Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-06-14-Speech-3-197"
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"en.20000614.8.3-197"2
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"Mr President, one of the best pieces of theatre criticism to be published in Europe in the 20th Century, in my humble opinion, went something like this: ‘Yesterday was the opening of such and such a play, by such and such a writer’. I could not hope to emulate the crushing brevity of this, in my view, brilliant journalistic comment. However, my question is practically the same. Why are we arguing about the situation in Tunisia? Why is there a certain crisis in the relations between Europe and Tunisia at the moment which, in one way or another, no doubt affects the relations between the institutions of the European Union and the Tunisian authorities within the framework of cooperation and the association agreement?
I believe that this is a useful question to ask, because only by understanding as accurately as possible what is happening in Tunisia and the challenges faced by that country, will we be able to find the tone of moderation and effectiveness which we must develop within the framework of cooperation. There is a great paradox in Tunisia at the moment and my concern is that this paradox may be becoming increasingly dangerous. Tunisia is the most peaceful and prosperous country of the Maghreb, but also has the most closed press and media in the Maghreb. It is the country with the greatest growth and with the greatest advances in terms of social modernisation, particularly in terms of education and the status of women; however it is the country in which the emergence of a civil society, which is born of this economic and social growth, does not have adequate means to express itself in complete freedom. It is a country which is, and has been, in the forefront of the association agreements and the agro-Mediterranean policy, and which has signed all the international conventions on human rights but where, nevertheless, time and time again problems arise relating to human rights which are exaggerated by sections of the European media.
Believe me, I am sensitive to the question of human rights. I have spent fifteen years of my life without a passport or driving licence. I have had experiences, which I will not describe, in the police stations and prisons of the Franco dictatorship, but I believe that the fundamental problem in Tunisia at the moment is a different one: the future of Tunisia. We will only be fulfilling our obligations if we in the European Union find the tone and the effectiveness to help the sectors in Tunisia who are in favour of the development needed to accompany and safeguard the future of economic growth and social modernisation.
I will end by saying that I share to a large extent the points which Commissioner Patten has expressed, but I would also like to hear from the Commissioner that he also feels a deep concern for Euro-Mediterranean policy, for the policy relating to the Maghreb. Only by ensuring that we are not in a situation where the Council is giving less priority to the Mediterranean, the Commission is hindering the implementation of programmes and the European Parliament is simply giving lectures, will we be able to find the tone and effectiveness of a policy which will help the future of Tunisia, in friendship and solidarity, towards a situation which brings both socio-economic growth and full democratisation. A lot is at stake, not only in Tunisia, but also in the whole of the region, when it comes to achieving the objectives of this task."@en1
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