European Parliament resolution on the human rights situation in Togo
Date: 2001-12-13
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: EU relations, Togo, diplomatic relations, human rights, opposition, parliamentary election, political prisoner, political violence

C 177 E/316

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

25.7.2002

Thursday 13 December 2001

7.
Takes the view that European policies on the control of immigration must go beyond the imposition
of frontier checks and attack the political, economic and social reasons which, in the developing world,
prompt millions of people to flee their countries;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the government

8.
and parliament of Ireland.

23. Human rights: Togo

B5-0768, 0778, 0786, 0793 and 0804/2001

European Parliament resolution on the human rights situation in Togo

The European Parliament,

! having regard to its previous resolutions on Togo, and in particular that of 6 September 2001 (1),

! having regard to the resolution adopted by the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly on the situation

in West Africa, with particular reference to the paragraphs on Togo,

A. whereas the political and economic situation in Togo calls for a climate of confidence to be re-estab-
lished without delay; whereas this is the only means of securing the economic development and
democratisation of Togolese society which the Lomé framework agreement was intended to foster,

B. whereas the new threats of legal action against Mr Agboyibo, chairman of the Action Committee for

Renewal, stem solely from his political activities,

C. whereas the Togolese President, General Eyadema, has stated his willingness to grant a pardon to

Mr Agboyibo should he ask for one,

D. whereas Mr Agboyibo is refusing to apply for a presidential pardon until such time as the Court of

Appeal has given its ruling,

E.

F.

having regard to the imprisonment of the leader of the students’ union, Hounjo Mawudzuro,

deploring the fact that the President of the National Assembly has expressed the wish to amend the
electoral code and change the Constitution, which is incompatible with President Eyadema’s commit-
ment, repeated on several occasions, to respect Article 59 of the Constitution limiting the number of
presidential terms,

G. deploring the violent acts of aggression by militants of the ruling RTP party against opposition parties

whenever they attempt to campaign in the north of the country,

H. whereas the decree setting the date for the next parliamentary elections in March 2002 and the release

of a budget for their organisation must be seen as a step forward,

1.
Calls on President Eyadema not to wait until Yawovi Agboyibo applies for a pardon before having
him released, so as to demonstrate that the presidential alliance will allow the Togolese opposition to
express itself fully and freely during the forthcoming elections;

2.

Reiterates its condemnation of human rights abuses by President Eyadema’s regime;

Deplores the fact that Mr Mawudzuro, who was released on 28 November 2001,

3.
charges of character defamation and false accusation;

is still facing

Requests that Mr Agoyibo’s conviction be removed from his police record, so as to enable him to

4.
stand as a candidate in the forthcoming elections;

(1)

‘Texts Adopted’, Item 16.

25.7.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 177 E/317

Thursday 13 December 2001

5.
Calls on President Eyadema to ensure that his government and the National Assembly comply with
the Lomé framework agreement signed by the opposition parties and the President’s regime in July 1999;

Calls on the Togolese authorities to put an end to the climate of impunity in Togo and to identify
6.
and bring to justice those responsible for human rights violations as established by the UN-OAU inquiry;

7.
Calls on the EU to continue scrutinising respect for human rights and democratic principles in Togo
and to make the resumption of normal cooperation relations conditional on substantial progress being
achieved in these areas;

8.
Draws the Togolese authorities’ attention to the fact that the only way of normalising cooperation
relations between Togo and the European Union is to guarantee respect for human rights and to promote
the rule of law;

Calls on the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly to send a joint mission to Togo to look into

9.
human rights issues and to hold talks with the regime and the opposition, including Mr Agboyibo;

Calls for all obstacles to freedom of expression to be removed and for an end to be put to repress-

10.
ive action and threats against the opposition;

11. Welcomes the decrees recently issued by the Togolese Presidency, which set new dates for the
revision of the electoral rolls and for the first round of the parliamentary elections, which is now to be
held on 10 March 2002;

Calls on the government to guarantee all political parties free access to the media, and to guarantee

12.
the members of all political parties freedom of movement throughout the country;

Reiterates its support for the electoral process, provided that all candidates are able to participate

13.
freely in the elections, and stresses that EU financial aid is conditional upon this requirement being met;

Calls on Togo to sign the memorandum of understanding required for the deployment of European

14.
electoral observers;

Calls on the Commission to report to it on the European Union’s contribution to the electoral

15.
process;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the Government of

16.
Togo and the Co-Presidents of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly.

24. Human rights: Winners of the Sakharov prize

B5-0769, 0779, 0792, 0797, 0806 and 0809/2001

European Parliament resolution on Aung San Suu Kyi and Leyla Zana, winners of the Sakharov
prize

The European Parliament,

A. whereas the Treaty on European Union refers to the development and consolidation of democracy and
the rule of law and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms as some of the principal
objectives of the Common Foreign and Security Policy,

B. whereas since 1988 the Sakharov Prize has been awarded to personalities and organisations which
have made a decisive contribution to the struggle for human rights and freedoms in their respective
countries,