G. whereas Djibouti is a signatory to the Lomé Convention, Article 5 of which stipulates that develop-
ment aid is dependent on respect for, and the exercise of, fundamental human rights and freedoms,
1. Repeats its condemnation of human rights abuses in Djibouti;
2. Calls on the Djibouti authorities to respect the rights of prisoners, including access to medical care;
3. Urges the government of Djibouti to release all political prisoners and all long-term detainees who
have not been charged and to put an end to the practice of preventive detention which is carried outwithout charges being brought before the courts;
4. Calls on the Djibouti authorities to guarantee freedom of expression and political pluralism and to
stop repressing its opponents;
5. Calls on the government of Djibouti to allow refugees and displaced persons to return to their region
of origin;
6. Calls on the Commission and the Council to monitor closely human rights in Djibouti in general,
and the conditions under which political prisoners are held in detention in particular, in the context ofrespect for Article 5 of the Lomé Convention;
7. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and the Commission, the Co-Presi-
dents of the ACP-EU Joint Assembly and the Government of Djibouti.
15. Human rights: Arrest of the President of the Audit Office in Nicaragua
B5-0375/1999
European Parliament resolution on the imprisonment of the President of the Nicaraguan Audit
Office, Mr Agustín Jarquín
The European Parliament,
/dash noting the declaration of the Finnish Presidency made on behalf of the European Union, and of Nor-
way and Switzerland,
A. having regard to the good relations established between the European Union and the Central Amer-
ican countries under the San José process,
B. having regard to the arrest of the President of the Nicaraguan Audit Office, Mr Agustín Jarquín, on
10 November 1999,
1. Underlines its solidarity with the Nicaraguan people who have had to suffer from various political
and economic problems during these last years, most recently from the catastrophe caused by HurricaneMitch in November 1998;
2. Emphasises the determination of the European Union to help Nicaragua to build up the country, to
continue with the gradual opening of the markets of the European Union to Nicaraguan products and to
support Nicaraguan participation in the HIPC Initiative; attaches great importance to the fact that cooper-
ation with the new Nicaraguan Government is only possible if the basic rules of democracy and humanrights are respected and if the administration of the cooperation funds in accordance with the rules isguaranteed;
3. Maintains its point of view that the Audit Office fulfils an important duty in Nicaragua, just as in
every other country, and that the government should therefore cooperate with this institution and fullyrespect its independence according to the law;C 296/206 EN 18.10.2000 Official Journal of the European Communities
Thursday 16 December 1999
4. Calls on the appropriate bodies of the European Union to ensure the correct use of European Union
cooperation funds in Nicaragua and to report back to Parliament;
5. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the Government
and Parliament of Nicaragua, the Parliament of Central America and the President of the Audit Office ofthe Republic of Nicaragua, Mr Agustín Jarquín.
16. International criminal court
B5-0337, 0344, 0349, 0373 and 0386/1999
European Parliament resolution on the ratification of the Rome treaty to establish the permanent
International Criminal Court
The European Parliament,
A. whereas, in July 1998, in Rome, the Statute of a Permanent International Criminal Court was adopted,
establishing for the first time a court with international jurisdiction to judge independently thoseresponsible for war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity,
B. whereas the Court and its work do not depend on a specific political mandate from the UN Security
Council and will be presided over by an Independent Prosecutor,
C. whereas the Court’s jurisdiction, although operating in complementarity to national jurisdictions, will
enable it to judge crimes perpetrated during internal conflicts as well as having the capacity to decide,in controversial cases, the respective spheres of competence,
D. congratulating the six states that have already ratified the ICC Rome Statute and those countries,
including the EU Member States and the applicant countries, that are at present carrying out theinternal procedures for ratification,
E. whereas, for the Court to begin functioning, at least 60 countries must deposit the instruments of
ratification at the United Nations,
F. whereas a Preparatory Commission has been mandated by the Rome Conference to finalise the Rules
of Procedure and Evidence and the Elements of Crimes by June 2000,
1. Urges the 14 Member States of the EU and the applicant countries that have not yet ratified the ICC
Rome Statute to do so as soon as possible;
2. Calls on the Council and the Commission to clearly set the goal of the entry into force of the Court’s
jurisdiction by 31 December 2000 as a priority of the Union’s foreign policy, including the negotiationprocess with all the applicant countries;
3. Asks, therefore, both the Council and the Commission to take firm action in order to persuade those
States that have not yet approved the Statute of the Court to accept its jurisdiction as binding and to dotheir utmost to ensure that the Preparatory Commission completes its work by the set deadline of June2000;
4. Asks the Member States to take action in all the appropriate fora to speed up execution of the
required procedures by the Preparatory Commission;
5. Asks the Council, the Commission and the Member States to support, through voluntary contribu-
tions, the trust funds established by the UN General Assembly whose mandate comprises the costs ofparticipation in the work of the Preparatory Commission of the least developed countries and of thosedeveloping countries not covered by UNGA resolutions and to support the international campaigns forthe effective entry into force of the ICC;18.10.2000 EN C 296/207 Official Journal of the European Communities
Thursday 16 December 1999