Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-09-05-Speech-4-134"
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"en.20020905.9.4-134"2
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". – This is, as every Member who has spoken in this debate has pointed out, an extremely troubling case. I am not surprised that it has caused so much outrage, as well as shock, in Parliament. Throughout, the Commission has been deeply concerned by the possible application of harsh penalties in Nigeria.
Mrs Izquierdo Rojo raised the question of female lapidation in Iran. I can assure her that I have raised that issue with Iranian ministers. I have raised it in Tehran, as well as at meetings outside Tehran. I very much hope that in the course of the next months we will be able to begin a comprehensive human rights dialogue with Iran, alongside the discussions we will be having with it on political issues and on trade and cooperation, so that we can continue to raise the issue with it, as we raise it with every other country where it is relevant. Parliament is concerned about this; we are concerned about it; European public opinion is deeply troubled by it.
This time we, like Members, are particularly concerned about the case of Amina Lawal, who has been condemned to death by stoning, which, as Mr Bowis said, is in effect a state-sanctioned and organised brutality, although she is at present awaiting appeal.
The Commission is as strongly opposed as every Member who has spoken to the use of cruel and discriminatory punishments. We have consistently expressed concern over Sharia punishments in Nigeria and – I shall return to this point – we have expressed our concern about Sharia punishments elsewhere as well. This concern has been expressed, among other places, at the Commission on Human Rights. Quite simply, we expect all communities to accept international norms concerning human rights, gender equality and respect for human life.
We are resolutely opposed to the use of the death penalty and fully subscribe to the European Union guidelines against the death penalty adopted in 1998. We have had the opportunity on more than one occasion to discuss those guidelines in this Parliament. A Troika démarche was carried out to restate this position only last year in Nigeria.
The Commission will continue to provide support for human rights and democracy initiatives, through its cooperation programme with Nigeria and through other instruments such as the European Initiative for Democracy and Human Rights, which has so many eloquent champions in this Parliament. This initiative includes Nigeria as a focus country, and will support interventions in the field of good governance and legal reform with the aim of achieving a positive impact on the status of women and awareness of their legal rights.
The Union is, of course, in constant political dialogue with the Nigerian Government, as a number of Members have pointed out, for example, Mrs Karamanou. This could be intensified as foreseen under the Cotonou Agreement, depending on how the situation evolves.
I was interested by the proposal, which was also mentioned by one of the authors of this resolution, to establish a working group on Sharia and human rights and women's rights under the Cotonou Agreement.
As Parliament may know, we financed a study – the Peters report – on the problems of applying the Sharia Law in Nigeria. I am sure Parliament will not be surprised at the main conclusions. The report believed that some legal texts were poorly drafted and contradictory, that application of the texts was inconsistent, that the judges concerned were incompetent and poorly trained and that there were contradictions not just with international laws but also federal laws.
I can assure Parliament that we will continue to raise this deeply troubling issue. As I have had occasion to say to foreign ministers from a number of countries, it is very difficult for us in Europe to accept that female lapidation is consistent with internationally acceptable norms of behaviour and of human rights."@en1
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