Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-01-16-Speech-3-242"
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"en.20080116.12.3-242"2
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".
Mr President, I think that in view of the current situation, the European Union should make an effort to assert its credibility as regards the observation missions it sends to these countries. For if it is observed quite seriously, as was the case, that the result is clearly fraudulent, that the president cannot be considered the legitimately elected president, the European Union should then be consistent in its policy and start, at the very least, by not recognising the president, in this case Mr Kibaki. Secondly, the EU should propose and ensure, as rapidly as possible, that new presidential elections are held that will enable the president to be properly elected, honestly this time.
Sadly, we have precedents, notably in Ethiopia where the President also used force to get himself into office, despite the evidence of fraud followed by much repressive violence. The European Union’s acceptance of this fait accompli helps to undermine the value of sending observation missions.
What is the point of sending European observation missions with the seriousness and commitment of all our colleagues in this area to make conclusions that are unanimously recognised by everyone, if in the end we lie low and a few months later accept a coup by a president who will not even listen? Would we accept this kind of situation in our own countries? Obviously not.
Therefore we cannot, in terms of the democracy and electoral processes we support, have double standards, one applying in the European Union and the other fluctuating in line with peoples’ interests in these regions.
The Kenyan people, I believe, want to get to the bottom of this situation and are calling for new elections to make things perfectly clear."@en1
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