WRITTEN QUESTION E-2640/01 by Anna Karamanou (PSE) to the Council. Arrest of eight foreign nationals by the Taliban in Afghanistan.
Date: 2001-10-03
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Afghanistan, arrest, human rights, non-governmental organisation, the EU's international role

6.6.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 134 E/69

Answer given by Mr Bolkestein on behalf of the Commission

(17 October 2001)

The Commission, together with the Member States,
criminals, and notably terrorists, the funding of their activities.

is looking into a range of possibilities to deny

At present, under the European anti-money laundering directive (1), banks and other financial institutions
must lift banking secrecy where there is an indication of money laundering and report their suspicions to
the competent authorities. The range of criminal activity covered by this reporting obligation differs from
one Member State to another, but will be considerably extended by the proposal for a second directive,
which is currently in the conciliation procedure.

The Commission does not therefore accept that the practice of banking secrecy creates a welcoming
environment for criminal or terrorist money within the Union.

At the wider international level the fight against money laundering is led by the Financial Action Task
Force on Money Laundering (FATF), in which all the Member States and the Commission participate. For
several years now, the FATF has been conducting an exercise to identify and name countries and territories
which do not cooperate adequately in international efforts to combat criminal money, for example by
maintaining excessive banking secrecy or denying judicial cooperation. The FATF has already called on its
member countries to instruct their banks and financial institutions to pay particular attention to financial
transactions involving a number of such countries. Their response has generally been positive and remedial
action has already been taken in a number of these countries. For countries that do not respond
adequately, the FATF members are prepared to apply further countermeasures.

A coordinated response of the Member States to countermeasures decided on by the FATF will again be
discussed at the Joint Economic and Financial Affairs/Justice and Home Affairs (Ecofin/JAI) Council on
16 October 2001.

Full details of the FATF initiative and the countries in question can be found on the FATF website: http://
www. oecd. org/fatf.

(1) Council Directive 91/308/EEC of 10 June 1991 on prevention of the use of the financial system for the purpose of

money laundering, OJ L 166, 28.6.1991.

(2002/C 134 E/071)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2640/01

by Anna Karamanou (PSE) to the Council

(3 October 2001)

Subject: Arrest of eight foreign nationals by the Taliban in Afghanistan

Since 5 August, the Taliban Islamic fundamentalist regime has held eight foreign nationals (four German,
two Australian and two American) and 16 Afghans working for the NGO, Shelter Now International, in
custody charged with attempting to convert Muslims to Christianity. At the same time, hundreds of
humanitarian aid workers are helping many thousands of Afghan civilians to survive the civil war. Under
Islamic law, the sharia, the accused may face the death sentence.

What measures and diplomatic initiatives will the Council take to compel the Islamic regime to guarantee
the safety of the foreign nationals in its custody and respect their human rights, and what steps will it take
to exert pressure on the unlawful government of Afghanistan to comply with international law and respect
religious freedom, the right of freedom of expression and free will?

C 134 E/70

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

6.6.2002

Reply

(14 February 2002)

For the time being, the Member States concerned have specifically asked the Council not to intervene on
behalf of their detained citizens in order to facilitate confidential bilateral contacts which are under way to
solve the issue.

In reply to aspects related to the 16 Afghan nationals detained by the Taliban, the Council would like to
draw the Honourable MEP’s attention to the reply given to the similar Oral Question H 0797/2001.

In any case the situation in Afghanistan has lately evolved in such a manner that the resolution of these
cases should be undertaken taking those changes into account.

(2002/C 134 E/072)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2642/01

by Encarnación Redondo Jiménez (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(28 September 2001)

Subject: European mushroom sector

Mushroom production in the EU stands at 1 million tonnes per year. The situation in the sector is marked
the genus Agaricus (cultivated
by relative stability but high fragility, mainly owing to imports of
mushrooms) at a price which is 50 % lower, despite the quota of 29 290 t per year (22 750 being allocated
to China under Regulation (EC) 2858/2000 (1)). There are also instances of fraud whereby mushrooms are
imported in excess of the quota under different customs headings.

The United States banned imports of Chinese mushrooms for five years following legal proceedings for
dumping, which ended two years ago.

In this light, and bearing in mind the significant role played in certain local areas by mushroom-growing,
which is extremely labour-intensive:

C what is the Commission’s assessment of the impact which application of the customs quota for
mushrooms of the genus Agaricus has had on the European mushroom-producing sector since its
introduction in 1992?

C What consequences does the Commission expect China’s imminent accession to the WTO to have for

customs quotas for mushrooms of the genus Agaricus in the EU?

C Have any assessments been made of the social and economic impact on European producers of
Agaricus mushrooms in the event of substantial variations in the current customs quota? What
measures are in place to offset any negative impact?

C What action is being taken to ensure that Chinese imports under chapter 07 designated as Calocybe or
Psaillota are not in fact imports of Agaricus? How many checks have been made, and with what
results?

(1) OJ L 332, 28.12.2000, p. 59.

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(13 November 2001)

The Commission is aware of the difficulties facing the Community mushroom sector, and in particular the
vulnerable position in which it now finds itself as a result of the structural fall in demand for preserved
mushrooms in Europe and the serious competition represented by imports. It has no, however, uncovered
any instances of fraud or unlawfulness when the product is being imported.