Strasbourg, 13/12/2007 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 11 December, the European Parliament listened to the declarations of the Council and Commission on the 9th annual report on human rights, which covers the period from 1 July 2006 to 30 June 2007.
Current EU Council President Manuel Lobo Antunes recalled the decisive initiatives and decisions in this area over the period: drawing up guidelines on children (particularly on violence against them), the addition of two chapters on the neighbourhood policy and religious freedom, the replacement of the European Observatory of Racism and Xenophobia with the Fundamental Rights Agency, action against the death penalty. The EU was very diligent in this area, Antunes said, trying to persuade some countries to change their positions and commit themselves to saving human lives.
60 years after the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted, Benita Ferrero-Walder, speaking on behalf of the Commission, said it was important to move from commitment to implementation. She noted four significant developments. 1) Changes in the way human rights were investigated within the United Nations allowed for “cautious optimism”. The resolution calling for a moratorium on the death penalty was one example. 2) The increasing use of “human rights dialogues” which allowed concerns to be raised as and when appropriate. Last year, over 20 such dialogues took place, including with African countries and Uzbekistan. 3) The adoption of guidelines on human rights, with particular emphasis on violence against children. 4) The implementation, with effect from January, of the Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights, which seeks, among other things, to encourage development and democracy.
During a brief debate, several third countries, whose record on human rights was less than perfect, were criticised by the Parliament (Sudan, Burma/Myanmar, China, Russia, India), but some MEPs were also critical of the conduct of some EU countries with regard to migrants and some minorities. (L.G.)