Activities of Nicole KIIL-NIELSEN related to 2011/2008(INI)
Plenary speeches (2)
EU strategy for Central Asia (A7-0338/2011 - Nicole Kiil-Nielsen) (vote)
EU strategy for Central Asia (short presentation)
Reports (1)
REPORT on the state of implementation of the EU Strategy for Central Asia PDF (272 KB) DOC (176 KB)
Amendments (29)
Amendment 15 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C b (new)
Recital C b (new)
Cb. whereas concerns about security and stability in the region tend to privilege state security, rather than the security of populations through, inter alia respect for human rights, livelihoods, the environment property and access to public services,
Amendment 18 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C d (new)
Recital C d (new)
Cd. whereas events in 2010 in Kyrgyzstan demonstrate that the denial of basic rights and opportunities, through concentration of power, corruption and lack of democracy and rule of law, can lead from situations of perceived stability to situations of insecurity,
Amendment 27 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Acknowledges the importance of the EU Special Representative’s continuous work in the field in ensuring a high level of political dialogue with the Central Asian states; recalls that his mandate also provides for engagement with local civil society and that this is necessary for increased EU visibility; calls for political dialogue to be based on an assessment of compliance by Central Asian states with their commitments as OSCE members;
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Considers that limited resources and the region’s many needs require the EU to rigorously target and prioritize its assistance, also taking into consideration the effects of deep-seated corruption and insufficient administrative expertise on the effectiveness of its aid; Calls for steady levels of agreed development aid with greater flexibility in allocation and supports an emphasis on aid to be delivered to Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan that have the largest needs in this respect;
Amendment 44 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Deplores the difficulty encountered by the EU in engaging with independent civil society in the area of human rights and good governance in the context of the continued harassment of NGOs in the region; calls for support for genuinely independent NGOsgreater transparency in the allocation of EU development cooperation funding and its recipients, and the inclusion to the greatest extent possible of genuinely independent non- governmental partners in the implementation of EU programming so as to help them play an effective role in the development and consolidation of civil society;
Amendment 61 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Regrets that, although some limited positive developments have taken place in the region (abolition of the death penalty in Uzbekistan, some constitutional and judicial procedure reforms, etc.), the overall situation in the fields of human rights and the rule of law remains worrying;
Amendment 73 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Regards the Rule of Law Initiative as a key component of cooperation with the states of Central Asia, and approves of the exemplary interaction between the EU and its Member States in implementing assistance projects; notes that there has been little interaction between the projects and local civil society and that greater interactions with civil society, parliamentarians, improving access to information about the initiative by local civil society actors would enhance the visibility, transparency and accountability of its activities in line with the EU’s broader objectives for improving the Central Asia Strategy outlined in Joint Progress report; expects the Rule of Law Platform project to include clear objectives and a transparent assessment of its implementation and results while avoiding any reinforcement of the repressive components of security forces; stresses that genuine and diligent implementation of the Initiative must be one of the key criteria in allocation of aid and budgetary support;
Amendment 91 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Regards it as of the utmost importance that energy cooperation projects include long-term supply agreements, enshrining the principles of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative; considers that where such principles are not implemented the EU should desist from activities and investments which might exacerbate existing rule of law, governance and human rights problems;
Amendment 102 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Stresses that water issues in the region remain one of the main sources of tension and potential conflict; calls in this regard on allthe countries of the region that haven’t yet done so to sign and ratify without further delay the Espoo and Århus Conventions and to foster involvement of local actors in decision- making;
Amendment 104 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Welcomes the increased engagement of the European development banks in the region, and especially, the extension of the mandate of the EIB to Central Asia focusing on environmental and water issues, but emphasises the need for any disbursement of funds to be carefully controlled and monitored; urges the development banks to uphold principles established by EBRD in desisting from support to state-owned enterprises in countries where there are systematic human rights violations;
Amendment 114 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Reaffirms its support for actions aimed at fostering regional cooperation as the only way to address the many cross-border security, resource management, ethnic, environmental and development problems of the states concerned; supports continuation and deepening of the BOMCA border management and CADAP drug action programmes;
Amendment 116 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 a (new)
Paragraph 17 a (new)
17a. Stresses that regional security is in the interest of both the EU and the other actors in the area, namely the Russian Federation, China and the US that are all concerned about growing instability and radicalisation in the region as well as porous frontiers with Afghanistan and the relevant drugs-trafficking;
Amendment 118 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Takes note of the accession of Kazakhstan to the customs union with Russia and Belarus and hopes that the development of this entity will be conducted in an inclusive manner towards those Central Asian states that are not part of itnot create obstacles to regional cooperation and will not hamper the stepping up of bilateral relations with the EU;
Amendment 123 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Calls for the inclusion of cross-border cooperation with Afghanistan, in particular with its border provinces, in transport, energy, trade, education and development actions and programmes;
Amendment 126 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19 c (new)
Paragraph 19 c (new)
19c. Calls for placing support to Security Sector Reform (SSR) in Central Asian countries on the political agendas of meetings with Central Asian leaders and urges investigating areas of Security Sector Reform that could be supported in the region next to existing work on rule of law and border management;
Amendment 138 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 a (new)
Paragraph 21 a (new)
21a. Regrets the recent transition of prison facilities’ oversight from the Ministry of Justice to the Ministry of Interior and calls upon the Government of Kazakhstan to intensify its efforts to prevent and remedy torture and inhuman, cruel and degrading treatment;
Amendment 140 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 b (new)
Paragraph 21 b (new)
21b. Deplores the intimidations by law enforcement officers and companies on oil workers who have been striking during the summer in Western Kazakhstan asking for increased wages and compensation for dangerous working conditions; calls for the immediate release of Natalya Sokolova, a lawyer of an independent trade union who was sentenced on charges of ‘igniting social unrest’ and Akhzanat Aminov who was arrested on charges of organising an illegal meeting; urges the Council to firmly raise the question of oil workers in Kazakhstan with all the European companies concerned in order to stop all practices that violate workers’ rights;
Amendment 142 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 c (new)
Paragraph 21 c (new)
21c. Expresses concern over Kazakhstan introducing laws to re-register all religious entities; points out that this presents a dual challenge in terms of restricting the freedom of conscience of the prisoners and instituting a potential ‘witchhunt’ for religious extremists;
Amendment 143 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 d (new)
Paragraph 21 d (new)
21d. Encourages Kazakhstan to demonstrate its renewed commitment to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) by removing all legal or regulatory obstacles for the successful implementation of this initiative; calls, in this regard, on the Kazakhi government to provide the National Stakeholders Council – a multi-stakeholder working groups overseeing EITI implementation – with a legal status of a decision-making authority within the EITI mandate;
Amendment 147 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
22. Commends Kyrgyzstan for its efforts to pursue democratic reforms and shift to a genuine multi-party system; hopes that further progress will be accomplished in the conduct of the upcoming presidential elections scheduled later this year; points out, nevertheless, that sustained efforts are needed to develop a fully functioning democracy, and, noting that Kyrgyzstan is one of the pilot countries for EU democracy support, calls in this regard on the HR/VPEU to assist the Kyrgyz authorities in the area of institution-building, consolidation of democratic practices and the fight against corruption and the infiltration of organised crime in Kyrgyz administration;
Amendment 151 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23
Paragraph 23
23. Welcomes the decision of the Kyrgyz Government to establish a Special Commission to implement and monitor the recommendations of the International Independent Commission (IIC) for investigation into the June 2010 events in South Kyrgyzstan, and calls on the Kyrgyz authorities to adopt the measures necessary to defuse interethnic tension and stabilise the situation and to promote cultural dialogue and respect for minority rights and the fight against all forms of discrimination inter alia, by instituting genuine judicial and police reform as a prerequisite for the prevention of human rights violations such as torture and other forms of police abuse; calls on the EU to design and implement EU assistance programmes together with the Kyrgyz authorities and NGOs aiming at conflict prevention, reconciliation and prevention of impunity;
Amendment 156 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
24. Expresses its concern at the inefficiency of EU development aid in the country resulting from the high level of corruption, the influence of organized crime on governance and the looming regional fragmentation fuelled by the dire economic and social conditions; calls, therefore, for an alternative approach based on human security through alternative channels of assistance;
Amendment 158 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 a (new)
Paragraph 24 a (new)
24a. Notes with concern restrictions on freedom of expression and recent restrictive amendments to the law on religion, as well as a new law on parental responsibility; expresses concern over reports of torture in custody and the continuing lack of access of civil society monitors to places of detention; calls for ICRC and international monitors to be granted access to penitentiaries to increase transparency and oversight;
Amendment 160 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 b (new)
Paragraph 24 b (new)
24b. Draws attention to the now frequent outbreaks of violence in regions of Tajikistan, the authorities’ great difficulties to bring the situation under control, their calls for security assistance and international partners’ reluctance to provide this, partly due to lack of confidence in the Tajik authorities;
Amendment 161 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 c (new)
Paragraph 24 c (new)
24c. Calls on the Tajik government to serve the citizens and make itself a credible actor for sustainable security and stability in the region by seriously combating corruption and avoiding the infiltration of organised crime into state structures; ending the loss of badly needed resources resulting from the highly opaque management of the finances of the TALCO aluminium production plant; refraining from allocating funds to unnecessary prestige projects; launching a major effort to reverse the decay of the country’s social and physical infrastructure; endeavouring to prevent new food and energy crises; and improving the respect for political, social and religious rights, with a view inter alia to remove grounds for grievances, frustration and radicalisation;
Amendment 162 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 d (new)
Paragraph 24 d (new)
24d. Recommends, in this respect, the Tajik government to set as an objective the achievement of progress in the areas above mentioned permitting major and steady improvements in the country’s rankings in transparency, governance and other relevant indexes prepared by international organisations and calls for strict conditionality for EU aid via state structures and for intensified cooperation with non-state actors as an alternative in case the functioning of Tajik authorities does not substantially improve;
Amendment 176 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27
Paragraph 27
27. Deplores, however, the fact that none of the conditions set by the European Parliament in February 2008 in order to move ahead with the Interim Agreement have been fulfilled, in particular free and unfettered access for the International Committee of the Red Cross, the release of all political prisoners and prisoners of conscience, the abolition of all government impediments to travel, and the possibility for NGOs to operate in the country; considers that these conditions must be met in order for Turkmenistan to comply with the international standards it has ratified;
Amendment 180 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28
Paragraph 28
28. Takes note of the Council Conclusions of October 2010 that put an end to all sanctions on Uzbekistan and confirmed the willingness of the EU to strengthen relations with that country in a comprehensive manner; points out that the government has yet to respond the EU request for an independent investigation into the Andijan tragedy; recalls that the level of the engagement depends on progress by Uzbekistan in the fields of human rights, democratisation and the rule of law, and expects the EEAS and the Council to develop a policy of critical, conditional and coherent European engagement with Uzbekistan;
Amendment 183 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28 a (new)
Paragraph 28 a (new)
28a. Notes the concern by ILO, representatives of workers, employers and NGOs as to the ongoing use of forced child labour in Uzbekistan’s cotton industry; calls for Uzbekistan’s authorities to engage with the ILO and grant the ILO unfettered access to monitor the cotton harvest;