Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2001-03-13-Speech-2-025"

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"Mr President, two factors play a role in this proposal. The first one is to crack down on the smuggling of human beings as an element of organised crime. There is broad consensus that we need to make every effort to prevent the systematic organisation of illegal immigration. All too often do we read and see accounts of human beings being treated in a most degrading manner. The example of the Dover Chinese has left us all with a sick feeling in our stomachs. The other element is the right to asylum. People who escape poverty, misery or war cannot be blamed for their actions. What would we do in the same situation? Europe has always adopted a humanitarian stance, and it should stay that way. In other words, we must strike a balance between upholding the Geneva Convention relating to the status of refugees on the one hand and cracking down on crime on the other. In this respect, another factor comes into play with regard to this proposal. Today’s proposal is not about whether we should or should not introduce penalties for carriers. All Schengen countries have had such a scheme in place for many years and apply it. But the non-Schengen countries too, such as Great Britain, as stated earlier by the rapporteur, and Canada, for example, apply similar penalty mechanisms. Today’s proposal only aims to harmonise these penalties. All in all, the ELDR Group is of the opinion that these two factors must be brought into closer harmony with each other. That is why we have tabled Amendment No 11 by Mr Watson and Baroness Ludford, on the basis of which this penalty scheme does not apply if a person is seeking asylum. We hope that this amendment will be adopted and therefore consider the harmonisation to be acceptable as a whole."@en1

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