Brussels, 26/03/2008 (Agence Europe) - Meeting for their plenary session on Wednesday 26 March, the members of the European Parliament unanimously called for an end to violence in Tibet and for respect for human rights and minority rights in China. They all plead in favour of a peaceful solution to the trouble which has been brewing for the last fortnight and against a boycott of the Olympic Games next August, except perhaps the opening ceremony. An MEP resolution on Tibet will be voted on by the plenary session of 10 April. This question was also on the agenda of the meeting of the committee on foreign affairs and the EP, which is chaired by Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, who met the exiled president of the Tibetan parliament, Karma Chophel, late on Wednesday afternoon. It also provoked a reaction from the President of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), Dimitris Dimitriadis, who urged the Chinese authorities to enter constructive dialogue with the Dalai Lama. A debate will be held on the subject at the April plenary session of the EESC, the conclusions of which will be sent to the meeting of the EU/china round table, scheduled to be held in Beijing on 8 June.
The European Parliament defends human rights in Tibet, were the opening comments of its president Hans-Gert Pöttering. “We condemn all forms of violence and any recourse to disproportionate police and military means” and the deaths of any peaceful protesters. “We cannot accept that the Dalai Lama is involved in terrorism, we cannot accept his demonisation”, he said, indicating that the latter will be “welcome at the EP at any time”. He went on to call for an agreement respecting, on one hand, the territorial integrity of China and the cultural identity and human rights of the people of Tibet on the other. We hope that the Olympic Games will be a success, but the conditions must be respected, he reiterated, stating that “all responsible politicians must ask themselves whether they can attend the opening ceremony if China fails to take part in dialogue”. Although the Greens/EFA take the view that “we must look into the possibility of a boycott of the Olympic Games without taboo”, the PES concluded that this kind of action would bring nothing positive to the search for a solution to the situation in Tibet. “Talking about a boycott against the forthcoming Olympic Games in Beijing would be a complete mistake”, said the group's President Martin Schulz, who would prefer to see the Games as “an opportunity for dialogue between China and the world”.
Janez Lenarèiè, the Slovenian Secretary of State for European Affairs, called for dialogue to continue on the events in Tibet. The foreign affairs ministers of the EU will return to this subject at the Brdo Gymnich of 28 and 29 March, he announced, calling on the Chinese authorities to shed light on the events of the last two weeks. On the subject of the Olympic Games, Mr Lenarèiè reminded his audience of the joint declaration adopted at the beginning of last week by the Sports Ministers of the EU (EUROPE 9625), in which they reiterated the importance for human rights of the Olympic movement and opposed any boycott of the Olympic Games. “A boycott during the year of intercultural dialogue would be inappropriate”, stressed Mr Lenarèiè, who acknowledged that nothing has been said at ministerial level regarding the inauguration ceremony for the Games itself. The position of the European Commission on this issue remains the same, as its president José Manuel Barroso, indicated on the previous day (contrary to what was stated in our edition of yesterday), taking position against a boycott of this kind. On Wednesday, Benita Ferrero-Waldner called on the Chinese authorities to “show restraint and not use force against peaceful protesters”. In the view of the External Relations Commissioner, “a sustainable solution can be achieved only by peaceful means and a sincere and honest dialogue, a thorough dialogue”.
“The Dalai Lama is a moral person who remains above all suspicion”, stressed Jozsef Szajer (EPP-ED, Hungary). Although the time has not come to announce a boycott of the Olympic Games due to take place in five months' time, we must now call for an end to massacres and intimidation. The Olympic Games are also a symbol of peace and appeasement. This symbol must endure, which cannot be the case in a country which kills its own people, he said. Pasqualina Napoletano (PES, Italy) hoped for a favourable response to the calls of the Dalai Lama for an international committee to travel to the area to call attention to the brutal and bloody events. “The political role of the Dalai Lama is irreplaceable” and the Chinese authorities must accept this and open direct negotiations with him. Welcoming the stance taken by the president of the Parliament, Bronislaw Geremek (ALDE, Poland) suggested launching dialogue at a round table bringing together Nobel Peace Prize winners and representatives of Tibet and of the Chinese authorities. This request will be examined by the Bureau and the Conference of the Presidents of the EP, promised Mr Pöttering. “The Olympic Games under a dictatorship would be a political act (…). Sport and democracy must go hand-in-hand”, said Daniel Cohn-Bendit (Greens-EFA, Germany), who called for a boycott of the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games by the Heads of State, athletes and journalists. Hoping for the engagement of citizens and spectators, he called on all those attending the Olympic Games to “give Beijing hell”, because “if everyone stays silent, this means victory for the Beijing dictatorship”. (A.B.)