WRITTEN QUESTION E-4142/00 by Lousewies van der Laan (ELDR) to the Commission. Protection of homosexuals in Romania.
Date: 2001-01-16
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Romania, accession criteria, anti-discriminatory measure, discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, national law

C 235 E/78

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

21.8.2001

Can the Commission:

1.

2.

3.

specify the initiatives the European Union will take with a view to developing and publicising this
initiative at Community level;

express an opinion regarding the continuing problem of promoting appropriate policies on this
subject and the introduction of new programmes for the conservation, management and sustainable
exploitation of these areas;

indicate in general terms what lines of action the EU will adopt to achieve the objectives laid down in
Chapter 13, such as the acquisition and enhancement of knowledge about the ecology and sustainable
development of mountain ecosystems and the promotion of the integrated development of river
basins?

Answer given by Mr Barnier on behalf of the Commission

(28 March 2001)

The Commission refers the Honourable Member to its answers to Written Questions E-1271/00 by
Mr Sacconi (1), P-3067/00 by Mr Caveri (2), E-3162/00 by Mr Ripoll y Mart(cid:237)nez de Bedoya (3) and
E-3599/00 by Mr Caveri (4).

With regard to the objectives of Chapter 13 of Agenda 21, it wishes to state that Strand B (Transnational
Cooperation) of the Interreg III Community Initiative specifically includes, under the measure on the
preservation of the environment and the good management of the cultural heritage and natural resources,
the devising and implementing of integrated strategies and measures to prevent floods in the transnational
parts of catchment areas.

Both in the rural development programmes and through the Leader Community Initiative, the Commission
is proposing a number of measures on environmental protection appropriate for mountain regions.

In addition, the Commission has asked the Member States to ensure that sites constituting natural habitats
or home to species of Community interest are proposed for the Natura 2000 network; the alpine
biogeographic region is particularly concerned. Most of these sites have been identified and it is up to
the Member States to establish management methods.

Concerning the integrated development of river basins, the recently adopted Water Framework Directive (5)
has, as one of its main themes, the objective of water management by river basin, which is considered the
natural hydrological and geographical unit for water management and protection. The best successes have
been achieved where the combined efforts and cooperation of all bordering countries and regions have
been harnessed, as is the case for the River Rhine.

(1) OJ C 53 E, 20.2.2001.
(2) OJ C 151 E, 22.5.2001, p. 54.
(3) OJ C 163 E, 6.6.2001, p. 47.
(4) OJ C 187 E, 3.7.2001, p. 19.
(5) Directive 2000/60/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework for

Community action in the field of water policy (OJ L 327, 22.12.2000).

(2001/C 235 E/084)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-4142/00

by Lousewies van der Laan (ELDR) to the Commission

(16 January 2001)

Subject: Protection of homosexuals in Romania

Is the Commission prepared, as a matter of urgency, to draw the attention of Romania(cid:146)s newly elected
President Iliescu to the fact that Article 200 of the Penal Code (discrimination against homosexuals) is still
in force?

21.8.2001

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Official Journal of the European Communities

C 235 E/79

Will the Commission make it clear to the Romanian President that the EU makes Romania(cid:146)s accession to
the European Union conditional on the repeal of Article 200 of the Penal Code?

What projects is the EU funding in the candidate countries to counteract prejudice and discrimination
against homosexuals?

Answer given by Mr Verheugen on behalf of the Commission

(12 March 2001)

Article 200 of the Romanian Penal Code states that specified homosexual activities shall be punished by
imprisonment from between one to seven years. The Commission has raised this issue with the Romanian
government on several occasions and has expressed the opinion that this represents a violation of human
rights. In response to these and other representations the government included an amendment to the Penal
Code, amongst a broader package of reforms to the legal system, that would effectively decriminalise
homosexuality. The amendment was passed by the Romanian Chamber of Deputies during the course of
last year but has not yet been passed by the Senate. Under such circumstances the existing legislation
remains in force. Following the recent elections, the new government has not yet announced its intentions
with regard to these legal reforms.

The issue of non-discrimination is one to which the Union attaches considerable importance.

Council Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000 establishing a general framework for equal treatment
in employment and occupation (1) establishes a general principle of prohibition of any direct or indirect
discrimination based, inter alia, on sexual orientation. Council Decision of 27 November 2000 establishing
(2000/750/EC) (1) puts into
a Community action programme to combat discrimination (2001-2006)
including sexual
practice a strategy for combating all forms of discrimination on different grounds,
orientation. This programme is open to participation by the candidate countries, in accordance with the
conditions established in the Europe Agreements, in their additional protocols and in the decisions of the
respective Association Councils.

Together, these measures will constitute a comprehensive basis for action to fight against discrimination
on grounds of sexual orientation, providing a minimum level of legal rights, supported by practical action
to promote the effective application of those rights on the ground.

In addition, the principle of non-discrimination is explicitly dealt with by Article 21 of the Union Charter
of Fundamental Rights proclaimed on 7 December 2000 (2), which states that (cid:145)any discrimination based on
any ground such as sexual orientation [inter alia] shall be prohibited(cid:146). These principles not only reflect the
basic principles of the Union, but also the basic principles that new Member States will be expected to
accept upon accession.

Furthermore, the criteria for accession to the Union, as set out at the 1993 Copenhagen meeting of the
European Council, make explicit reference to the need for (cid:145)stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy,
the rule of law, human rights and respect for and protection of minorities(cid:146). The Commission is fully
committed to ensuring that this condition for accession is respected and will take up cases of human rights
abuses in its regular reports on candidate countries(cid:146) progress towards accession and in its bilateral relations
with them.

With regard to financial support, the guidelines for PHARE implementation provide for financial and
technical assistance to be given to non-governmental organisations with a view to supporting the inclusion
and participation of individuals or groups being socially, economically or politically marginalised due to
sexual orientation. However, to date, no funding has been allocated to projects in this specific field.

(1) OJ L 303, 2.12.2000.
(2) OJ C 364, 18.12.2000.