WRITTEN QUESTION E-0906/03 by José Ribeiro e Castro (UEN) to the Commission. Cuba; Cotonou Agreement; Human rights.
Date: 2003-03-24
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Cotonou Agreement, Cuba, EU relations, accession to an agreement, democracy, human rights, international relations, the EU's international role

27.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 78 E/359

Answer given by Mr Lamy on behalf of the Commission

(16 May 2003)

The Honourable Member has raised the complex issue of liability in the case of GM crops spreading into
conventional or organic crops, should this cause damage to conventional or organic producers.

The issue is related to intentional and non-intentional spread of GMOs into the environment and to the
co-existence of different agricultural production systems and is in particular a matter of gene flow. Gene
flow between crops related to production methods in the country of origin and is therefore not a trade
issue per se. The Commission therefore does not consider that the WTO is the appropriate international
forum to discuss gene flows between GM crops and conventional crops and a liability regime.

Liability is normally addressed in international conventions dealing with particular issues. In the case of
GMOs, the Commission is currently involved in the on-going discussions on liability and redress in the
context of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to the Convention on Biological Diversity. Such discussions
are, however, at a very early stage and the formal negotiating process on this matter will only be launched
at the First Meeting of the Parties to the Biosafety Protocol which is due to take place in April 2004.

(2004/C 78 E/0378)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0906/03

by José Ribeiro e Castro (UEN) to the Commission

(24 March 2003)

Subject: Cuba; Cotonou Agreement; Human rights

In view of the fact that:

(a) Commissioner Paul Nielsen is currently visiting Cuba for the opening of the Commission delegation’s

office there;

(b) Cuba has expressed its desire to accede to the Cotonou Agreement;

(c)

the European Union has been Cuba’s most important trading partner;

(d) according to Common Position 96/697/CFSP (1) the Union’s policy with regard to Cuba is based on

dialogue designed to encourage transition to pluralist democracy;

(e)

the Member States have systematically condemned Cuba in the UN Commission on Human Rights;

(f)

in 1999 the EU presidency expressed deep concern at certain provisions of
incorporated into Cuban criminal law, which restrict even further the exercise of citizens’ rights;

the amendments

(g) on 16 December 2002 Oswaldo José Paya Sardinas, the 2002 Sakharov prize winner, told the
European Parliament that some of his friends were being ‘victimised and subjected to real acts of
terror’ and that if the Government decided to sign the Cotonou Agreement, the issue of human rights
would have to be dealt with in accordance with the clause included in the Agreement itself,

Can the Commission say:

(cid:1) whether there are changes in the behaviour of the political

leadership in Cuba to justify closer
relations with the European Union, in particular that country’s accession to the Cotonou Agreement?
What tangible results the European Union’s policy towards Cuba has already achieved with regard to
transition to democracy? Whether it is developing a policy to promote Cuba’s accession to the
Agreement and what results it expects to achieve and when? How the Commission classifies Cuba,
with reference to its political system and the regime’s behaviour?

(1) OJ L 322, 12.12.1996, p. 1.

C 78 E/360

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

27.3.2004

Answer given by Mr Nielson on behalf of the Commission

(17 June 2003)

The respect of fundamental freedoms and political rights in Cuba remains a cause of serious concern for
the Union. Some positive signs were noted by the Member States during the 11th and 12th evaluations of
the Common Position last year, but major changes to promote respect for human rights and real progress
towards pluralist democracy were still lacking.

Developments in Cuba have since taken a very negative turn with the large scale arrest of dissidents
between 18 and 25 March, the unfair trials and the arbitrary and excessive sentences imposed on them, as
well as, with the end of the ‘de facto’ moratorium on the death penalty, the execution of three people
convicted of hijacking a Cuban ferry in the beginning of April.

Those events have prompted a swift reaction from the Union. The Parliament, the Council and the
Commission strongly condemned the situation. The European Parliament, in its resolution of 10 April, as
well as the Council in its resolutions of 26 March and 14 April, have established a link between the
prisoners’ release and Cuban accession to Cotonou.

The Commission decided on 30 April to defer the examination of the Cuban application for accession of
the Cotonou Agreement, signalling that these recent developments are not conducive to co-operation
between the European Union and Cuba.

The Cuban authorities decided on 16 May to withdraw their application.

As far as the last question is concerned, the Commission considers that the current regime in Cuba (cid:1) one
of the world’s last Communist states- is not a democratic one nor does it promote a market-based
economy. It is, therefore, a regime with which a reinforced dialogue needs to be pursued, in order to
encourage a process of peaceful
for human rights and
fundamental freedoms, as well as a sustainable economy and improvement in the living standards of the
Cuban people.

transition to pluralist democracy, respect

(2004/C 78 E/0379)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1141/03

by Stavros Xarchakos (PPE-DE) to the Commission

Subject: Infrastructural damage caused by landslides in Greece

(1 April 2003)

Enormous infrastructural damage has been caused recently by widespread landslides in different parts of
Greece, including the large scale destruction of homes and farmland, together with unexpectedly severe
damage to recently constructed roads (for example, the new Corinth-Tripoli motorway).

The landslides could be connected with geological shifts affecting Greece as a whole, resulting from a
number of
factors, possibly including intense seismic activity. Has the Commission received any
information from the Greek authorities regarding these landslides? What measures will the Commission
take to establish the reasons for the continuing damage to infrastructural projects co-funded by the EU in
Greece?

Answer given by Mr Barnier on behalf of the Commission

(15 May 2003)

The Commission refers the Honourable Member to its responses to written questions E-0492/03 by
Mr Hatzidakis (1), E-0657/03 by Mr Alavanos (2) and E-0910/03 by Mr Trakatellis (3).

(1) OJ C 242 E, 9.10.2003, p. 136.
(2) OJ C 268 E, 7.11.2003, p. 116.
(3) OJ C 11 E, 15.1.2004, p. 154.