BETA


2008/2507(RSP) Resolution on the arrest of the Chinese dissident Hu Jia

Progress: Procedure completed

Legal Basis:
RoP 135

Events

2008/02/27
   EC - Commission response to text adopted in plenary
Documents
2008/01/17
   EP - Results of vote in Parliament
2008/01/17
   EP - Debate in Parliament
Details

The debate was followed by a vote on a motion for a resolution.

2008/01/17
   EP - Decision by Parliament
Details

Following the debate in plenary, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on the arrest of the Chinese dissident Hu Jia on 27 December 2007 on charges of inciting subversion. Hu Jia and his wife, Zeng Jinyan, have thrown the spotlight on human rights abuses in China over the past few years and spent many periods under house arrest as a result of their campaigning. Parliament pointed out that Hu Jia is in bad health, suffering from a liver disease for which he must take medication. It strongly condemns the detention of Hu Jia and demands his prompt release and that of all dissidents who have been arrested and jailed for crimes of opinion. The Chinese authorities are urged to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Mr Hu Jia, his relatives and his lawyers, and to allow Hu Jia and all the other dissidents under arrest to receive medical assistance if necessary, and to bear in mind that detention in inappropriate conditions could damage their health.

Parliament calls upon China to respect its commitments to human rights and the rule of law, in particular the provisions of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders adopted by the General Assembly in 1998, by putting an end to the harassment of Chinese human rights defenders, in order to demonstrate its commitment to human rights in its Olympic year. It urges China not to use the 2008 Olympic Games as a pretext to arrest and illegally detain and imprison dissidents, journalists, and human rights activists who either report on, or demonstrate against, human rights abuses. Members reiterate their opinion that human rights concerns should receive far more attention in the build-up to the 2008 Olympic Games. They highlights the need for respect for universal fundamental ethical principles and the promotion of a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity, as enshrined in Articles 1 and 2 of the Olympic Charter.

Parliament goes on to urge China to reform its criminal law to allow greater freedom of expression to journalists, writers, freelancers, reporters etc., who will report to the world on such an important event as the 2008 Olympic Games. Such reform will also make it possible to clarify the scope of certain unclear legal provisions (e.g. Article 105 of China's Criminal Code), and give the world a positive signal that the Seventeenth National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party paved the way for greater respect for different opinions.

The Chinese authorities are urged to close the so-called 'black jails', places of detention set up to detain 'troublemakers' in advance of the 2008 Olympic Games.

Lastly, Parliament calls on the Council of the EU to take action in relation to the Chinese authorities regarding the arrest of Hu Jia and the disappearance on 22 September 2007 of Gao Zhisheng, a noted human rights lawyer and friend of Hu Jia, who has come to represent the plight of the many thousands of human rights defenders currently imprisoned in China.

Documents
2008/01/17
   EP - End of procedure in Parliament
2008/01/15
   EP - Motion for a resolution
Documents
2008/01/15
   EP - Motion for a resolution
Documents
2008/01/15
   EP - Motion for a resolution
Documents
2008/01/15
   EP - Motion for a resolution
Documents
2008/01/15
   EP - Motion for a resolution
Documents
2008/01/15
   Joint motion for resolution
Documents

Documents

Activities

History

(these mark the time of scraping, not the official date of the change)

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2008-01-17T00:00:00
type
Decision by Parliament
body
EP
docs
url: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/TA-6-2008-0021_EN.html title: T6-0021/2008
summary
events/2
date
2008-01-17T00:00:00
type
Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
body
EP
docs
url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/TA-6-2008-0021_EN.html title: T6-0021/2008
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activities
  • date: 2008-01-17T00:00:00 docs: url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/sda.do?id=14597&l=en type: Results of vote in Parliament title: Results of vote in Parliament url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?secondRef=TOC&language=EN&reference=20080117&type=CRE type: Debate in Parliament title: Debate in Parliament url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=TA&language=EN&reference=P6-TA-2008-21 type: Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading title: T6-0021/2008 body: EP type: Results of vote in Parliament
committees
    docs
    • date: 2008-01-15T00:00:00 docs: url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=MOTION&reference=B6-2008-21&language=EN title: B6-0021/2008 type: Motion for a resolution body: EP
    • date: 2008-01-15T00:00:00 docs: url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=MOTION&reference=B6-2008-31&language=EN title: B6-0031/2008 type: Motion for a resolution body: EP
    • date: 2008-01-15T00:00:00 docs: url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=MOTION&reference=B6-2008-34&language=EN title: B6-0034/2008 type: Motion for a resolution body: EP
    • date: 2008-01-15T00:00:00 docs: url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=MOTION&reference=B6-2008-38&language=EN title: B6-0038/2008 type: Motion for a resolution body: EP
    • date: 2008-01-15T00:00:00 docs: url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=MOTION&reference=B6-2008-40&language=EN title: B6-0040/2008 type: Motion for a resolution body: EP
    • date: 2008-01-15T00:00:00 docs: url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=MOTION&reference=P6-RC-2008-21&language=EN title: RC-B6-0021/2008 type: Joint motion for resolution
    • date: 2008-02-27T00:00:00 docs: url: /oeil/spdoc.do?i=14597&j=0&l=en title: SP(2008)1176 type: Commission response to text adopted in plenary
    events
    • date: 2008-01-17T00:00:00 type: Results of vote in Parliament body: EP docs: url: https://oeil.secure.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/sda.do?id=14597&l=en title: Results of vote in Parliament
    • date: 2008-01-17T00:00:00 type: Debate in Parliament body: EP docs: url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?secondRef=TOC&language=EN&reference=20080117&type=CRE title: Debate in Parliament summary: The debate was followed by a vote on a motion for a resolution.
    • date: 2008-01-17T00:00:00 type: Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading body: EP docs: url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=TA&language=EN&reference=P6-TA-2008-21 title: T6-0021/2008 summary: Following the debate in plenary, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on the arrest of the Chinese dissident Hu Jia on 27 December 2007 on charges of inciting subversion. Hu Jia and his wife, Zeng Jinyan, have thrown the spotlight on human rights abuses in China over the past few years and spent many periods under house arrest as a result of their campaigning. Parliament pointed out that Hu Jia is in bad health, suffering from a liver disease for which he must take medication. It strongly condemns the detention of Hu Jia and demands his prompt release and that of all dissidents who have been arrested and jailed for crimes of opinion. The Chinese authorities are urged to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Mr Hu Jia, his relatives and his lawyers, and to allow Hu Jia and all the other dissidents under arrest to receive medical assistance if necessary, and to bear in mind that detention in inappropriate conditions could damage their health. Parliament calls upon China to respect its commitments to human rights and the rule of law, in particular the provisions of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders adopted by the General Assembly in 1998, by putting an end to the harassment of Chinese human rights defenders, in order to demonstrate its commitment to human rights in its Olympic year. It urges China not to use the 2008 Olympic Games as a pretext to arrest and illegally detain and imprison dissidents, journalists, and human rights activists who either report on, or demonstrate against, human rights abuses. Members reiterate their opinion that human rights concerns should receive far more attention in the build-up to the 2008 Olympic Games. They highlights the need for respect for universal fundamental ethical principles and the promotion of a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity, as enshrined in Articles 1 and 2 of the Olympic Charter. Parliament goes on to urge China to reform its criminal law to allow greater freedom of expression to journalists, writers, freelancers, reporters etc., who will report to the world on such an important event as the 2008 Olympic Games. Such reform will also make it possible to clarify the scope of certain unclear legal provisions (e.g. Article 105 of China's Criminal Code), and give the world a positive signal that the Seventeenth National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party paved the way for greater respect for different opinions. The Chinese authorities are urged to close the so-called 'black jails', places of detention set up to detain 'troublemakers' in advance of the 2008 Olympic Games. Lastly, Parliament calls on the Council of the EU to take action in relation to the Chinese authorities regarding the arrest of Hu Jia and the disappearance on 22 September 2007 of Gao Zhisheng, a noted human rights lawyer and friend of Hu Jia, who has come to represent the plight of the many thousands of human rights defenders currently imprisoned in China.
    • date: 2008-01-17T00:00:00 type: End of procedure in Parliament body: EP
    links
    other
      procedure/legal_basis/0
      Rules of Procedure EP 135
      procedure/legal_basis/0
      Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament EP 135
      procedure/subject
      Old
      • 6.10.08 Fundamental freedoms, human rights, democracy in general
      • 6.10.09 Human rights situation in the world
      New
      6.10.08
      Fundamental freedoms, human rights, democracy in general
      6.10.09
      Human rights situation in the world
      activities
      • date: 2008-01-17T00:00:00 docs: url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/sda.do?id=14597&l=en type: Results of vote in Parliament title: Results of vote in Parliament url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?secondRef=TOC&language=EN&reference=20080117&type=CRE type: Debate in Parliament title: Debate in Parliament url: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=TA&language=EN&reference=P6-TA-2008-21 type: Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading title: T6-0021/2008 body: EP type: Results of vote in Parliament
      committees
        links
        other
          procedure
          legal_basis
          Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament EP 135
          reference
          2008/2507(RSP)
          title
          Resolution on the arrest of the Chinese dissident Hu Jia
          geographical_area
          China
          stage_reached
          Procedure completed
          subtype
          Urgent debate or resolution
          type
          RSP - Resolutions on topical subjects
          subject