Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2012-09-10-Speech-1-091-000"
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"en.20120910.23.1-091-000"2
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"Mr President, I, too, would like to thank the rapporteur, Ms Flautre, for her commitment and for having the courage to take this matter in hand. It is a very delicate matter, but it is also one that concerns values we hold dear.
The Commission has constantly repeated that the practices which are referred to as renditions constitute a serious violation of several fundamental rights: unlawful arrest, arbitrary detention, torture and ill-treatment. The fight against terrorism cannot justify such unacceptable practices. The full respect of human rights is not negotiable.
The Commission has always stressed that it is up to the Member States concerned not only to commence but also to continue in-depth, independent and impartial investigations to establish the truth. This is a positive obligation deriving from the European Convention on Human Rights in order to establish responsibilities and enable the victims to obtain compensation for such damage. That is also why you have quoted the Court, which is putting these questions on the table.
Since 2005, when the allegations were first raised, the Commission has been in contact with those Member States that were said to have hosted secret detention sites. As regards aviation policy, the Commission drew the necessary conclusions in the context of its communication on civil and business aviation of January 2008, and new rules on the procedures applicable to flight plans for the Single European Sky entered into force on 1 January 2009. They provide an additional means of monitoring the actual movement of aircraft, and I have heard with great interest that the contacts with the institution on this subject are very positive.
The report also refers to the necessity of reinforcing the human rights compliance of judicial cooperation in criminal matters. On this subject, the Commission is determined to ensure that Member States actually do so when they apply the EU instruments for judicial cooperation in criminal matters and that Member States comply with the Charter of Fundamental Rights when they implement those instruments. As I have often said before this Parliament, it is when European law is applied that the Charter automatically applies, so in these cases, the Charter does apply. This concerns not only the internal aspects of judicial cooperation but also its external aspects.
In this regard, the Commission underlines the importance of the entry into force on 1 February 2010 of the two EU-USA agreements on extradition and mutual legal assistance. Both clarify and unify the legal framework of judicial cooperation in criminal matters with the USA, and they clearly refer to the need to fully respect fundamental rights.
As regards the national and institutional deficiencies underlined by the report, let me recall that the current treaties do not empower the European Union to establish a general mechanism addressing human rights violations. However, I can assure you that the Commission is vigilant in ensuring that the Charter applies within the scope of EU law, as I explained on the question of judicial cooperation in criminal matters.
As regards the oversight of intelligence and security services, you are well aware that this is a very sensitive area which comes under the responsibility of the Member States. The Commission has repeatedly recalled that cooperation between the intelligence services must not in any way go against or overrule the relevant EU instruments in the field of police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal matters. No cooperation between intelligence services can undermine the full respect for fundamental rights and the rule of law. I think Parliament is in agreement with me that the only way to fight efficiently against terrorism is to apply our basic rules on which the European Union has built its very being.
The Commission is ready to cooperate actively with Parliament to ensure that what happened within the framework of the so-called CIA rendition programme will never occur again."@en1
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