, when unemployment is no longer falling, we need to enhance the status of the various occupations in this sector, in particular for young Europeans, to stimulate the desire to work in this field. In this way, European businesses would then be able to employ EU nationals working in these nautical occupations.

Political group: PPE-DE
Mr President, today is an excellent time to be debating the very good report by Mr Laschet on the relations between the European Union and the UN as, at the same time, we are receiving Kofi Annan, not just as a person, but as an institution, as a symbol of an irreplaceable need for the UN. The report we are debating is in essence a single proposal on relations between the European Union and the UN, but it is a strategic proposal for the UN itself at the dawn of the twenty-first century. The UN, despite generally expressing the need for a peaceful world at its inception, reflecting the balances at the end of the Second World War, is in need of some adjustment. Today circumstances are different and must be expressed. However, until they are expressed effectively, the UN is irreplaceable. Many consider that the UN is the refuge of small countries which have no other way of expressing their opinions. However, the Iraqi crisis and its impasses show that the superpowers have equal need of it. Attempts at new international balances such as the enlarged G8 or the messianic crusading perception of the various superpowers of their role lead nowhere. Proposing a strategy for the UN and the European Union, however, we note that we ourselves have serious gaps which we need to plug. We recently experienced the lack of agreement in the UN Security Council. The enlarged European Union, with the 25 members, will have the possibility to be expressed by many more members of the Security Council, in that it will have the possibility to be expressed by three different geographical areas of the UN. This possibility, in conjunction with the presence, which I hope will come about, of a minister of foreign affairs at the UN, will provide many more possibilities. If the new distribution does in fact result in the European Union's gaining a place on the Security Council, without other countries losing their place, this will allow it, from that position, to support policies for peace, cooperation, security, democracy and all the claims of mankind, which are objectives which we must attain.

Political group: PSE