European Parliament resolution on the situation in Afghanistan
Date: 2000-10-05
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: Afghanistan, EU aid, establishment of peace, humanitarian aid, political situation, sexual discrimination

C 178/286

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

22.6.2001

Thursday 5 October 2000

11. Afghanistan

B5-0776, 0781, 0785, 0789 and 0793/2000

European Parliament resolution on the situation in Afghanistan

The European Parliament,

(cid:1) having regard to the common position of the Council concerning restrictive measures against the
Taliban adopted on 15 November 1999 with a view to implementing UN Security Council Resolution
1267/99,

(cid:1) having regard to the common position of the Council adopted on 24 January 2000,

(cid:1) having regard to Regulation (EC) No 1880/2000 of the European Parliament and of the Council of
17 July 2000 on operations to aid uprooted people in Asian and Latin American developing coun-
tries,

(cid:1) recalling its earlier resolutions on Afghanistan,

A.

B.

C.

expressing great concern at the Taliban’s recent offensives, which led to the fall of the town of Talo-
qan on 5 September 2000,

recalling that the incessant conflict in Afghanistan has already brought indescribable suffering on the
Afghan people and threatens the stability and economic development of the region,

emphasising that the latest hostilities have further aggravated the situation of the civilian population,
which is already severely affected by the drought currently afflicting the whole region,

D. whereas, according to the UN, almost one million Afghans have been mutilated by landmines, millions
live in refugee camps, and thousands of civilians are still trying to escape from Kabul and Taliban-
controlled areas to avoid living under a gender apartheid system and being subject to systematic
human rights abuses,

E. whereas many Muslim intellectuals have denounced the Taliban’s violation of basic human rights and

the arbitrary and barbarous interpretation of the sharia,

F. whereas, when the Taliban seized power in 1996, women were subjected to extreme forms of psy-
chological and physical repression in that they were partially or totally excluded from health care and
education, opportunities to earn a living and freedom of movement,

G.

recalling that the European Union is the main provider of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan,

H.

condemning the Taliban’s support for international terrorism and for the extension of drug cultivation
on territory which they control and emphasising that, despite UNIDCP programmes and EU funding
to combat drugs and, in particular, eradicate the cultivation of narcotics, Afghanistan has increased its
production exponentially,

I. whereas the proceeds of this trade are also used to finance the war by the Taliban against the North-

ern Alliance,

J.

convinced that there can be no military solution to this conflict that does not involve considerable
additional suffering for the population as a whole,

1.

Expresses its alarm at the fresh upsurge in fighting;

2.
Condemns the gender apartheid system that is being established in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan
and urges the Council to maintain the restrictive measures it has adopted for as long as the Taliban regime
continues its unacceptable policy of discrimination against women;

22.6.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 178/287

3.

Condemns also the Taliban regime’s support of international terrorism;

Thursday 5 October 2000

4.
Calls on the Member States to bring their influence to bear on Afghanistan’s neighbours, and in
particular Pakistan, to stop all interference in Afghan affairs; reiterates its call to the other two countries
which have recognised the Taliban regime to stop providing it with any form of support and to isolate it
diplomatically;

5.

Calls on the Security Council to impose an embargo on arms exports to Afghanistan;

6.
Reiterates its commitment to the quest for a political solution to enable peace, stability and respect
for international law and human rights to be restored in Afghanistan; urges the Council to make a political
contribution to restoring peace to Afghanistan, inter alia by coordinating its initiatives with the neighbour-
ing countries, especially Russia and Iran;

7.
Calls on the Council to adopt a new common position which takes account of the developing situa-
tion and calls on the Council and Commission to report to the House on the EU’s position and actions
with regard to Afghanistan;

Calls on the Commission to take the emergency humanitarian measures required to ensure the sur-

8.
vival of the population, especially in the areas controlled by the Northern Alliance;

9.
Calls, in particular, for the direct implementation of the Treaty of Ottawa on the elimination of anti-
personnel landmines, the organisation of a campaign to inform the population of the risks involved, and
the provision of special EU aid to remove the anti-personnel mines laid in Afghanistan;

10.
Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the UN Secretary-
General, the Taliban authorities, the Northern Alliance and the governments of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia,
the United Arab Emirates, India, China, Russia, Iran, Uzebekistan and Tajikistan.

12. Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

B5-0782, 0786 and 0788/2000

European Parliament resolution on FYROM , Law on higher education and universities

The European Parliament,

A. whereas FYROM has been able in recent years to prevent the outbreak of ethnic confrontations despite

the violent clashes taking place in bordering countries and its fragile ethnic composition,

B. welcoming the new law on higher education and universities, which was adopted by the Parliament of
FYROM on 25 July 2000 and allows for the possibility of private universities being founded in that
country,

C. welcoming the fact that, in this way, a problem which has been simmering for years in FYROM could

finally be solved, to the benefit of multiethnic cooperation,

D. noting that this law establishes, in particular, conditions and a legal framework whereby members of

FYROM’s Albanian-speaking community may have access to a proper university education,