WRITTEN QUESTION E-0465/04 by José Ribeiro e Castro (UEN) to the Commission. Establishing the Made in EU label.
Date: 2004-02-23
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: consumer information, labelling, marketing, originating product, proposal (EU), quality label

C 88 E/186

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

8.4.2004

(2004/C 88 E/0192)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0429/04

by John Bowis (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(17 February 2004)

Subject: The case of Rev. Rinaldy Damanik, Indonesia

Is the Commission aware that the Rev. Rinaldy Damanik was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment for
possessing illegal weapons, in what is alleged to be a politically motivated trial? The Palu High Court has
since upheld the verdict of the State Court and Rev. Damanik’s lawyers are now preparing an appeal to the
Supreme Court in Jakarta.

As the head of the Crisis Centre in Central Sulawesi, he was responsible for keeping the international
community informed about human rights violations against Christian and Muslim communities and
providing practical assistance to the many internally displaced persons,
including the evacuation of
Christians under attack from militants.

Will the Commission enquire into his welfare and the process that led to his arrest and trial?

Answer given by Mr Patten on behalf of the Commission

(12 March 2004)

The Commission is closely following the case of Reverend Damanik, whose sentence to three years
imprisonment for illegal possession of weapons has been confirmed by the Supreme Court at the end of
2003. Since Reverend Damanik has already spent one-and-a-half years in prison, there is a possibility of an
earlier release.

The Commission Delegation in Jakarta was in contact with the association that was assisting Reverend
Damanik, PBHI. This group will not be able to do so any more (after the sentence of the highest court) but
another human rights non-governmental organisation, linked to the Indonesian Church, has taken over the
assistance to Reverend Damanik. The Delegation has contacted them and was informed that they are
assessing the feasibility of starting a new case, by bringing up new evidence/witnesses.

The Commission can assure the Honourable Member that, through its Delegation in Jakarta, it is closely
monitoring the case. Moreover, support to organisations defending minority rights in Indonesia is part of
the Community’s co-operation programme with the country,
in particular through projects supported
under the European Initiative for Democracy and Human Rights.

(2004/C 88 E/0193)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0465/04

by José Ribeiro e Castro (UEN) to the Commission

(23 February 2004)

Subject: Establishing the ‘Made in EU’ label

Various recent media reports indicate that the Commission is preparing a proposal for a ‘Made in EU’ label,
and the consequent abolition of national labels.

Their reports claim that the idea came from Italy, in response to the enormous harm suffered by the
European textile industry as a result of imitations made in developing countries, but that it has now
swelled to embrace the general problem of the labelling of all products manufactured within the Union.

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Official Journal of the European Union

C 88 E/187

Can the Commission answer the following:

(cid:1) is there any truth in these reports?

(cid:1) is the Commission going to put forward some proposal in this field, embodying this or other ideas?

(cid:1) if the reports are correct, what does the Commission think are the advantages and disadvantages of
establishing a ‘Made in EU’ label, to the detriment of nationally-based labels? What kind of studies did
the Commission use to arrive at these findings on advantages and disadvantages?

(cid:1) what are the forecast additional costs that such a measure would involve? Does the Commission not
think that eliminating any reference to national origin in labelling could in fact prejudice the
competitiveness of many European products, whose market edge is provided precisely by the fact that
they come from a specific Member State?

Answer given by Mr Lamy on behalf of the Commission

(11 March 2004)

In the light of renewed interest shown by some industry sectors and Member States in the development of
an EC regulation on origin marking, the Commission opted to prepare a working document submitted to
the 133 Committee 19 December 2003 setting out the implications of such a scheme, in order to launch
the debate (1).

The document indicates the options to be considered, in case it would be appropriate to change the status
quo on this matter and implement an EC regime:

(cid:1) the option of origin marking both for imports and domestic market products on a purely voluntary

basis;

(cid:1) the approach of a mixed system with a compulsory origin marking for imports and a voluntary

scheme for domestic products;

(cid:1) and the third option of a compulsory origin marking both for imports and for domestic products.

The paper also gives an overview on the pros and cons of an EC regulation on origin marking, namely,
the improvement of consumer information, the reduction of consumer fraud and deceptive practices, the
strengthening of the concept of European origin as a mark of quality, or the reinforcement of the visibility
of the EC as a single market (cid:1) which should be weighed against the potential additional costs for
producers and administrations, practical difficulties in implementing such a scheme, the necessity and
effectiveness of a new set of rules, etc.

The document does not specifically address the question of national origin marks (i.e. Made in Portugal)
and it is worth underlining that no proposal has been made to question the continued use of them. It does
not cover geographical indications (i.e. Made in the Algarve) more related to Intellectual Property Rights.

The Commission is not at this stage presenting any concrete proposals. It is for all interested parties at the
national and EU level to determine their interests in the issue of developing an EC regulation on origin
marking, including the value added of implementing a ‘made in the EU’ origin claim and, if they favour
change, the nature and scope of any possible regulation.

The Commission has already contacted different representatives of the industry and consumers and is
receiving their comments and suggestions. Member States have been invited to consult domestically on the
subject.

(1) See http://trade-info.cec.eu.int/doclib/html/115557.htm