Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2015-05-20-Speech-3-704-000"
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"en.20150520.38.3-704-000"2
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"Mr President, there are concerns in this Chamber about human rights in Ethiopia. It is only right that Ethiopia should be encouraged to respect the rights of its citizens, but it would be foolish to take a holier-than-thou approach to diplomacy.
Take, for example, the issue of villagisation, which revolves around the removal of people to villages in new areas often far from their tribal lands, all in the name of commercialising agriculture. Before emitting the usual gasps of horror, the EU and the Member States need to look in the mirror and genuinely consider whether the foreign aid they have provided is being used to support this policy.
Ethiopia fulfils many humanitarian obligations, as we have heard from the Commissioner: not least, accommodating more than 650 000 refugees, the largest number in Africa, including populations from South Sudan, Eritrea and Somalia. Ethiopia enjoys good relations with the West, and it is essential that this regional power, in a deeply troubled part of the world, is allowed to continue developing its economy alongside regional stability, including that of its promising neighbour Somaliland, which craves and deserves international recognition.
Instead of a reactionary response to the crisis in the Mediterranean, and in an attempt to stop further migration, we should pursue instead the proactive development of the country through trade – an area in which the European Union has, of course, been destructive. Ethiopia’s top export (accounting for 28%) is coffee, which can face third-country tariffs of up to 9%. If Africa is truly to be allowed to develop, then the EU must lift its protectionist tariffs and stop mumbling into its own, cheaper coffee."@en1
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