Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-03-10-Speech-4-207"
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"en.20050310.24.4-207"2
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"Mr President, let me start by saying that I very much share the sentiments expressed in your motion for a resolution on Belarus, about which we share many of the same concerns.
The question of how to channel the funds and how to assist civil society in Belarus financially was also raised. The main question is the ability of the relevant organisations to absorb the funds. The Commission is ready to examine all possible ways of supporting Belarussian civil society financially so that the funds can be used efficiently.
The EU’s goal is to have close relations with all of our neighbours, including Belarus. We want to see Belarus as a democratic, stable and prosperous country, fully benefiting from our Neighbourhood Policy. Unfortunately, its government's policies prevent it from taking its rightful place in the family of European nations.
The seriously flawed conduct of the parliamentary elections and the referendum in October 2004, show how far Belarus is lagging behind in terms of democratic development. It is deeply worrying for us all that democratisation, respect for fundamental freedoms and respect for the rule of law are deteriorating rather than improving, as the regime continues to tighten its grip on democratic forces, the independent media and opposition forces.
In November 2004, following the elections in Belarus, EU foreign ministers adopted conclusions setting out a clear EU policy. We confirmed the restrictions on ministerial-level contacts with Belarussian authorities, but at the same time sent a clear message to the population that they are not forgotten and that we are trying to support civil society and democratic forces in Belarus.
We are closely monitoring the human rights situation in the country and, as a result, the EU imposed a visa ban last year on certain high-ranking Belarussian officials, on the basis of the findings of the Council of Europe’s Pourgourides report on politically motivated disappearances. We then extended this visa ban to the officials considered responsible for the rigged election and the referendum, as well as those responsible for the repression of the peaceful demonstrations that followed.
The cases of Mr Marinich and other imprisoned political opponents are of great concern to us. We believe that his trial was politically motivated and have issued a statement calling for his disproportionate sentence to be reconsidered. We have serious concerns in general about the independence of the judiciary in Belarus and continue to follow these cases closely. The EU issued the statement on Mr Marinich's case in January.
As regards your call on the Commission to step up our assistance efforts to Belarus, I am pleased to report that we have already done so in response to the EU Foreign Ministers' conclusions last November. The Commission is playing the lead role in coordinating and delivering EU assistance in support of civil society and democratisation in Belarus. A conference will be held in Vilnius next week on that very important subject. In difficult situations such as that of Belarus, where a country is isolating itself from the world, this is particularly difficult and we are working on the appropriate division of labour between the Community Member States and other donors.
We very much welcome the role that the European Parliament can play in encouraging democratic changes and supporting democratic forces in Belarus. We are currently carefully examining the action plan which your Delegation for Relations with Belarus has prepared, to see how this can mesh with our own efforts in that regard. There is much to be done and we look forward to working with Parliament and with the democratic forces inside Belarus.
You raised some questions in your contributions that I should like to answer. The first was whether Belarus was discussed at high-level meetings between the EU and Russia. The answer is yes; the issue is always raised during those meetings."@en1
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