WRITTEN QUESTION E-3168/01 by Fernando Fernández Martín (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Aid programme for street children and young people in Colombia.
Date: 2001-11-19
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Colombia, aid programme, child protection, cooperation policy, development aid, project management, street children

C 160 E/64

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

4.7.2002

(2002/C 160 E/073)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3168/01

by Fernando Fernández Martín (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(19 November 2001)

Subject: Aid programme for street children and young people in Colombia

The poverty and instability affecting families in Colombia lead thousands of children to seek refuge on the
streets, where all they find is crime, disease, sexual abuse, prostitution, ill-treatment, drug addiction and a
life full of misery to which there is no way out, given that the street is their only alternative.

Programme COL/B/-3100/97/102, an aid programme for street children and young people in Colombia,
was selected in 1997 and officially approved on 13 February 1998. Following the corresponding tender
procedure, the programme was awarded to the ‘Asociació Institut Genus’ on 12 July 1999.

According to my information, four years on this project has still not been implemented, the EUR 475 000
allocated to the programme have not yet reached a single street child and, even worse, there is no specific
plan to implement it.

How does the Commission explain the delay in this programme’s implementation?

What steps will it take to ensure that this programme geared to prevention, protection and the social and
economic reintegration of street children and young people is implemented as soon as possible?

What specific plans does the Commission have to prevent
programme’s selection and its implementation?

this type of habitual delay between a

Answer given by Mr Patten on behalf of the Commission

(11 January 2002)

The Commission is aware of the suffering and poverty of the children and young people living on the
streets of numerous cities in Latin America. It is aware of the enormity of the task of remedying the
problem and seeks to do everything in its power to meet the challenge through the implementation of
appropriate social projects.

The programme in question, set up by a Financing Agreement signed with the Colombian Government,
has been confronted by extraordinary difficulties resulting from the country’s situation, which has changed
dramatically since the programme was selected. The delays in the programme’s implementation are thus
essentially due to the country’s specific political context and not to any administrative inadequacy.

The Agreement states that European technical assistance is to be provided by NGOs. But to safeguard their
political neutrality most NGOs have refused to manage any project cofinanced by the Government.

Only two NGOs took part in the call for tenders, including the Genus institute, which was selected. Before
the project even started the candidate for the task of co-director resigned and Genus has been unable to
find a suitable person to replace her, a further problem encountered in regard to this programme.

The project has also been severely hampered by the climate of violence in Columbia. This has gone from
bad to worse, as evidenced by the assassination of a local staff member in our Delegation in Bogota,
Mr Torres, the kidnapping of a European expert on the Ciudad Bolivar project, and the intimidation
suffered by other European experts in Colombia in 2000. It has therefore been decided to revise the
programme for the purpose of tailoring it to local conditions.

The Colombian International Cooperation Agency and the Colombian institute for family welfare, which
requested that the revised programme take particular account of the contribution of their experts and of
local players, have been asked to propose amendments to the Financing Agreement with the support of
the Delegation.

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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follow the decentralised implementation model provided for in the
The amended Agreement must
framework convention signed by the Commission and the Colombian Government in December 2000.
The project will be managed directly by the recipient and European technical assistance will be made
available for targeted measures.

The Delegation has ongoing contact with the Colombian authorities, from which it has not as yet received
any proposal.

(2002/C 160 E/074)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3171/01

by Cristiana Muscardini (UEN) to the Commission

(19 November 2001)

Subject: St Gotthard accident

in the St Gotthard tunnel once again dramatically raises the issue of safety
The tragic accident
arrangements in tunnels. A system of traffic lights regulates the traffic B estimated at more than 18 700
vehicles, 21 % of which are lorries B as soon as an emergency occurs, an antenna enables drivers to
continue listening to their car radio, four fire-fighters, with two vehicles which, however, are not equipped
to deal with chemical accidents, are permanently on duty.

The problem of intra-Community road transport has been aggravated by the closure of the St Gotthard
tunnel, the fact that the Mont Blanc is out of service, the traffic restrictions in the Brenner Pass and the
congestion in the Fréjus tunnel, where traffic has increased to some 8 000 vehicles a day.

In view of the lack of any European legislation setting out the necessary safety standards to be respected
before tunnels become operational, will the Commission look into legislation to set out the safety systems
and services required to guarantee the proper functioning of such facilities?

Will the Commission draw up a directive to make the introduction of dual lanes in existing and new
tunnels compulsory.

Will the Commission take measures to promote the development of a combined road-rail system?

Will the Commission ensure that more stringent checks are made on public holidays with regard to
drivers’ driving and rest periods?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(29 January 2002)

As announced in the White Paper on European transport policy for 2010 (1) the Commission will propose,
at the start of the year 2002, a new legislation, which will guarantee a high level of safety for road users in
tunnels located on the trans-European network. The proposal will cover various safety issues, e.g. tunnel
operation, safety equipment, users information and organisation of rescues. Also, Council Directive 89/
106/EC of 21 December 1988 on the approximation of laws, regulations and administrative provisions of
the Member States relating to construction products (2) lays down the properties of construction products
and materials to be used in tunnels, given the need to guarantee a high level of safety for road users. The
harmonised technical specifications included in the relevant European standards define classes and levels,
which allow Member States to opt
for the appropriate level of safety when specifying permitted
construction materials for such tunnels.