European Parliament decision setting up a temporary committee on the alleged use of European countries by the CIA for the transportation and illegal detention of prisoners
Date: 2006-01-18
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: committee of inquiry, cruel and degrading treatment, imprisonment, right to justice, secret service, torture

24.11.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 287 E/159

— assess the status of claims by non-UK European citizens and the adequacy of remedies available under

UK and/or EU legislation for policy-holders from other Member States;

Wednesday, 18 January 2006

— make any proposals that it deems necessary in this matter.

3. Decides that the Committee of Inquiry shall present an interim report to Parliament within 4 months
of starting its work, with a view to presenting its final report to Parliament within 12 months of the adop-
tion of this decision;

4. Decides that the Committee of Inquiry will be composed of 22 Members of the European Parliament.

P6_TA(2006)0012

Temporary Committee on extraordinary rendition

European Parliament decision setting up a temporary committee on the alleged use of European
countries by the CIA for the transportation and illegal detention of prisoners

The European Parliament,

— having regard to the European Union's attachment to the principles of liberty, democracy and respect
for human rights and fundamental freedoms and of the rule of law as outlined in the preamble to the
Treaty on European Union and notably in Articles 6 and 7 of that Treaty,

— bearing in mind that, according to the case-law of the Court of Justice of the European Communities,

the protection of fundamental rights is also part of the constitutional order of the Community,

— bearing in mind that protecting human dignity is one of the key objectives of the Charter of Funda-
mental Rights of the European Union, as proclaimed by the institutions on 7 December 2000, and that
this fundamental value would be violated were cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of persons to
occur, for whatever reason, under the direct or indirect responsibility of EU Member States and institu-
tions,

— having regard to its resolution of 15 December 2005 on presumed use of European countries by the
CIA for the transportation and illegal detention of prisoners (1), which, as regards the inquiry pending
at the Council of Europe, envisages the need for a temporary committee of the European Parliament to
be set up to accompany such an enquiry, particularly as Member States are implicated,

— having regard to Rule 175 of its Rules of Procedure,

(1) Texts Adopted, P6_TA(2005)0529.

C 287 E/160

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

24.11.2006

Wednesday, 18 January 2006

— having regard to the proposal of the Conference of Presidents defining the remit and the composition
of the temporary committee on the alleged use of European Union territory, including acceding, candi-
date and associate countries, by the CIA or the intelligence services of other third countries for the
transportation and illegal detention of prisoners,

1. Decides to set up a temporary committee with the following remit:

a) to collect and analyse information to find out whether:

— the CIA or other US agents or intelligence services of other third countries have carried out abduc-
tions,
‘extraordinary rendition’, detention at secret sites, detention incommunicado or torture or
other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of prisoners on the territory of the European Union,
including accession and candidate countries, or have used that territory to those ends, for example
through flights;

— such actions, allegedly carried out in the territory of the European Union in the framework of the
fight against terrorism, could be considered a violation inter alia of Article 6 of the Treaty on Euro-
pean Union, Articles 2, 3, 5 and 6 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights
and Fundamental Freedoms, the Charter of Fundamental Rights, the UN Convention against Torture
and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the EU-US agreements on extra-
dition and on mutual legal assistance and other international treaties and agreements concluded by
the European Union/Community and its Member States, including the North Atlantic Treaty and its
related agreements on the status of forces and the Convention on International Civil Aviation;

— citizens of the European Union or the candidate countries, or any other person entitled to protec-
tion from, or otherwise under the jurisdiction of, the EU, the Member States or the candidate coun-
tries have been among those involved in or subjected to abductions, ‘extraordinary rendition’ opera-
tions, detention at secret sites, detention incommunicado or torture or other cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment in the territory of the European Union or elsewhere;

— Member States, public officials, persons acting in an official capacity or European Union institutions
have been involved or complicit in illegal deprivation of liberty of individuals, including abduction,
rendition, transfer, detention or torture, either by act or omission;

b) to submit to the plenary any recommendation that the committee deems necessary in this matter,
notably concerning the political, legal and administrative conclusions to be drawn at European level as
well as possible consequences for EU relations with third countries;

2. Decides that the temporary committee will liaise and cooperate as closely as possible with the Council
of Europe and its Secretary-General, Parliamentary Assembly and Commissioner for Human Rights and the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, as well as with national parliaments;

3. Decides that the temporary committee shall present an interim report to Parliament within four
months after it has started its work, with detailed proposals on how it will continue its work;

4. Decides that the temporary committee shall be composed of 46 Members of the European Parliament.