29 Amendments of Reinhard BÜTIKOFER related to 2012/2026(INI)
Amendment 6 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 6 a (new)
Citation 6 a (new)
Amendment 9 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 6 b (new)
Citation 6 b (new)
– having regard to the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM), its strategic concept dated 5 January on establishing a presence in the four sectors and United Nations Security Council Resolution 2036 (2012) requesting the African Union to increase AMISOM's force strength from 12 000 to a maximum of 17 731 uniformed personnel, comprised of troops and personnel of formed police units;
Amendment 11 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 6 c (new)
Citation 6 c (new)
– having regard to the UN report of 25 January 2011 and its 25 proposals made by Jack Lang, United Nations Secretary General Special Adviser on legal issues related to piracy off the coast of Somalia; having regard to relevant follow-up reports by Jack Lang such as the report on the modalities for the establishment of specialized Somali anti-piracy courts of 15 June 2011 and the report of the Secretary- General on specialized anti-piracy courts in Somalia and other States in the region of 20 January 2012;
Amendment 23 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas the ongoing political instability and conflict in Somalia have virtually destroyed any prospects of economic development; whereas the lack of stable democratic and economic prospects for the population, particularly the young, coupled with an absence of the rule of law, provides fertile ground for encouraging criminal activities, including piracy and drug smuggling, and sustains terrorist groups such as Al-Shabaab; whereas, regrettably, piracy continues to be seen by some Somalis as the only profitable and viable source of income and means to a higher standard of living;
Amendment 42 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda have provided valuable military and political support for the efforts to achieve stability in the region, thereby proving that a viable solution for security and stabilitintegrated their military capabilities deployed in Somalia only partially into the region can be African- owned and African-led, with the active support of the international communityAMISOM mission, which acts under a mandate by the UN Security Council; whereas the African Union (AU) is a valuable partner for peace and stability in the region;
Amendment 45 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C a (new)
Recital C a (new)
Ca. whereas the security and military situation in Somalia remains dangerous and unpredictable; whereas the African Union mission AMISOM has been able to push back the Islamist militia Al Shabaab and has deployed 100 soldiers in Baidoa; whereas Kenya has recently intervened militarily in South-Central Somalia, but was unable to decisively defeat Al Shabaab; whereas Ethiopian National Defense Forces have intervened in the Hiraan region and the Bay region in February 2012; whereas human rights abuses, torture, arbitrary detentions, summary executions as well as unlawful reprisal attacks against civilians committed by Ethiopian forces and militias loyal to TFG have been made public by Human Rights Watch; whereas neighbouring Eritrea has been accused by the UN Sanctions Monitoring Group of providing weapons, training and financial support to Al Shabaab thus violating an UN arms embargo;
Amendment 48 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C b (new)
Recital C b (new)
Cb. whereas according to media reports the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operates both an air base close to Mogadishu's Aden Adde International Airport and a secret prison buried in the basement of Somalia's National Security Agency; whereas the CIA has reportedly abducted terrorist suspects also from neighbouring countries such as Kenya and brought them to its secret prison in Somalia; whereas the CIA has admittedly conducted extrajudicial killings by using a helicopter in September 2009 and a drone in June 2011 against suspected Al Shabaab leaders;
Amendment 53 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D a (new)
Recital D a (new)
Da. whereas the Horn of Africa and especially Somalia were affected by a severe famine crisis due to drought which resulted in a serious humanitarian crisis affecting more than 12 million people in the region and more than 7.5 million in Somalia; whereas the famine crisis not only caused the death of many people, especially children, but also led to a large scale refugee flow to neighbouring Kenya and Ethiopia; whereas the European Commission has increased its humanitarian aid assistance from EUR 9 million in 2009 to EUR 46 million in 2008, but has since then decreased its aid to only EUR 35 million in 2010 and EUR 30 million in 2011; whereas the European Commission revised its humanitarian aid policy to EUR 77 million only after the massive drought occurred during the summer 2011;
Amendment 60 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D b (new)
Recital D b (new)
Db. whereas fishing vessels from many countries have taken advantage of the chaos in Somalia to fish in the Somali 200 nautical mile zone since 1990, undermining the livelihood of Somali fishermen;
Amendment 64 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D c (new)
Recital D c (new)
Dc. whereas, according to a report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), a vast number of illegal shipments of toxic waste, the contents of which are leaking, have been deposited along the coast of Somalia, in total disregard for the health of the local population and conservation of the environment;, whereas, according to the same report, the waste dumped at sea partly originates from the European Union and is irreversibly damaging human health and the environment in the region, in flagrant violation of human rights;
Amendment 74 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. WelcomNotes the EU strategy for the Horn of Africa, and in particular its comprehensive approach based on tackling security and stability concerns, whilst addressing the underlying causes thereof; supports the five-pronged strategy based on: (i) building robust and accountable political structures in all countries of the Horn of Africa; (ii) working with the countries of the region and international organisations to resolve conflicts; (iii) ensuring that existing insecurity in the region does not threaten the security of other states; (iv) supporting efforts to promote economic growth and reduce poverty; and (v) supporting regional political and economic cooperation;
Amendment 76 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Deplores the fact that the strategic framework only comprises a collection of individual EU measures without clear and comprehensive political strategy; welcomes the appointment of EU Special Representative for the Horn of Africa Alexander Rondos; urges the HR/VP and the European Commission to actively support the work of the EUSR by providing him with adequate financial and human resources and direct access to CSDP structures and missions as well as to European Commission development and humanitarian aid policy structures and programs;
Amendment 78 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 b (new)
Paragraph 1 b (new)
1b. Recognises that peace in Somalia must be a bottom up process; recalls that the European Union ensures that its strategy allows for local efforts to build peace and resolve disputes to be sufficiently supported and made a national and regional priority; also reminds that local legitimacy will help the emergence of governing institutions in Somalia that offer long term prospects for stability;
Amendment 85 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Welcomes the important contribution made by EUNAVFOR Operation ATALANTA to maritime security off the coast of Somalia by protecting World Food Programme chartered vessels delivering aid to Somalia and other vulnerable vessels, as well as supplies to AMISOM; welcomes the Council decision of 23 March 2012 to prolonging EUNAVFOR Atalanta to December 2014 and; deplores however extending its mandate to target the operational bases of pirates onshore; urges the Member States to ensure that EUNAVFOR Atalanta is properly supported with adequate surveillance and patrol ships, as well as with the means for pursuing pirates on land;
Amendment 93 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Notes the presence of EUNAFVOR Atalanta off the coast of Somalia; reminds that EUNAFVOR Atalanta and other naval operations like NATO's Operation Ocean Shield can only successfully deter and contain piracy in case those pirates being captured by international forces face a fair trial and the political, social and economic root causes of the problem are being addressed on shore; notes with concern an increased use of violence by the pirates against unarmed civilians; rejects the March 23 Council Decision to allow EUNAFVOR Atalanta to destroy pirate logistics on shore which could contribute to further military escalation and potentially cause unacceptable collateral damage;
Amendment 103 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Strongly welcomes the UN report dated 25 January 2011 highlighting 25 proposals made by Jack Lang, United Nations Secretary General Special Adviser on legal issues related to piracy off the coast of Somalia; also welcomes the relevant follow-up reports by Jack Lang such as the report on the modalities for the establishment of specialized Somali anti-piracy courts dated 15 June 2011 and the report of the Secretary- General on specialized anti-piracy courts in Somalia and other States in the region dated 20 January 2012; urges the HR/VP, the EUSR, the three HoM and HoD to treat the proposals made by Jack Lang as a matter of priority and to develop an strategy on the EU's contribution to the international approach to criminal justice on the territory of Somalia;
Amendment 106 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. WelcomNotes the decision of July 2011 to extend and refocus the mandate of the EU Training Mission (EUTM) based in Uganda; nevertheless calls for the close monitoring of all recruits trained by EUTM, including of their conduct, in order to ensure that they are integrated into the Somali armed forces and that any defections are immediately investigated; also calls for the close monitoring of the chain of payments for training forces, to ensure that they reach their intended beneficiaries and generate motivation, allegiance and commitment,they adhere to international humanitarian law and applicable international human rights law in all operations and put in place effective mechanisms to monitor the human rights situation, incidents of civilian casualties, and thereby ensuring that the ability to take ownership remains with the future security forces of Somaliaats against civilian women, men and children;
Amendment 111 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Rejects the deployment of the EU Military Training Mission (EUTM) to Uganda; notes that more than 2 000 Somali security forces have been trained so far by EU military trainers with the aim of changing the balance of military power to the advantage of TFG; recalls that by training Somali security forces the EU becomes a party to the conflict and loses its role as a potential future mediator or peace broker; notes with concern the fact that Somalia security forces not only lack command and control structures, but also a financial framework which would provide for regular payment of salaries; notes with concern reports of government forces trained by EUTM looting food aid delivered by international donors to refugee camps in Mogadishu; is equally concerned by high unofficial defection rates amongst security forces trained by EUTM which might in the end strengthen Al Shabaab or other militias;
Amendment 119 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Is concerned about the growing role of private security companies deployed on board commercial vessels and those delivering humanitarian aid to Somalia which will contribute to the creation of a security market in the maritime sphere that might lead to an increase of violence and lethal tactics on both sides, the pirates and the armed security personnel, and furthermore exacerbates the proliferation of small arms and light weapons in the region;
Amendment 123 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 b (new)
Paragraph 6 b (new)
6b. Calls on the HR/VP and the EUSR for the Horn of Africa to critically review the Djibouti Peace Process and to consider deploying a team of mediators whose members are being trusted by a large spectrum of Somalia actors including women's associations and who are enabled to bring together a large variety of Somali actors at the negotiation table; calls on the HR/VP to initiate a process for Somali civil society actors within and outside the country which would allow for a regular and continued discussion about possible solutions to the political problems in the country; calls on the HR/VP to bring these two processes together taking as an example the successful peace process between 2000 and 2005 in Sudan; calls on the EUSR for the Horn of Africa to meet Al Shabaab representatives in order to find out to which degree Al Shabaab or factions of Al Shabaab are willing to find a peaceful solution;
Amendment 129 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. Is deeply concerned about ongoing military actions and severe human rights abuses and the continuous suffering of the civilian population because of ongoing fighting throughout south- central Somalia; condemns acts of war crimes committed by various armed groups ranging from Al Shabaab to militias loyal to the TFG; condemns the unilateral military interventions by neighbouring Kenya and Ethiopia in 2011 and 2012 which only increased fighting, suffering, chaos and anarchy without a decisive victory over Al Shabaab; urges Kenya, Ethiopia and all other neighbouring countries such as Eritrea to stop interfering and intervening in Somalia; recalls that the African Union has deployed AMISOM, a military mission to Somalia, which has been mandated by the UN Security Council and which desperately seeks further troop contributing countries;
Amendment 140 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Questions the way the European Commission has managed the 2011 famine in the region in light of the delayed reaction to the crisis; deplores the fact that early warning mechanisms apparently failed in view of the drought crisis which, however, was highly predictable; regrets the fact that the European Commission had significantly decreased humanitarian aid in 2010 and in the first half of 2011 when the humanitarian crisis began, but welcomes the significant increase of humanitarian aid for the second half of 2011 which amounts to EUR 97 million;
Amendment 144 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 b (new)
Paragraph 8 b (new)
8b. Expresses its deep concern about the land grab in Africa, which risks undermining local food security and increases famine; calls on the Horn of Africa governments and the EU to assess the current farmland acquisition impact on rural poverty and the current famine crisis; urges the European Commission to integrate the land grab issue in its policy dialogue with developing countries in order to implement policy coherence;
Amendment 146 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 c (new)
Paragraph 8 c (new)
8c. Is deeply concerned about illegal fishing in the coastal waters of Somalia; regrets the fact that trawlers from EU Member States are apparently involved in these activities; urges the TFG and any future Somali government to clarify the issue of the exclusive economic zone off the coast of Somalia; is concerned by the fact that armed security guards are being deployed on board of trawlers from EU Members States; is deeply concerned about reports on Somali fisherman who reportedly have been found shot dead; recalls the fact that EUNAFVOR Atalanta has the mandate and the responsibility to monitor fishing activities off the coast of Somalia; deplores the fact that EUNAFVOR Atalanta has so far failed to actively monitor fishing activities and therefore to effectively respond to the urgent and legitimate needs of Somali population living along the coastline; therefore calls on the EUNAFVOR to clearly increase its commitment to the monitoring mission;
Amendment 148 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 d (new)
Paragraph 8 d (new)
8d. Is concerned about alleged illegal waste dumping by EU companies and criminal networks; reminds that illegal waste dumping is of major concern to Somali people living along the coastline; calls on the HR/VP and the European Commission to urgently conduct a proper investigation by an independent body including the collection of evidence and samples and, depending on the outcome of the research, to consider legal actions including compensation by European companies, EU Member States and the EU;
Amendment 149 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 e (new)
Paragraph 8 e (new)
8e. Recognises that it is vital that independent and impartial humanitarian assistance is maintained to all conflict- affected populations in the Horn of Africa and that adequate funding is continued, particularly in Somalia; stresses that any drop in assistance could see Somali people slide back into humanitarian crisis; calls, in addition to humanitarian assistance, for efforts such as the European Union's Supporting the Horn of Africa's Resilience (SHARE) initiative which must be built upon in order to ensure resilience and improved livelihoods of local people;
Amendment 164 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Stresses that the end of the TFG's mandate is a key test of the potential of Somalia as a functioning statetransition towards a more democratic state in Somalia; believes that it will be important to facilitate an inclusive political dialogue in Somalia and promote consensus- building processes to support the new government of Somalia; stresses that viable and inclusive economic structures and a system of revenue-sharing for future oil and gas exploitation in Puntland,between the regions and the federal level for the benefit of the whole country, will be essential for the long-term sustainability of Somalia as a federalwell functioning state;
Amendment 179 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Underlines the very positive example of Somaliland, which has demonstrated its capacity to develop and consolidate its democratic, economic and administrative structures over more than twenty years; notes that Somaliland has so far been very successful in consolidating security and stability on its territory and in cooperating in the fight against piracy and terrorism; expresses concern, however, that should Al-Shabaab regroup in its mountainous border regions, Somaliland may become vulnerable; stresses, therefore, that it is essential to support Somaliland in the fight against terrorism, including promoting economic diversification and building capacity for youth employment; stresses that in the quest for a solution for the long- term stability and security of Somalia it is important to evaluate the positive example of Somaliland's stability; notes that Somaliland currently seeks re-recognition as a separate state in its own right;
Amendment 189 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12a. Is deeply concerned about secret CIA prisons and facilities in Somalia which are being used for illegal abductions, renditions and extrajudicial executions of suspected Al Shabaab members;