Activities of Frieda BREPOELS related to 2012/2033(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Alleged transportation and illegal detention of prisoners in European countries by the CIA (debate)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the alleged transportation and illegal detention of prisoners in European countries by the CIA: follow-up of the EP TDIP Committee report
Amendments (14)
Amendment 1 #
Draft opinion
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas the European Union is founded on commitment to democracy, the rule of law and, human rights and fundamental freedoms, respect for human rdightsnity and international law, not only in its internal policies, but also externally; whereas the EU commitment to human rights reinforced by the entry into force of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the accession process to the ECHR must be reflected into all areas of policy in order to make the EU human rights policy effective and credible;
Amendment 5 #
Draft opinion
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas instruments governing the EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) include the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and its two Optional Protocols, and the UN Convention Against Torture (CAT), and the Optional Protocol to the CAT, which not only mandates an absolute ban on torture but also requires investigation of allegations of tortureentails a positive obligation to investigate allegations of torture and to provide remedies and reparation; whereas the EU guidelines on torture provide the framework for the EU's efforts ‘'to prevent and eradicate torture and ill- treatment in all parts of the world’;
Amendment 6 #
Draft opinion
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
B a. whereas secret detention, which constitutes enforced disappearances, may amount, if widely or systematically practiced, to a crime against humanity; whereas states of emergency and the fight against terrorism constitute an enabling environment for secret detention;
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion
Recital D a (new)
Recital D a (new)
D a. whereas the US government passed, in December 2011, detention provisions in the National Defence Authorisation Act that introduce indefinite detention of persons suspected of engaging in terrorist actions within the US and undermine the right to due process and a fair trial;
Amendment 26 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Reiterates its condemnation of the practices of extraordinary rendition, secret prisons and torture, which are prohibited under domestic and international human rights law and which breach inter alia the rights to liberty, security, humane treatment, freedom from torture, presumption of innocence, fair trial, legal counsel and equal protection under the law; reaffirms in this respect that the use of unreliable and unenforceable diplomatic assurances to send foreigners alleged to be threats to national security to countries where they are at risk of torture or other ill-treatment contradicts states' obligations in this regard, and calls on the Council and EU Member States to ban this practice;
Amendment 33 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3 a. Reiterates that full application of the human rights clause of agreements is fundamental in the relations between the European Union and its Member States and third countries and considers that there is a real momentum to revisit how European governments have cooperated with the apparatus of repression of dictatorships in the name of countering terrorism; considers in this respect that the newly revised European Neighbourhood Policy must bring strong support to security sector reform which must notably ensure a clear separation of intelligence and law enforcement functions; calls on the EEAS, the Council and the Commission to reinforce its cooperation with the Committee for the Prevention of Torture and other relevant Council of Europe mechanisms in the planning and implementation of counter- terrorism assistance projects with third countries and in all forms of counter- terrorism dialogues with third countries;
Amendment 34 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Reiterates its call, required by international law and notably Article 12 of the CAT, for all states faced with credible allegations to end impunity and conduct thorough investigations and inquiries into all alleged acts of extraordinary rendition, secret prisons, torture and other serious human rights violations, so to determine responsibility and ensure accountability, including bringing individuals to justice where there is evidence of criminal liability; calls in this respect on the HR/VP and EU Member States to take all necessary measures to ensure a due follow-up to the UN Joint Study on global practices in relation to secret detention in the context of countering terrorism , in particular regarding the follow-up letter sent by the Special Mandates holders on 21 October 2011 to 59 states asking their respective governments to provide an update on the implementation of the recommendations contained in this study;
Amendment 45 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5 a. Pays tribute to US civil society initiatives to set up in 2010 an independent bipartisan taskforce to examine the US Government's policy and actions related to the capture, detention and prosecution of "suspected terrorists" and US custody during the Clinton, Bush and Obama administrations;
Amendment 47 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Calls on the relevant authorities to end the habit of routinely invoking state secrecy in relation to international intelligence cooperation to block accountability and redress, and insists that only genuine national security reasons can justify secrecy, which is in any case overridden by non-derogable fundamental rights obligations such as the absolute prohibition on torture; calls in this respect to equally avoid the use of diplomatic assurances as their application has shown to undermine the relevant states' duties to actively seek to prevent any actions that could in any way facilitate torture or ill- treatment;
Amendment 54 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Amendment 55 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 b (new)
Paragraph 7 b (new)
7 b. Deplores the Macedonian Government's failure to take any investigative steps regarding the illegal detention and abduction of Khaled El- Masri and the lack of action by the Office of the Skopje Prosecutor to carry out a criminal investigation into Mr El-Masri's complaint; notes that the European Court of Human Rights has taken up the case of Mr El-Masri and that the Grand Chamber had its first hearing on 16 May 2012; considers that allegations against the Macedonian Government's conduct in the case of Mr El-Masri are inconsistent with the EU's founding principles of fundamental rights and the rule of law and must be duly raised by the Commission in the framework of the Macedonia accession process to the EU;
Amendment 56 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 c (new)
Paragraph 7 c (new)
7 c. Is particularly concerned by the procedure conducted by a US military commission regarding Mr Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri who could be sentenced to death if convicted; reiterates its long- standing opposition to the death penalty in all cases and under all circumstances and notes that Mr al-Nashiri's case has been before the European Court of Human Rights since 6 May 2011; calls on Poland and Romania to conduct effective investigations into their role in secret detentions and renditions and to use all available means to ensure that Mr al- Nashiri is not subjected to the death penalty; urges the HR/VP to raise the case of Mr al-Nashiri as a matter of priority with the US and to implement with its strategic partner the EU Guidelines on the death penalty;
Amendment 61 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8 a. Urges the relevant authorities to ensure that a strict distinction is made between the activities of intelligence and security services on the one hand and law enforcement agencies on the other hand, so as to ensure that the general principle of "nemo iudex in sua causa" is upheld;
Amendment 63 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8 a. Calls on the Conference of Delegations Chairs to ensure that parliamentary dialogues be initiated on the protection of fundamental rights while countering terrorism on the basis of and in follow-up to the findings of the UN Joint Study on global practices in relation to secret detention in the context of countering terrorism and of the UN compilation of good practices on legal and institutional frameworks and measures that ensure respect for human rights by intelligence agencies while countering terrorism, including their oversight;