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URGENTE!!!!
CAre e cari,
dedicate un momento per favore a
questa vicenda che riguarda la votazione prossima al Parlamento europeo
dell'ACAA, ovvero di un accordo di "libero scambio" UE-Israele, in qualche modo
un avanzamento dell'accordo di associazione. Socialisti, verdi e sinistra pare
che voteranno contro. Mentre il gruppo dei liberali (ALDE) , che paraltro
sostengono diritti palestinesi (Se ricordate niccolò Rinaldi ha partecipato a
nostre iniziative su Palestina a Roma) essendo in assoluto favorevoli al libero
commercio, voteranno a favore insieme a tutti gli altri di centro destra. Questo
farà passare l'accordo, mentre la mancanza del loro voto non lo farebbe passare.
E' tutto spiegato qui sotto in dettaglio in inglese, ma ho riassunto rapidamente
in italiano il concetto.
La lista completa dei parlamentari europei la
trovate più sotto, ovviamente si può scegliere, ma la pressione su socialisti,
liberali e centro destra dovrebbe essere la più forte. Occorre mandare mail,
richiamando alla coerenza tra le dichiarazioni sui principi fondamentali della
UE nella sua politica verso altri paesi (trattato di Lisbona) e il voto ad un
accordo che sarebbe di fatto un avanzamento delle realzioni UE con Israele,
ovvero un paese che permanentemente viola principi e diritti umani fondamentali.
I due testi qui sotto, uno inglese dell'ECCP e uno in francese
della'Associazione Belgo-Palestinese contengono gli elementi essenziali. Se
qualcuno è in grado di tradurli in una più breve mail in italiano possiamo
cominciare a farla girare e spedire ai parlamentari. Altrimenti vedo di farlo io
la prossima settimana, perché sono in partenza per una riunione a milano
domani.
CAri saluti
Alessandra
Dear all,
In March 2010, following
the proposition of the European Commission, the European Council approved the
signing of a protocol to the EU-Israel association agreement called ACAA
(agreement on conformity assessment and acceptance of industrial products).
What is ACAA? ACAA is a mutual recognition agreement which will align the
legislative systems of the EU and Israel, contribute to the eliminations of
technical barriers to trade and therefore increase the accessibility of the EU’s
markets to Israel and vice-versa. The sectors concerned by ACAA are machinery,
electrical and construction products, toys,.. But most and foremost, ACAA is of
crucial importance to Israel in the field of pharmaceuticals.
The decision of the Council was forwarded to
the European Parliament for its consent. However, the committee of the European
Parliament in charge of this agreement (INTA - international trade) decided to
freeze the discussion on ACAA following the Israeli attack on the freedom
flotilla.
A few months ago, INTA decided to "unfreeze” the discussions
and asked the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European Parliament (AFET) to
assess, in an opinion to be transmitted to INTA, the political context in which
ACAA will be applied, assuming it is concluded.
The current balance
of power, in the different Committees and the Parliament, when it comes to
this agreement, is the following:
- The Socialists, the Greens and the
European United Left are opposed to the agreement
- The 3 conservative groups
(EPP, ECR and EFD) support the agreement
- The group of the Liberals (ALDE),
quite supportive of the Palestinian cause, is this time likely to vote in favour
of ACAA as its members consider that it's just a trade agreement.
Note that EPP, ECR and EFD hold together 356
seats (out of 753). They therefore need the support of the Liberals (85 seats)
to adopt the agreement.
The timetable is the following:
-
Discussion in AFET on the 27th of March
- Vote in AFET on the 24th
of April
- Vote in INTA on the 26th of
April
(most likely outcome : adoption of
ACAA).
- Vote in plenary in
May
(most likely outcome : adoption of
ACAA).
We need a
huge mobilisation to stop ACAA from being adopted. This is our last
chance to step in and intervene in the decision-making process. ACAA is a highly
symbolic agreement, and one of the very few subjected to the consent of the
European Parliament. We can therefore obtain results by pressuring the Members
of the European Parliament.
Could you please write to the Members of
the European Parliament and activate your networks urging as many people as
possible to lobby the European Parliament to block ACAA?
We should particularly insist upon the
members of
- The Socialist group, in order to ensure they will not split during
the vote
- The Liberals, the EPP, the ECR and the EFD and the non-aligned, to
convince them that trade cannot outweigh human rights
For possible argumentation, please see below
the statement of the ECCP in English, and the letter sent by the ABP
(association belgo-palestinienne) in French.
If you have any question, please do not
hesitate to ask.
Thank you very much for your support,
In friendship,
Katarzyna
Statement of the
ECCP:
The EU-Israel ACAA agreement:
the EU must be consistent with its own stated positions!
The Additional
Protocol to the Euro-Mediterranean Agreement establishing an EC-Israel
Association on an EC-Israel Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of
Industrial Products (ACAA) is currently being debated at the European Parliament
and is likely to be adopted. The adoption of ACAA would contribute to the
elimination of technical barriers to trade, thereby increasing the accessibility
of the EU’s markets to Israel which would benefit Israeli companies, many of
which are known to conduct lucrative activities in the settlements, considered
by the EU and the UN to be in breach of international
law.
The ECCP calls
upon the European Parliament to ensure respect for the Lisbon Treaty which
promotes the need for consistency: “the Union's action on the international
scene shall be guided by the principles which have inspired its own creation,
development and enlargement, and which it seeks to advance in the wider world:
democracy, the rule of law, the universality and indivisibility of human rights
and fundamental freedoms, respect for human dignity, the principles of equality
and solidarity, and respect for the principles of the United Nations Charter and
international law… The Union shall ensure consistency between the different
areas of its external action and between these and its other policies. The
Council and the Commission, assisted by the High Representative of the Union for
Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, shall ensure that consistency and shall
cooperate to that effect”.
Moreover, the
“Joint Communication to the European Parliament and the Council on Human Rights
and Democracy at the Heart of EU External Action”, recently presented by
Catherine Ashton, stipulates that “the EU’s trade and human rights agenda
needs to be coherent, transparent, predictable, feasible and effective”.
When it comes to
the stated positions of the EU on the Middle East, they could not be clearer -
both in relation to Gaza and reiterated EU calls to lift the blockade, as well
as the West Bank and the illegality of the settlements, which the EU considers
to be an obstacle to peace. In addition, in the past months, three internal EU
reports by the EU Heads of Missions in the OPT thoroughly described human rights
violations committed by Israel in the West-Bank (including East-Jerusalem) and
against the Palestinian citizens of Israel itself.
In this context,
the consistent trade policy regarding Israel would be rejection of the ACAA, or
any other agreement, that would in any manner benefit Israel and/or its
industries. This is a question of credibility, accountability and justice. We
therefore urge you not to consider those values as irrelevant or subordinate to
short-term trade interests. At stake are the EU’s long-term strategic interests,
as well as its credibility as defenders of human
rights.
For all the
reasons stated above, ECCP is calling for the unambiguous rejection of the
EU-Israel Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of Industrial
Products.
Letter of the ABP:
Madame la
députée,
Monsieur le
député,
Comme vous le savez
certainement, le Protocole additionnel ACAA fait l’objet de
discussions en ce moment au sein des Commissions des Affaires Etrangères et du
Commerce International du Parlement Européen. Ce Protocole
additionnel permettrait de renforcer les relations UE-Israël en facilitant
l’accès des produits industriels israéliens au marché européen grâce à une seule
et unique procédure de certification.
Ceci est très grave : les
violations répétées des droits de l’homme et du droit international par Israël
sont répertoriées aussi bien par les institutions internationales (ONU, Banque
mondiale etc .) que par EU elle-même comme le prouve le dernier rapport des
chefs de missions en poste à Jérusalem.
Or, selon le Traité de Lisbonne,
« L'action de l'Union sur la scène internationale repose sur les
principes qui ont présidé à sa création, à son développement et à son
élargissement et qu'elle (=l’UE) vise à promouvoir dans le reste du monde: la
démocratie, l'État de droit, l'universalité et l'indivisibilité des droits de
l'homme et des libertés fondamentales, le respect de la dignité humaine, les
principes d'égalité et de solidarité et le respect des principes de la charte
des Nations unies et du droit international. »
De plus, le Traité de Lisbonne
ajoute : « L'Union veille à la cohérence entre les différents
domaines de son action extérieure et entre ceux-ci et ses autres
politiques.» Ce principe est répété dans la communication conjointe adressée au
Parlement et au Conseil des droits et de la démocratie, présentée par
Catherine Ashton en décembre 2010 : « l’agenda commercial et celui des
droits de l’homme de l’UE doivent être cohérents, transparents,
prévisibles, réalisables et efficaces. »
Or les positions de
l’UE sur le processus de paix au Moyen-Orient, sont claires qu’il s’agisse de la
bande Gaza dont l’UE demande la levée du blocus ou de la
Cisjordanie et des colonies que l’UE considère comme un obstacle à la
paix. Par ailleurs, ces derniers mois, trois rapports internes des chefs de
mission de l’UE dans les Territoires occupés décrivent dans les détails les
violations des droits de l’homme commises par Israël en Cisjordanie
(Jérusalem-est incluse) et en Israël contre le peuple
palestinien.
Les conclusions du
Conseil d’Association UE-Israël de février 2011 mentionnaient déjà des
situations que l’UE considère comme en contradiction avec le droit international
et au regard de ses propres dispositions et engagements légaux, à
savoir :
- la poursuite de la colonisation dans les Territoires
occupés (par. 7 et 8)
- le blocus de Gaza (par.11)
- le droit des minorités israéliennes (par.
20)
- les ONG (par.27)
Dans ce contexte,
la cohérence implique que l’on rejette l’accord ACAA et tout accord qui
profiterait à Israël et à ses industries. C’est une question de crédibilité, de
responsabilité et de justice. Valeurs qui ne peuvent être mises sous le boisseau
pour une politique commerciale à court terme. Il s’agit de ne pas oublier non
plus qu’en cette période de mutation dans le monde arabe, l’UE sera jugée sur
ses actes et non sur ses déclarations de principe. Il serait absolument
incompréhensible que le Parlement européen, et les députés qui nous représentent
dans cet hémicycle, ferment les yeux sur les violations multiples et répétées
commises par Israël dans la région et fassent passer la politique commerciale de
l’UE avant ses engagements en termes des droits de l’Homme, de justice, et de
respect du droit international.
En vous remerciant pour l’attention particulière
que vous accorderez à cette requête, je vous prie de croire, Madame,
Monsieur, en l’expression de nos meilleures salutations.
--
Katarzyna Lemanska
Coordinator
European Coordination of Associations and Committees for Palestine
115 Rue Stevin, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
Tel : 00 32 (0)2 230 28 48
