European Parliament resolution on the situation in Mauritania
Date: 2001-09-06
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: Mauritania, democratisation, election, human rights, opposition, political prisoner, slavery

21.3.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 72 E/343

Thursday 6 September 2001

Requests the Council and Commission to make a statement at the earliest opportunity, in which the

1.
following questions should be dealt with:

(cid:129) why the outbreak of FMD has lasted so long in the UK and has not yet been controlled and why the

option of ring vaccination has not been used;

(cid:129) what measures the Council and Commission intend to take to prevent and control the risks of FMD

contamination inside the EU and with regard to outside border controls;

(cid:129) what progress has been made in the development of new testing methods and marker vaccines and

whether the Commission intends to speed up the development of these products;

(cid:129) what are the directs costs to the Commission of the FMD outbreak to date and a cost-benefit analysis

of various disease control approaches from the point of view of all rural stakeholders;

(cid:129) what new budget lines the Commission foresees to combat and prevent possible future outbreaks;

(cid:129) what action programme the Council and Commission propose to prevent and control FMD in future;

2.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and Commission.

15. Human rights: Mauritania

B5-0545, 0556, 0565, 0579, 0585 and 0594/2001

European Parliament resolution on the situation in Mauritania

The European Parliament,

(cid:129) having regard to its previous resolutions on the situation in Mauritania,

A. whereas the leader of the Mauritanian Popular Front (MPF), Mr Melainine, a former minister and now
an opponent of President Ould Taya, as well as two other members of the MPF, have been sentenced
to five years(cid:146) imprisonment on charges of (cid:145)conspiracy against the state(cid:146),

B. whereas the three men were sentenced to five years in prison on charges of conspiracy to commit acts
of sabotage and terrorism, but serious doubts persist as to the fairness of the trial and the indepen-
dence of the court; whereas two observers from the Moroccan Bar Association and the International
Federation of Human Rights Leagues were prevented from attending the trial,

C. whereas these imprisonments occur in the context of widespread repression of political opponents of
the government, political activities of the opposition, the press and human rights organisations,

D. whereas the decision was taken to dissolve the main opposition party, the Union of Democratic

Forces/New Era, in October 2000,

E. whereas legislative and municipal elections are scheduled for 19 October 2001 in the absence of an

independent national electoral commission,

F. whereas a monopoly of the public media is held by the government party, and free radio and televi-

sion are prohibited,

G. whereas Mauritania(cid:146)s National Assembly is currently dominated by the President(cid:146)s ruling party, which

holds 78 of the parliament(cid:146)s 79 seats,

H. whereas recent reports point to the continued existence of slavery,

C 72 E/344

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

21.3.2002

Thursday 6 September 2001

I. whereas the guilty verdict handed down against Mr Melainine is entirely without judicial foundation,

J. whereas the decisions dissolving the opposition parties are an infringement of the democratic process,

K. whereas the Constitution guarantees individual and collective freedoms,

in particular freedom of

association, assembly and expression, and the right of citizens freely to choose their government,

L. whereas respect for human rights and democratic principles are essential conditions for EU assistance,

M. whereas dialogue between the government and the opposition is the best means of establishing rules

of electoral transparency and guaranteeing free expression of the popular will,

1.

2.

Deplores the long-standing harassment of political opponents;

Calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Mr Melainine and the two other MPF members;

Calls for a re-run of the trial, before a new court and with international observers,

3.
guarantee the legitimate right to a fair trial of the three members of the MPF;

in order to

Calls on the Government of Mauritania to respect the Constitution, guarantee the right of free

4.
expression and allow the formation and registration of political parties;

Urges the Government of Mauritania to take the opportunity of the forthcoming elections to demon-

5.
strate its scrupulous respect for democratic rules;

Considers that the legislative and municipal elections scheduled for October 2001 must be postponed
6.
to enable all those who are politically active to stand; calls on the government of Mauritania to guarantee
the democratic rights of all opposition parties and representatives and to establish without delay an inde-
pendent national electoral commission;

Calls on the Government of Mauritania to agree that the next elections should be held in the pre-

7.
sence of international observers, including a delegation of Members of the European Parliament;

Calls on the Government of Mauritania to take immediate steps to put an end to the continued

8.
practice of slavery;

9.
Calls on the Council and the Commission to open consultations with Mauritania in accordance with
the procedure laid down in Article 96 of the Cotonou Agreement, if the government of Mauritania does
not provide an adequate and rapid response to the concerns outlined above;

10.
Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Government of
Mauritania, the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Co-Presidents of the ACP-EU Joint Parlia-
mentary Assembly.

16. Human rights: Togo

B5-0546, 0557, 0566, 0578, 0586 and 0595/2001

European Parliament resolution on the situation in Togo

The European Parliament,

(cid:129) recalling its previous resolutions on Togo,

A.

alarmed by the conviction and imprisonment for six months, on 3 August 2001, of Mr Yawovi
Agboyibo, chairman of the Action Committee for Renewal, one of the main opposition groups, for
(cid:145)attacking the honour of the Prime Minister(cid:146),