European Parliament resolution on Tibet
Date: 2006-10-26
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: China, Tibetan question, human rights, international law, settlement of disputes

20.12.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 313 E/463

Thursday 26 October 2006

31.
Points out that it rejected as too complex the system of rotating voting rights applicable to decisions
of the Governing Council as adopted in 2003; considers, with a view to future enlargements of the euro
zone, that a system should be introduced which combines fairness and effectiveness; recalls its resolution
calling for an ECB board of nine members, which would be in charge of monetary policy, thus replacing the
cumbersome system existing now and avoiding the even more complex solution decided upon for the
future; urges that the Treaty be changed accordingly;

Invites the ECB to give greater weight in its communication strategy to hearings of its President by

32.
the Parliament committee responsible for economic and monetary affairs;

Management of the ECB

33.
Notes that the ECB's staff complement has increased steadily and substantially since 1999, an
increase of 86 % over that period; notes that the ECB reports a temporary freeze on its staff complement
over several months in 2005, but that it nonetheless continued to increase by 3,5 % that year; notes that the
ECB has emphasised its determination to increase its internal effectiveness; regards that objective as laudable,
and hopes that it can be achieved on a sustainable basis, in particular by means of a long-term stabilisation
in staff numbers;

34.
Stresses the importance that the ECB and the national central banks must accord to the quality of
dialogue, transparency of information and recognition of the existence of trade unions at meetings of the
staff committee;

35.
Considers that involving the staff and their trade unions in the decisions that concern them, and
high-level social dialogue, will contribute to the emergence of a common culture within the Eurosystem and
the ESCB;

36.
Notes that the ECB's entire 2005 surplus of EUR 992 million has been set aside as a provision to
cover exchange rate risk, interest rate risk and the risk of fluctuations in the price of gold, resulting in a net
profit of zero; notes that the level of this provision will be reviewed annually; notes, at the same time, that
the cost of constructing the ECB's new headquarters is put at EUR 850 million; calls on the ECB to clarify
its targets regarding the level of own funds and provisions, and also to implement a budgetary policy which,
while ensuring appropriate cover for the risks to which it is exposed, enables it to achieve satisfactory
financial results;

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Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the President of the Eurogroup, the Council, the

37.
Commission and the European Central Bank.

P6_TA(2006)0465

Tibet

The European Parliament,

European Parliament resolution on Tibet

— having regard to its previous resolutions on Tibet and the human rights situation in China,

— having regard to its resolution of 7 September 2006 on EU-China relations (1),

— having regard to the lack of progress in the EU-China human rights dialogue,

(1) Texts Adopted, P6_TA(2006)0346.

C 313 E/464

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

20.12.2006

Thursday 26 October 2006

— having regard to the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials
adopted by the Eighth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of
Offenders, held in Havana, Cuba between 27 August and 7 September 1990,

— having regard to the UN's International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,

— having regard to the UN's Convention on the Rights of the Child,

— having regard to Rule 115(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas on 30 September 2006 more than 70 Tibetans were attempting to cross the glaciated Nangpa
Pass in the Himalayan region of Tibet, approximately two hours' walk from the Nepalese border, in
order to seek refugee status in Nepal,

B. whereas against the rule of international law the Chinese People's Armed Police Force (PAP) fired upon
those unarmed Tibetan civilians, who included women and children; whereas video and photographic
evidence of the incident shows that the Tibetan group was moving slowly away from the Chinese forces
firing upon them, did not approach the Chinese forces and did not represent a threat to the Chinese
forces,

C. whereas Kelsang Namtso, a seventeen-year-old nun, was killed during the shooting by the Chinese PAP;
whereas there are unconfirmed eyewitness accounts of more than one death; whereas a group of Tibe-
tans, including children, were arrested after continuing to flee,

D. whereas the Chinese State News Agency, Xinhua, has reported an incident in the region as ‘self-defence’
despite video and photographic evidence to the contrary; whereas the Chinese authorities have thus far
not officially recognised that the incident at Nangpa Pass took place or that any individual was killed by
Chinese forces,

E. whereas since September 2002 formal contacts have been re-established between the Chinese authori-

ties and the representatives of the Dalai Lama in order to restore mutual trust and confidence,

F. whereas, despite these contacts and the importance attached to the meetings by the central Chinese
authorities, there have been frequent cases over the past years of abuses and violations of human rights
perpetrated against the Tibetan population, and in particular against Tibetan monks,

Condemns the excessive use of force by the Chinese People's Armed Police Force in firing upon

1.
unarmed Tibetan civilians, including children;

Strongly condemns the killing of an unarmed civilian who, being under 18 years of age, was also

2.
considered a child under international law;

3.

Expresses its dismay at the imprisonment of Tibetan civilians, nine of whom are children;

4.
Urges the Chinese authorities to guarantee that the Tibetans detained during the incident will not be
ill-treated in detention and that international human rights and humanitarian law standards are being
respected;

5.

Urges the Chinese authorities to release immediately all children detained following the incident;

Urges the Chinese authorities to conduct a full investigation into the events at Nangpa Pass and ensure

6.
that those responsible for any crimes committed there are brought to justice;

7.
Calls on the Council and the Commission to monitor closely, through their representations in Nepal,
the situation of those Tibetans from the group who have reached Nepal and to make strong representations
to the Chinese authorities on this issue within the framework of the EU-China Human Rights Dialogue;

20.12.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 313 E/465

Thursday 26 October 2006

8.
Calls on the Council and the Commission to reiterate their position that only dialogue between the
Government of the People's Republic of China and the representatives of the Dalai Lama can contribute to a
peaceful and sustainable settlement for Tibet that both sides agree upon;

Calls on the Government of the People's Republic of China to continue its dialogue with the repre-
9.
sentatives of the Dalai Lama in order to improve respect for religious, cultural, linguistic and political rights
in the Tibet Autonomous Region;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the UN Secretary-

10.
General and the Government of the People's Republic of China.

P6_TA(2006)0466

Case against Ríos Montt

European Parliament resolution on the proceedings against Ríos Montt

The European Parliament,

— having regard to its resolutions of 18 May 2000 (1), 14 June 2001 (2), 11 April 2002 (3), 10 April

2003 (4) and 7 July 2005 (5) on Guatemala,

— having regard to the International Criminal Court Statute, the Convention against Torture and Other
Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and the European Convention for the Protec-
tion of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms,

— having regard to its firm and permanent commitment to ensure compliance with the peace agreements

and with human rights in Guatemala,

— having regard to Rule 115(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. having regard to the allegations of crimes against humanity and genocide during the armed conflict in
Guatemala, according to which 83 % of the victims of the conflict were of Mayan ethnic origin,
200 000 people were murdered and 45 000 suffered enforced disappearances, 10 % of the population
was displaced and entire indigenous communities were eradicated; whereas, as the Parliament has
gradually come to acknowledge, these crimes cannot go unpunished,

B. whereas those accused of planning and committing the above-mentioned crimes have never been

brought before a court and some of them continue to hold high political office,

C. whereas in December 2006 the 10th anniversary of the peace accords will be commemorated and the
Global Agreement on Human Rights has still not been implemented: the victims have not obtained
adequate compensation, whether material or symbolic; the perpetrators of the crimes have never pub-
licly apologised; and the whereabouts of most of the disappeared people remains unknown,

D. whereas on 7 July 2006, a judge at the Spanish Audiencia Nacional issued an international warrant for
the arrest of seven former Guatemalan dictators and military officers accused of genocide, torture and
illegal detention,

E. whereas before issuing the warrant, the judge travelled to Guatemala to carry out investigations which
he was unable to conduct following appeals to the Guatemalan constitutional court and court for
resolving conflicts of jurisdiction by the defendants' lawyers,

(1) OJ C 59, 23.2.2001, p. 286.
(2) OJ C 53 E, 28.2.2002, p. 403.
(3) OJ C 127 E, 29.5.2003, p. 688.
(4) OJ C 64 E, 12.3.2004, p. 609.
(5) OJ C 157 E, 6.7.2006, p. 494.