Strasbourg, 25/05/2012 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 24 May, the Council mulled over the possibility of imposing “targeted sanctions against those responsible for human rights violations, should these persist”.
With the adoption of a joint resolution, theParliament calls on the Azerbaijani authorities to “immediately” stop suppressing freedom of expression and assembly, and states that the Eurovision Song Contest, to be held in Baku on 26 May, is an occasion for the country to show its attachment to democracy and human rights.
MEPs also condemn the harassment, intimidation and violence against journalists, and invite the authorities to do something about it. They call upon the authorities to “immediately” release persons detained for political reasons and welcome the release of one member of the opposition party, Elnur Mecedli.
The Parliament also expresses concern at the forced eviction of people from their homes and the demolition of buildings as part of a major rebuilding plan in Baku.
North Korean refugees and China. In another resolution, MEPs call on North Korea to put an immediate end to the ongoing, generalised and systematic violations of human rights against the people.
China is called upon to put an end to the repatriation agreement with North Korea and calls on the country to grant refugees safe passage to South Korea or other third countries. The Parliament calls on China to stop cooperating with North Korean security agents in tracing North Korean refugees with the aim of arresting them and, instead, to allow NGOs access to North Korean refugees and asylum-seekers in China.
Venezuela. In a last resolution, MEPs voice concern about Venezuela's announcement to create a state committee to assess the possibility of withdrawing from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, and invite the government to reconsider its position. The Parliament fears that this possible withdrawal will be of a kind that isolates Venezuela and worsens the human rights situation there. Hailing the work done by that commission and calling on its member states to respect and apply the decisions, the Parliament calls on the non-member American countries - including the United States and Canada - to join rapidly, and to play a full part. Debates on this resolution were tense as several MEPs considered this could be tantamount to interference in the decision of a sovereign state. (CG/transl.jl)