Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2004-09-16-Speech-4-023"
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"en.20040916.1.4-023"2
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"Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, Parliament’s attention, and that of the Commission and the Council, ought to be directed, as others have stated here, towards the pathetic way in which the pathetic mission by the Dutch vessel ended and towards the unbridled, irresponsible propaganda on illegal abortion that women can carry out themselves, by means of the illegal acquisition and use of medicines.
I am not talking about the RU-486 pill, which, as in many EU countries, is not licensed in Portugal and which was being transported on the ship, but about the irresponsible acquisition and use of medicines that can be obtained in pharmacies, albeit subject to certain restrictions. The unbridled propaganda presents extremely serious risks not only to the right to life of the child that dies when an abortion is committed, but also to the woman, whose health may suffer severely, as documented in pharmacological literature on the subject.
This debate is, furthermore, a waste of time, out of place and improper.
It is also offensive. I must say that frankly it pains me to see my country slandered abroad and it pains me all the more to see my compatriots taking a leading role in doing so, giving a distorted picture of the facts to those who do not know better, and seeking to caricature the people in question in a propaganda circus.
I have the greatest respect for the Netherlands, for the Dutch people in the European Union and for the Dutch Presidency, but we have our laws. We have always debated these issues freely without the need for such digressions. As we all know, we are a democratic and free country. Our laws are the fruit of our democracy. In other words, Portugal is not a colony of the Netherlands or of any other country, and less still, the target market of some opportunist group that comes along to educate the local population, as happened during the 1975 ‘cultural dynamisation’ and when the PREC (Ongoing Revolutionary Process) was at its peak. We practise respect and democracy; we demand democracy and respect.
It has been suggested that freedom of movement was violated. This is ridiculous. Dutch women may go wherever they want to, as everyone knows. It is the boat that cannot go wherever it wants to. It has been suggested that freedom of expression was violated. This is ridiculous. We all took part in the debate and said whatever we wanted to at the time, just as on all other occasions. The only acts of violence committed were the extremist and intimidating language – laden with hate and intolerance – used by the supporters of the Dutch group’s nautical circus to condition the Portuguese people and dilute their rights as citizens, the bias on the part of the media, which was in thrall to the boat trip’s demagogical populism and the vandalism perpetrated at our party’s headquarters.
In conclusion, the Portuguese Government acted within the law. The court found in its favour and this matter has nothing to do with the European Union."@en1
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