Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2004-03-09-Speech-2-233"
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"en.20040309.8.2-233"2
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"Mr President, Commissioner, this is an important report about an important matter, on which I am happy to speak on behalf of the Group of the European People’s Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats. I value the way in which the rapporteur has tackled the topic. It is positive that he, in line with my group's approach, has strengthened the foundation of this report. I should like to share with him my appreciation for the good working relationship.
This topic touches the very heart and foundation of our constitutional state. More than two years after the United States transported some 660 foreign detainees to Guantanamo Bay in the framework of the fight against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda, there is, unfortunately, still uncertainty: uncertainty about the charge, uncertainty about the duration of the detention, uncertainty about the possible judicial process, uncertainty about legal aid and uncertainty about contacts with the country of origin. In short, there is a legal void. The American Supreme Court is now looking into the question whether the American courts are competent to assess the legal status of the detainees.
Although the great effect that terrorism has had on our American ally in the wake of the dreadful attacks of 11 September speaks for itself, we are now a few years further down the line and the prisoners on the Cuban base have still not had access to the courts. This situation cannot, and should not, be sustained. Precisely because the transatlantic dialogue is so meaningful and irreplaceable, it is important to keep the lines of communication with our American friends open. Allies are allowed to make urgent appeals to each other. I appreciate that the Convention of Geneva of 1949 is no longer fully adequate to accommodate new threats such as terrorism. It is important that international law should develop in such a way that a legal basis is in place for addressing new security issues. Even the worst terrorist is entitled to a fair trial. That is a basic principle underpinned by international law. I would mention by way of example both the
principle and the need to properly safeguard the administration of justice, as well as, among others, such important treaties as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the European Convention on Human Rights, the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights, and the Convention of Geneva, to which the rapporteur has already made reference. All those treaties involve the task of guaranteeing a humane treatment of prisoners and the right to a fair trial. In the final analysis, this is about human dignity; every person counts. I gladly subscribe to what the rapporteur has raised in this respect.
Finally, I urge the Council to continue to bring the case of the Guantanamo detainees to the attention of the authorities of the United States. This case is deserving of this, and more."@en1
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