WRITTEN QUESTION E-1442/00 by Concepció Ferrer (PPE-DE) to the Council. Human rights situation in Equatorial Guinea.
Date: 2000-05-12
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Equatorial Guinea, human rights, legal hearing, rights of the defence

C 81 E/40

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

13.3.2001

(2001/C 81 E/047)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1442/00

by Concepci(cid:243) Ferrer (PPE-DE) to the Council

(12 May 2000)

Subject: Human rights situation in Equatorial Guinea

Recent UN reports on the human rights situation in Equatorial Guinea have clearly highlighted an utter
lack of respect for human rights in that country.

According to the UN reports, the lack of respect for human rights is most apparent in the legal uncertainty
facing citizens in that country, in that at any time they may be deprived of their freedom without the need
for a court order or legal grounds for issuing such an order.

The Republic of Guinea has formally announced that the trial of Mr Alpha CondØ, who has been in
detention since 1998, will commence on 12 April next.

In view of the aforementioned facts, what guarantees are there that this will be a fair trial?

Does the Council intend to send observers in order to guarantee a fair trial?

Reply

(29 September 2000)

The Honourable Member adresses in fact two distinct situations, concerning two different countries, in her
written question.

1.
The human rights situation in Equatorial Guinea to which the Honourable Member refers to in the
first place, was examined at the 56th session of the Commission on Human Rights which met during
in Geneva. On that occasion, the European Union Member States joined in the
last March and April
consensus on the resolution relating to this country which adresses the problems mentioned by the
Honourable Member, and includes a number of recommendations and appeals to the Government of
Equatorial Guinea to take urgent steps to remedy the deficiencies and conditions that lead to violations and
abuses of human rights.

2. With respect
to the trial conducted in the Republic of Guinea against Mr Alpha CondØ, the
Presidency on behalf of the European Union issued a declaration on 6 April 2000 in which it expressed
the hope that the trial would be conducted fairly and transparently,
in full accordance with the law,
thereby ensuring that Mr. CondØ is in a position to defend himself on all charges brought against him. The
course of this trial, which started on 12 April last, is being closely monitored by the European Union
Heads of Mission in Conakry.

(2001/C 81 E/048)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1449/00

by Wolfgang Kreissl-D(cid:246)rfler (PSE) to the Commission

(10 May 2000)

Subject: Impact of electronic commerce and the Internet economy on development cooperation

Over the next few years electronic commerce via and on the Internet (e-commerce) will come to play an
important role in the world economy. Through the e-Europe initiative the EU has shown that it has
recognised the implications of this change and intends to meet the resulting challenges. Likewise, at the
Ministerial Conference in Geneva the WTO set up a working party whose remit will focus on the extent to
which current WTO rules are applicable to e-commerce.

However, the development-policy implications of the digitalisation of the world economy have been
disregarded, or dealt with only cursorily, in the documents drawn up by the WTO working party and in
the measures taken by the EU in this connection.