Activities of Emilio MENÉNDEZ del VALLE related to 2013/2090(INI)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the efforts of the international community in the area of development and of ‘state building’ in South Sudan
Amendments (25)
Amendment 2 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph A a (new)
Paragraph A a (new)
Aa. Having regard to the resolution adopted by the UN Human Rights Council on "Technical assistance and capacity building for South Sudan in the field of human rights" on 27 June 2013;
Amendment 3 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph A b (new)
Paragraph A b (new)
Ab. Whereas certain measures have been undertaken in the area of the Security Sector Reform (SSR), such as the establishment of the South Sudanese National Police Service (SSNPS), the National Security and Disarmament Council (NSDC), and the Demobilisation and Reintegration Council (DRC);
Amendment 5 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph B a (new)
Paragraph B a (new)
Ba. Whereas South Sudan's economy remains dependent of oil, the domestic production is limited and there is a heavy dependence on imports;
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Urges the South Sudanese authorities, in line with Resolution 2109 of the UN Security Council on 11 July 2013, to comply with the doctrine of Responsibility to Protect (R2P) in the light of the inter- tribal and inter-ethnic conflicts in the South Sudanese state of Jonglei;
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Congratulates the European Union on the financial aid (€4.9 million) given to the International Organisation for Migration so that it can set up channels of communication and understanding between the various clans and tribes which are clashing over the use of scarce resources (water, pastureland) in a context of growing communal violence;
Amendment 15 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 b (new)
Paragraph 1 b (new)
1b. Applauds the work carried out by Unesco in conserving and organising archives and historical documents, which provide a vital tool for nation building in South Sudan; welcomes, in this context, the holding of a symposium on 'The role of archives in nation building' in Juba on 18 February 2013;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Urges the authorities of Sudan and South Sudan to fully implement the stipulations of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), which was adopted in 2005 stipulating that a referendum should be held on the status of Abyei and that the conflicts in the two Sudanese states of South Kordofan and Blue Nile should be resolved; the CPA also called on the two States to tackle issues concerning power sharing, citizenship, oil revenues and debt sharing;
Amendment 19 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Points out that – despite the continuing deep divisions between the governments in Khartoum and Juba, notably regarding the thorny matter of the referendum in Abyei, which is to be held in October 2013 – there are some positive signs of cooperation between the two, such as the Republic of Sudan's initiative launched in September 2013 with the aim of establishing border crossings as part of preparations for the signing of trade agreements between the two Sudans;
Amendment 20 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2b. Calls on the European Union to extend the mandate of the EU Special Representative for Sudan and South Sudan beyond 31 October 2013 due to the volatile nature of the current situation between the two countries;
Amendment 21 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Calls for the harmonisation of customary and statutory law, with consideration to human rights, particularly the rights of women and children, addressing the contradictions within the current South Sudanese legal system due to the use of both types of law;
Amendment 22 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Calls on the South Sudanese government, given the increasingly sensitive nature of the chemical weapons issue at international level, to sign and ratify the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction as soon as possible;
Amendment 23 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Stresses the need to stop child marriages and child labour; emphasises the importance of a separate judicial system for minors in order to prevent unlawful imprisonment and protect children's rights;
Amendment 24 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Welcomes the progress achieved in September 2013 following an initiative by the African Union, as a result of which – despite the still evident animosity between the two Sudans – the President of the Republic of Sudan, Omar al-Bashir, and the President of the Republic of South Sudan, Salva Kiir, committed themselves to a close relationship with the aim of pressing ahead with the implementation of the cooperation agreements signed between the two states;
Amendment 25 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 c (new)
Paragraph 3 c (new)
3c. Urges the Presidents of Sudan and South Sudan to press ahead with the joint communiqué signed on 7 September 2013, which calls for the obstacles hampering the implementation of the cooperation agreements to be overcome, promises to activate the committees necessary for those agreements to operate and tasks the two foreign ministers to coordinate and supervise all activities;
Amendment 26 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 d (new)
Paragraph 3 d (new)
3d. Regrets that, only a short time after the birth of South Sudan as an independent state, it was forced in September 2013 to deal with major corruption cases in which two ex- ministers were implicated, the former cabinet affairs minister, Deng Alor, and the former finance minister, Kosti Manibe, who are accused of having stolen €6 million from the state treasury; without prejudice to the necessary judicial clarification, welcomes the fact that in 2012 President Kiir obliged 75 serving and former public officials to repay $4 billion that had been taken from the public purse;
Amendment 27 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 e (new)
Paragraph 3 e (new)
3e. Notes the study produced in August 2013 by the United States National Democratic Institute and the University of Juba entitled 'From a Transitional to a Permanent Constitution: Views of Men and Women in South Sudan', which brings together opinions, assessments and suggestions expressed by public opinion regarding the role and functions of a range of different individuals, institutions and local leaders, including traditional village chiefs who, in the view of most participants, should be given a constitutional role, including authority on cultural matters and minor offences, even though respondents were divided on the question of whether these figures should be integrated into levels of government;
Amendment 28 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 f (new)
Paragraph 3 f (new)
3f. Takes the view that the Commission should provide aid so that the transitional Constitution of South Sudan – a key instrument for the cohesion of a recently created state – can be translated from English, the language in which it was drafted, into the various indigenous languages, also bearing in mind that many members of parliament do not speak English;
Amendment 29 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 g (new)
Paragraph 3 g (new)
3g. Notes the recommendation made by the African Union to the governments in Khartoum and Juba that a referendum on the disputed region of Abyei be held in October 2013; calls on the South Sudanese authorities to ensure that Misseriya nomads are able to participate in the referendum, as Khartoum is otherwise opposed to its holding; welcomes the statement by the authorities in South Sudan pointing out that the Misseriya have always had free access to water and pastureland in Abyei and that they will continue to have this right in the future; announces its intention to pay particular attention to the meeting on this subject to be held in New York on 23 September 2013 between the 15 Heads of State of the African Union;
Amendment 34 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Calls on the international community, in particular the United Nations, the European Union and the African Union, to implement a comprehensive strategy based on the Security Sector Reform (SSR), a paradigm which links security and development in Post-conflict Peacebuilding scenarios; urges the UNMISS Security Sector Reform Section to strengthen border and migration management, civilian disarmament, control and registration for Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW), as well as the judiciary system;
Amendment 35 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Amendment 37 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4b. Urges the South Sudanese authorities to ratify key international and regional human rights treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Convenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC);
Amendment 38 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4b. Calls on the South Sudanese authorities to redouble their efforts to prevent or at least reduce the large-scale thefts of cattle and the accompanying violence and deaths that have traditionally occurred in the country, particularly in remote and hard-to-access areas, involving various opposing ethnic groups; regrets that hundreds of animals were stolen in 2012 and more than 200 people died in this type of incursion;
Amendment 40 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 c (new)
Paragraph 4 c (new)
4c. Encourages the Government of South Sudan to foster economic diversification and reduce hydrocarbon dependence; encourages South Sudan to increase local food production, export industries and transport infrastructure with the aim of facilitating access to markets;
Amendment 41 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 d (new)
Paragraph 4 d (new)
4d. Calls on the Government of South Sudan, following the recommendations of the UN Human Rights Council, to implement legally binding international and regional human rights instruments to which it is party, improve the justice system and strengthen the independence of the South Sudan Human Rights Commission;
Amendment 42 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 e (new)
Paragraph 4 e (new)
4e. Calls on Sudan and South Sudan to resume negotiations on the supply of oil to the North; regrets the use of oil as a weapon by both the North and the South, a harmful strategy that impedes normality in relations between the two countries;