Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-04-11-Speech-4-146"
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"en.20020411.8.4-146"2
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".
Mr President, the European Union, as we all know, is unwavering in its strict opposition to the death penalty. In countries where the death penalty still exists we call for recourse to this practice to be gradually eliminated and insist that it be applied in accordance with minimum standards. We are all in the habit of lobbying for moratoria.
We are all particularly worried, both in the Union and the Commission, by the cruelty of the punishments and executions practised in application of Sharia law in a number of countries. A hanging in January of this year put an end to a de facto moratorium on the death penalty in Nigeria. We were involved in Union representations to the Nigerian authorities on this issue in February. We also intervened on several fronts in the case of Safiya Hussaini, especially when President Prodi launched a direct appeal to President Obasanjo.
We are currently closely monitoring the case of Amina Lawal, mentioned by Mrs Ainardi, Mrs Karamanou and Mrs Ghilardotti, which has now gone to appeal. Now with regard to the impact of all this on relations between the European Union and Nigeria, the framework for which is laid down in the Cotonou Agreement. One of the fundamental elements of this agreement is respect for human rights and, in this context, equality between men and women is one aspect of the same issue. We welcome the fact that the Nigerian minister of justice has officially declared that the federal states must revise their criminal legislation in order to exclude punishments which fly in the face of the civil rights guaranteed under the Nigerian constitution. The federal government would also appear to be worried by the incompatibility between the penal application of Sharia law and the international conventions signed by Nigeria.
We have funded a Nigerian study into Sharia law which indicates that Sharia law is poorly drafted and does in fact contradict other federal laws. It is also applied in a somewhat incoherent manner because judges are inadequately trained. We feel that the solution for the time being is still to be found in dialogue, especially on Nigeria’s compliance with its undertakings within the framework of the Cotonou Agreement.
As you and we both know, this agreement makes provision for procedures which can be applied if human rights are not respected. This is the point we need to evaluate together so that we can exert the necessary pressure but avoid imposing sanctions on all the federal states of Nigeria indiscriminately or compromising the creation of an environment conducive to change because it is this change which will, in fact, be the outcome of our collective pressure and efforts."@en1
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