WRITTEN QUESTION P-2616/03 by Alexandros Alavanos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission. Exclusion of feta cheese, ouzo and Kalamata olives from the list of products with geographical indications of origin to be negotiated at the WTO.
Date: 2003-08-25
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Greece, World Trade Organisation, designation of origin, liqueur, olive, product designation, sheep's milk cheese

C 78 E/748

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

27.3.2004

Under that system, an instrument for funding restructuring and conversion operations was introduced in
2000 under a budget managed by the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF)
Guarantee Section.

That budget is shared out among the various Member States by the Commission on the basis of the criteria
laid down in the Council Regulation and its use is strictly governed by Commission Regulation (EC)
No 1227/2000 of 31 May 2000 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC)
No 1493/1999 on the common organisation of the market in wine, as regards production potential (2).

Therefore the Commission is fully aware of the information to which the Honourable Member refers.

The vineyard restructuring and conversion policy is part of a wine production potential management
strategy.

This is why, to prevent the qualitative restructuring of vineyards from having a quantitative impact on the
volume of production, the Community rules include a number of safeguards, such as restrictions on vine
yields, rules on the transfer of replanting rights between holdings, and the specific problem of vine
irrigation. These provisions are applied by the Member States concerned and are verified and checked by
the Commission.

(1) OJ L 179, 14.7.1999.
(2) OJ L 143, 16.6.2000.

(2004/C 78 E/0796)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-2616/03

by Alexandros Alavanos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(25 August 2003)

Subject: Exclusion of feta cheese, ouzo and Kalamata olives from the list of products with geographical

indications of origin to be negotiated at the WTO

The Article 133 Committee has excluded the Greek products of feta cheese, ouzo and Kalamata olives
from the list of products with geographical indications of origin to be negotiated at the WTO.

Given that this exclusion is tantamount to discrimination against vitally important Greek products that are
recognised not only in Europe but throughout the world, will the Commission say:

1. why the abovementioned Greek products, which have been recognised as being of protected
geographical origin, have not been included in the list of such products to be discussed at Cancun,
Mexico?

2. what provisions on the recognition of products with geographical indications of origin have been

included in the agreement on agricultural trade between the EU and USA (13 August 2003)?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(18 September 2003)

1.
On 27 August 2003 the Council’s Article 133 Committee endorsed the list of geographical
indications which the European Union will soon be submitting to the World Trade Organisation (WTO),
the objective being to prevent misuse of these names at international level. The list contains 41 names, two
of which are Greek (cid:1) ‘feta’ and ‘ouzo’.

27.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 78 E/749

The European Union/United States document on agriculture refers to geographical indications as one
2.
of the subjects for discussion. The Commission will continue to pursue the objective of strengthening the
protection of geographical indications in Cancun.

In view of the different positions taken by the two sides, it is not possible to go any further at this stage.

(2004/C 78 E/0797)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2627/03

by Maurizio Turco (NI) to the Council

(2 September 2003)

Subject: Follow-up on the ‘Resolution on sexual violence against women, particularly Catholic nuns’

adopted by the European Parliament on 5 April 2001

On 5 April 2001 the European Parliament adopted a ‘Resolution on sexual violence against women,
particularly Catholic nuns’ (B5-0261, 0272, 0280 and 0298/2001) (1), which referred, among other things,
to the following:

a)

b)

the report in the US periodical the National Catholic Reporter indicating that a large number of
Catholic nuns had been raped by priests in at least 23 countries;

confirmation by the Holy See that it was aware of cases of rape and sexual abuse of women, including
nuns, by Catholic priests, because at least five reports on this subject had been submitted to the
Vatican since 1994, and according to those reports many of the nuns raped were also compelled to
have abortions or resign, and in some cases became infected with HIV/AIDS.

In adopting the resolution, the European Parliament called:

(a)

for those responsible for the crimes to be arrested and brought to justice;

(b) on the judicial authorities of the 23 countries cited in the reports to ensure that all appropriate

judicial action was taken to establish the truth about the cases of violence against women;

(c) on the Holy See to take all allegations of sexual abuse within its organisations seriously, to cooperate

with the judicial authorities and to remove the perpetrators from office;

(d) on the Holy See to reinstate those female officials who had been removed from their posts for
drawing their supervisors’ attention to such abuses and to afford the victims the necessary protection
from and compensation for any discrimination which might ensue;

(e)

for the content of the five reports cited by the National Catholic Reporter to be published in full; and

(f)

the Council of Europe,

instructed its President to forward the resolution to the Council, the Commission, the authorities of
the Holy See,
the United Nations Human Rights Commission and the
Governments of Botswana, Burundi, Brazil, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana,
India, Ireland, Italy, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Nigeria, Papua-New Guinea, the Philippines, South Africa,
Sierra Leone, Uganda, Tanzania, Tonga, the United States of America, Zambia and Zimbabwe.