European Parliament resolution on press freedom in Angola
Date: 2000-02-17
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: Angola, freedom of the press, human rights

C 339/274

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

29.11.2000

Thursday 17 February 2000

7.
Urges all sides involved to cease immediately all acts of aggression and to comply with Regulation
2000/4, which prohibits incitement to national, racial, religious or ethnic hatred, discord or intolerance,
as a key element for a democratic society in which civil discussions and political debates must take place in
a responsible and non-violent manner;

Calls on both parties to cooperate fully with UNMIK in order to set up an effective power-sharing

8.
administration capable of facilitating reconstruction activities and a return to daily life;

Gives its full support to the taking of appropriate action by KFOR in response to criminal activity

9.
against any citizens of Kosovo and to protect civilians who belong to ethnic minorities;

Calls on the Council and the Member States to redouble their efforts to provide the necessary man-

10.
power and resources for the United Nations police and for the establishment of the judiciary;

11.
Urges, in this respect, the Council and the Commission to make EU support conditional, favouring
reconstruction projects in those parts of Kosovo where human and minority rights are fully respected and
democratic principles guaranteed;

12.
Calls on the Council to link the softening of sanctions against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to
the adoption of a more conciliatory approach by the Belgrade authorities on the issue of the Albanian
Kosovar political prisoners held in Serbia;

13.
Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the governments
of the Member States, the authorities of Serbia and of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, the UN Repre-
sentative in Kosovo, the OSCE and the International Red Cross.

14. Human rights: Press freedom in Angola

B5-0151, 0160, 0165, 0166 and 0178/2000

European Parliament resolution on press freedom in Angola

The European Parliament,

6 having regard to the previous declarations of the EU on Angola,

6 having regard to the UN declaration on human rights and the UN declaration on human rights defen-

ders adopted by the UN General Assembly on 9 December 1998,

A. noting that since January 1999 some 20 journalists, mainly from the independent media, have been
detained and questioned concerning alleged defamation and/or crimes against the security of the state,

B. noting the pending trial of journalist and human rights defender Rafael Marques de Morais for defa-
mation of President Eduardo dos Santos, together with two other journalists, Joaquim Manual Aguiar
dos Santos and António José Freitas de Jesus Correia, who have been charged with defamation in
unrelated, yet similar cases,

C.

shocked by the remarks made on 19 January 2000 during a parliamentary debate on press freedom
and freedom of expression in Angola by a senior MPLA (Angolan People’s Liberation Movement)
Member of Parliament, Mr Mendes de Carvalho, suggesting that Mr Marques would not live to the
age of 40 if he kept writing critically about the Angolan government,

D. whereas the leading institutions of Angola have not to date seen fit to dissociate themselves from
these unacceptable remarks which represent a threat to the life of Mr Marques as well as a serious
attack on press freedom and freedom of expression in Angola,

29.11.2000

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 339/275

Thursday 17 February 2000

E.

F.

G.

concerned that Mr Marques was arrested on 16 October 1999, held incommunicado at the Latortório
Prison in Luanda for 10 days, during which time he was denied all access to legal representation,
family or other visitors, and only released and formally charged on 25 November, following public
appeals by the United States, the United Kingdom, Article XIX and Reporters Sans Frontières,

noting that on 24 December 1999 a trial court convicted Angolan journalist Gustavo Costa of defa-
mation of the head of the President’s office and imposed a suspended sentence of one year after a non-
public trial in which the defence was allowed to call only one witness,

recalling that the EU has appealed to the Government of Angola and to UNITA (National Union for
Full Angolan Independence) to respect human rights in two declarations and on other occasions
(source: EU Annual Report on Human Rights),

H. whereas the European Union is the major donor to Angola and Namibia but is playing a low-profile

role in the region,

1.
Urges the government of Angola to ensure that the trial of Rafael Marques de Morais, Joaquim Man-
uel Aguiar dos Santos and António José Freitas de Jesus Correia, originally scheduled for 15 December
1999 and now postponed sine die, is conducted in accordance with international standards;

2.
Urges the government of Angola to ensure that the Marques/Aguiar/Freitas trial, as well as all other
trials related to freedom of expression, are open to the public and to allow international and other obser-
vers to be present at the opening of the trial and throughout the trial;

3.
Condemns the remarks which amount to a death threat against Mr Marques, made by Mr Mendes de
Carvalho during the aforementioned parliamentary debate, and urges the President of the Republic, the
President of the National Assembly, the MPLA and the government to distance themselves publicly without
further delay from these remarks and to make clear the Angolan government’s commitment to safeguard-
ing Mr Marques’ life;

Urges the Commission, the office of the UN High Representative and EU Member States to send

4.
monitors to attend the trial;

Urges the government of Angola to comply strictly with the provisions of the Universal Declaration
5.
of Human Rights and Angola’s obligations as a state party to the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights, in particular with respect to its obligations to ensure freedom of expression and to afford
due process to all persons charged with criminal offences;

Urges the Government of Angola to carry out a thorough and impartial investigation into the arbi-
6.
trary detention of Mr Marques in order to identify those responsible, bring them before a competent tri-
bunal, and apply appropriate penal, civil and/or administrative sanctions in accordance with law;

Calls on the Government of Angola to accept a significant UN presence in Angola, including a

7.
human rights contingent, which could contribute positively to a peaceful settlement of the conflict;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the ACP-EU Council, the Commission, the

8.
UN Security Council, the Organisation of African Unity and the Government of Angola.