Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-07-03-Speech-3-290"
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"en.20020703.9.3-290"2
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"Mr President, the proposal presented to us by the Commission today pursues a twofold objective: it is designed on the one hand to ensure that racist and xenophobic behaviour is effectively punishable in every Member State and on the other hand to increase cooperation between national judicial authorities in cases relating to such offences. This is a timely proposal, Commissioner, given the political context with which we are familiar in a number of Member States. As a matter of fact, in its latest report, covering the year 2000, the European Monitoring Centre for Racism and Xenophobia notes that a substantial rise in the level of racial violence and in the incidence of anti-Semitic attacks and racially motivated threats and intimidation was recorded in France, Germany, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. In Germany, the report says, the proportion of racist crimes increased by 33% from 1999 to 2000, while in the United Kingdom the number of racially motivated acts of violence and aggression doubled in the course of the same period. These figures should cause us concern, just as the recent election results in France have done.
Moreover, it is to be feared that the international situation will lead to a resurgence of such acts. The European People’s Party therefore welcomes the proposal for a framework decision on the fight against racism and xenophobia while suggesting amendments which, we believe, will clarify the decision and make it easier to apply.
I should like to emphasise the need to give the Member States a broad margin of discretion in the application and implementation of the decision, in accordance with the subsidiarity principle, and in particular the need to specify that the decision does not prevent any Member State from adopting or maintaining provisions of national criminal law that prescribe a higher degree of protection against racism and xenophobia.
In addition, we support the amendments tabled on the initiative of my fellow Member, Klaus-Heiner Lehne, which define the scope of the decision, indicating clearly that it applies both to offences committed in a Member State and to those committed elsewhere if the offender is a national of a Member State.
Lastly, I also consider it important to point out that the aggravating circumstances in which maximum sentences may be increased ought to be extended to cases where the victim is a minor or where the offensive words or actions have been addressed to a minor or to a person who may be easily influenced. Let me add that my group will support Amendment No 12 but not Amendments Nos 24 and 25.
Thank you for your attention, and thank you, Commissioner, for having brought this very important legal and indeed political issue before Parliament."@en1
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