WRITTEN QUESTION P-2675/01 by Jorge Moreira Da Silva (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Agreement between Portugal and Spain on water resources.
Date: 2001-09-24
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Portugal, Spain, application of EU law, bilateral agreement, directive (EU), environmental policy, water management

16.5.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 115 E/145

(2002/C 115 E/148)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-2673/01

by Anna Karamanou (PSE) to the Commission

(24 September 2001)

Subject: Measures to protect EU Muslims from racist violence

Prompted by the tragic terrorist attack on the USA on 11 September 2001, the first signs of demonisation
of the Arab and Muslim populations living in the European Union have been seen in the EU. In the United
Kingdom alone, a string of events has already been recorded, such as the violent attacks on a 19-year-old
Muslim woman and on a taxi-driver from Afghanistan, who now faces permanent disability.

What preventive measures does the Commission intend to take to protect this section of the population,
while respecting their religious and cultural identity, and, more specifically, how does it plan to educate
public opinion in order to avoid the 20 million Muslims living in the EU becoming victims of violent
racist incidents and social exclusion?

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(24 October 2001)

In the extraordinary meeting of the European Council of 21 September 2001 which was convened to
analyse the international situation following the terrorist attacks in the United States and to impart the
necessary impetus to the actions of the European Union, it was underlined that the European Union
categorically rejects any equation of groups of fanatical terrorists with the Arab and Muslim world. The
Commission fully shares this view.

The Commission deplores all racist and xenophobic violence. The Commission is extremely concerned
about the increase in racist attacks against Muslims and people of Arabic and Southern Asian origin in a
number of EU countries, following the recent terrorist atrocities in the United States.

The Community action programme to combat discrimination (1),
is aimed at promoting measures to
combat any direct or indirect, single or multiple discrimination based on racial or ethnic origin, religion or
beliefs, disability, age or sexual orientation. Within the limits of the Community’s powers, the programme
supports and supplements the efforts made at Community level and in the Member States to encourage
measures to prevent and combat discrimination. One of its objectives is to promote and disseminate the
values and practices underlying the combating of discrimination, including by means of awareness-raising
activities. The Commission will be exploring with the Member States the possibilities for using the
programme to support national initiatives to prevent the stigmatisation of certain ethnic and religious
groups.

Responsibility for monitoring racist and xenophobic incidents rests with the European Monitoring Centre
on Racism and Xenophobia based in Vienna. Action taken by the Commission has consisted of close
liaison with the Monitoring Centre concerning a request to focus specifically on any apparent increase in
racism and xenophobia in the wake of the attacks and, where possible, to identify good practices to try to
limit any side-effects.

(1) Council Decision 2000/750/EC of 27 November 2000, OJ L 303, 2.12.2000.

(2002/C 115 E/149)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-2675/01

by Jorge Moreira Da Silva (PPE-DE) to the Commission

Subject: Agreement between Portugal and Spain on water resources

(24 September 2001)

Does the Commission consider that the agreement between Portugal and Spain on water resources
complies with the Framework Directive on Water, which entered into force about a year ago?

C 115 E/146

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

16.5.2002

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(29 October 2001)

The Water Framework Directive (1) entered into force on 22 December 2000 and provides for river basin
management as the key principle for water management. For transboundary rivers basins, the Directive
sets out the following requirements for coordination (Article 3(3) and 3(4)):

Member States shall ensure that a river basin covering the territory of more than one Member State is
assigned to an international river basin district. At the request of the Member States involved, the
Commission shall act to facilitate the assigning to such international river basin districts.

Each Member State shall ensure the appropriate administrative arrangements,
including the
identification of the appropriate competent authority, for the application of the rules of this Directive
within the portion of any international river basin district within its territory.

Member States shall ensure that the requirements of this Directive for the achievement of the
environmental objectives established under Article 4, and in particular all programmes of measures are
coordinated for the whole of the river basin district. For international river basin districts the Member
States concerned shall together ensure this coordination and may, for this purpose, use existing
structures stemming from international agreements. At the request of the Member States involved, the
Commission shall act to facilitate the establishment of the programme of measures.

While cooperation and coordination between Member States in relation to shared international river basins
is compulsory under the Water Framework Directive, the institutional and legal form of such joint actions
(formal agreement, conventions, exchange of letters etc) is left to the discretion of the Member States
concerned.

The Convention between Portugal and Spain is broadly consistent with the requirements of the Water
Framework Directive with regard to the need to ensure appropriate coordination. The creation of a proper
framework for the management of the river basins shared between Spain and Portugal is therefore to be
welcomed. Having established such a framework, the challenge for the future will be to carry out river-
basin planning and develop programmes of measures for each river basin as foreseen under the Directive.

(1) Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework

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

(2002/C 115 E/150)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2678/01

by Raffaele Costa (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(2 October 2001)

Subject: Regional grants in Italy

What view does the Commission take of the huge amounts of ‘regional aid’ which special status regions
and autonomous provinces pay out to the various types of businesses and cooperatives?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(5 November 2001)

Under Article 88(3) of the EC Treaty, Member States are required to notify the Commission of any plans to
grant or alter aid. This requirement holds for both aid granted by national authorities and aid granted by
regional bodies. The Commission vets the aid for compatibility with the common market on the basis of