EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 2009 - 2014
Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean
DMED_PV(2011)0511_1
MINUTES of the meeting of 11 May 2011, from 17.30 to 19.00 Strasbourg
The meeting opened at 17.30 on Wednesday, 11 May 2011, with Vice-President Gianni Pittella (replacing President Jerzy Buzek) in the chair.
1. Adoption of draft agenda (PE 462.167) The agenda was adopted.
2. Approval of minutes of meeting of 24 November 2010 (PE 462.166) The minutes were approved without changes.
3. Chairman’s announcements The Chair briefly referred to the last (7th) Plenary of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean (PA UfM) held in Rome on 3-4 March 2011, all the recommendations by the Committees, the Financial Regulation and amendments to the Rules of Procedure were adopted. He underlined that the Plenary was significant in terms of showing the readiness of all parliamentarians of the region to fully support the democratic transition in the Southern Mediterranean and the PA UfM Bureau approved a declaration on this issue. Regarding the developments on the UfM executive side, the Chair said that after the resignation of the Secretary General of the UfM Secretariat, Mr. Ahmad Masa'deh, on 28 February 2011, Mr Lino Cardarelli was still performing as Secretary General ad interim. So far only Morocco and Tunisia announced their interest for this post and the deadline for the candidatures was extended until the end of May. Relating to new Co-Presidency of the UFM, the Chair stated that while no candidatures were announced yet for the South Co-Presidency, large majority of the EU Member States supported the suggestion that the EEAS should assume the North Co-Presidency with a more communitary approach in formulating policies within the UfM.
PV\870886EN.doc PE462.199v01-00
EN United in diversity EN Concerning the democratic transition in the Arab World, the Chair mentioned that the European Parliament has reacted swiftly to the democratic uprisings in the Arab world with a number of Resolutions, i.e. on Tunisia (3 February), on Egypt (17 February), on Libya (10 March) and on the situation in Syria, Bahrain and Yemen (7 April). In addition, the EP also sent two ad hoc delegations - one to Tunisia (3-6 February) and one to Egypt (19-21 March) and President Buzek paid an official visit to Tunisia (17- 19 March) and then to Egypt.
He also added that, as a part of the current review of the European Neighbourhood Policy, a monitoring group was set up within the AFET Committee with an advisory role to follow the political crisis in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya etc. and to monitor EU assistance to the region in the light of the current review of the ENP.
PA UfM Committees: state of play
The Chair announced the dates of the next PA UfM Bureau and Committee meetings: . PA UfM Bureau Meeting => 11 July 2011, Rabat. . Committee on Political Affairs, Security and Human Rights Committee => 1 July 2011, Barcelona. . Energy, Environment and Water Committee => 1-2 July 2011, Salzburg.
He informed the delegation that the Culture, Economic and Women's Committees have not planned any meetings yet. Members raised concern about the fact that the Women's Committee, as well as the Economic and Culture Committees, were not able to convene. Members emphasized that especially in the context of recent developments in the region it was of high importance to organize Committee meetings as soon as possible and asked whether the EP could find an alternative solution to this problem. The Chair noted that this issue needed to be resolved by Morocco who is currently holding the Presidency of the PA of the UfM. Nevertheless, several Members said that not to loose more time in this issue, the EP could still take initiative in this problem by asking the Moroccan Presidency to urge the concerned committee chairs to take action. Mr Panzeri suggested sending a letter asking the Moroccan Presidency to take action.
4. Exchange of views on the role of civil society in promoting democratic transition in the Southern Mediterranean The Chair stated that the courage and determination of citizens in the Arab world and the Southern Mediterranean had inspired the EU to reshape its neighbourhood policy towards a more citizen-centred concept. In this context, the EP, as the one who has always striven for such a shift, must effort more to get the citizens involved in the new Euro-Mediterranean Partnership. Mr Garcés emphasized the importance of the citizenship concept in raising the democratic awareness and the evolution of civil society understanding in the Southern Mediterranean. He stated following: The MCA had the objective of promoting citizens’ action by creating forum for dialogue within civil society and all the other different stakeholders in Mediterranean basin; in the context of the recent events, MCA gives priority to create a political forum for citizens and describe the political PE462.199v01-00 2/8 PV\870886EN.doc EN priorities, especially such as to step up the fight against unemployment, to better mainstream women in the society and education; European policies should be designed in way to promote further integration and trade links with the region; the connection with the corrupt regimes and policies should be abandoned; immigration should be seen as an economic and cultural opportunity. Ms Aubarell mentioned that Anna Lindh Foundation (ALF) acts as a network of networks by bringing together 43 members and more than 3700 NGOs around the Mediterranean basin. She underlined the importance of promoting dialogue among the Mediterranean citizens and UfM Member States and to be able to speak about diversities and accommodate different demands of various stakeholders within this process. Regarding the challenges faced while working with the civil society in the region, she pointed out that: very little amount of fund and strategic weight is invested in promoting dialogue; there is a need to promote synergy among existing dialogue platforms and to promote shared vision of social and cultural values in the existing dialogue and to tackle with the social problems like unemployment and religious intolerance. She mentioned that Euro-Mediterranean policies could be instrumental in addressing these challenges. Mr De Rossa expressed his astonishment by the high level of social awareness and civil initiatives existing in Palestinian society, which he mentioned referring to the existence of high potential for deep democracy in the region. Ms Romero emphasized that EP must take more active role in supporting the civil society and promoting the formation of new parliaments in the region. Mr Panzeri drew the attention the increasing number of initiatives related to civil society networks in the region and asked if it is possible to set up an effective coordination mechanism for this fragmented initiatives. He also emphasized that civil societies in the region also have to find their own way of functioning in accordance with their socio-political context and asked what kind of democracy the civil societies in the region want; and what has been done to ensure this. He further stated that new protagonists want Arab democracy, hence it has to be discussed that what type of contribution EU could put into this process. Mr Iacolino raised the migration problem and asked what could be done to provide better life perspective and employment guarantee for the young people in the region. Mr Scurria asked how the EU activities should be directed so as to make the European funds reach their destination. Mr Garcés mentioned that EU/western initiatives are not generally feasible and understandable for the locals; therefore the new EU initiatives should look for new partners in the right parts of the society in order for the local people to embrace these initiatives better. Ms Aubarell said that the new initiatives should take into account the fact that each country in the region is at different levels in terms of civil society. Given the rising level of enthusiasm for civil society, the well established network organizations, like ALF, could play an important role in organizing fragmented civil initiatives. She expressed that PA UfM could be instrumental in shaping the new regional policies and urge the UfM to put more social and welfare aspect into its policies. Regarding recent religious minority problems, she emphasized the necessity of avoiding the exploitation of religious concerns for political purposes within Arab communities.
PV\870886EN.doc 3/8 PE462.199v01-00 EN 5. Other business Mr De Rossa reported about the DPLC's visit to the OPT (West Bank and East Jerusalem) on 26-29 April. In his view, the EU’s reaction to the reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas was very weak and as Chair of the DPLC, he is of the opinion that the EU and the Member States should more proactively support this reconciliation process and react to Israel for cutting the tax revenues of the Palestinian Authority.
6. Date and place of next meeting The next meeting will be held on 6 July 2011 in Strasbourg.
The meeting closed at 19.00.
PE462.199v01-00 4/8 PV\870886EN.doc EN ПРИСЪСТВЕН ЛИСТ/LISTA DE ASISTENCIA/PREZENČNÍ LISTINA/DELTAGERLISTE/ ANWESENHEITSLISTE/KOHALOLIJATE NIMEKIRI/ΚΑΤΑΣΤΑΣΗ ΠΑΡΟΝΤΩΝ/RECORD OF ATTENDANCE/ LISTE DE PRÉSENCE/ELENCO DI PRESENZA/APMEKLĒJUMU REĢISTRS/DALYVIŲ SĄRAŠAS/JELENLÉTI ÍV/ REĠISTRU TA' ATTENDENZA/PRESENTIELIJST/LISTA OBECNOŚCI/LISTA DE PRESENÇAS/LISTĂ DE PREZENŢĂ/ PREZENČNÁ LISTINA/SEZNAM NAVZOČIH/LÄSNÄOLOLISTA/DELTAGARLISTA
Бюро/Mesa/Předsednictvo/Formandskabet/Vorstand/Juhatus/Προεδρείο/Bureau/Ufficio di presidenza/Prezidijs/Biuras/Elnökség/ Prezydium/Birou/Predsedníctvo/Predsedstvo/Puheenjohtajisto/Presidiet (*)
Gianni Pittella
Членове/Diputados/Poslanci/Medlemmer/Mitglieder/Parlamendiliikmed/Μέλη/Members/Députés/Deputati/Deputāti/Nariai/Képviselõk/ Membri/Leden/Posłowie/Deputados/Deputaţi/Jäsenet/Ledamöter
Dominique Baudis, Frieda Brepoels, Andrea Cozzolino, Mário David, Sari Essayah, Hélène Flautre, Salvatore Iacolino, Antonio López- Istúriz White, Pier Antonio Panzeri, Antonyia Parvanova, Carmen Romero López, Paul Rübig, Tokia Saïfi, Kyriacos Triantaphyllides, Dominique Vlasto,
Заместници/Suplentes/Náhradníci/Stedfortrædere/Stellvertreter/Asendusliikmed/Αναπληρωτές/Substitutes/Suppléants/Supplenti/ Aizstājēji/Pavaduojantys nariai/Póttagok/Sostituti/Plaatsvervangers/Zastępcy/Membros suplentes/Supleanţi/Náhradníci/Namestniki/ Varajäsenet/Suppleanter
Roberta Angelilli, Margrete Auken, Malika Benarab-Attou, Michel Dantin, Proinsias De Rossa, Louis Grech, Andres Perello Rodriguez, Marie-Thérèse Sanchez-Schmid, Marco Scurria,
187 (2)
193 (3)
49 (6) (Точка от дневния ред/Punto del orden del día/Bod pořadu jednání (OJ)/Punkt på dagsordenen/Tagesordnungspunkt/Päevakorra punkt/Ημερήσια Διάταξη Σημείο/Agenda item/Point OJ/Punto all'ordine del giorno/Darba kārtības punkts/Darbotvarkės punktas/ Napirendi pont/Punt fuq l-aġenda/Agendapunt/Punkt porządku dziennego/Ponto OD/Punct de pe ordinea de zi/Bod programu schôdze/ Točka UL/Esityslistan kohta/Föredragningslista punkt)
Наблюдатели/Observadores/Pozorovatelé/Observatører/Beobachter/Vaatlejad/Παρατηρητές/Observers/Observateurs/Osservatori/ Novērotāji/Stebėtojai/Megfigyelők/Osservaturi/Waarnemers/Obserwatorzy/Observadores/Observatori/Pozorovatelia/Opazovalci/ Tarkkailijat/Observatörer
PV\870886EN.doc 5/8 PE462.199v01-00 EN По покана на председателя/Por invitación del presidente/Na pozvání předsedy/Efter indbydelse fra formanden/Auf Einladung des Vorsitzenden/Esimehe kutsel/Με πρόσκληση του Προέδρου/At the invitation of the Chair(wo)man/Sur l'invitation du président/ Su invito del presidente/Pēc priekšsēdētāja uzaicinājuma/Pirmininkui pakvietus/Az elnök meghívására/Fuq stedina tal-President/ Op uitnodiging van de voorzitter/Na zaproszenie Przewodniczącego/A convite do Presidente/La invitaţia preşedintelui/Na pozvanie predsedu/Na povabilo predsednika/Puheenjohtajan kutsusta/På ordförandens inbjudan
Vincent Garcés, Gemma Aubarell
Съвет/Consejo/Rada/Rådet/Rat/Nõukogu/Συμβούλιο/Council/Conseil/Consiglio/Padome/Taryba/Tanács/Kunsill/Raad/Conselho/ Consiliu/Svet/Neuvosto/Rådet (*)
Комисия/Comisión/Komise/Kommissionen/Kommission/Euroopa Komisjon/Επιτροπή/Commission/Commissione/Komisija/Bizottság/ Kummissjoni/Commissie/Komisja/Comissão/Comisie/Komisia/Komissio/Kommissionen (*)
Европейска служба за външна дейност/Evropská služba pro vnější činnost/EU-Udenrigstjenesten/Europäischer Auswärtiger Dienst/Euroopa välisteenistus/Ευρωπαϊκή Υπηρεσία Εξωτερικής Δράσης/European External Action service/Servicio Europeo de Acción Exterior/Service européen pour l'action extérieure/Servizio europeo per l’azione esterna/Eiropas Ārējās darbības dienests/Europos išorės veiksmų tarnyba/Európai Külügyi Szolgálat/Servizz Ewropew għall-Azzjoni Esterna/Europese dienst voor extern optreden/Europejska Służba Działań Zewnętrznych/Serviço Europeu para a Acção Externa/Serviciul european pentru acţiune externă/Európska služba pre vonkajšiu činnosť/Evropska služba za zunanje delovanje/Euroopan ulkosuhdehallinto/Europeiska avdelningen för yttre åtgärd (*)
Alexandre Zafiriou
Други институции/Otras instituciones/Ostatní orgány a instituce/Andre institutioner/Andere Organe/Muud institutsioonid/ Άλλα θεσμικά όργανα/Other institutions/Autres institutions/Altre istituzioni/Citas iestādes/Kitos institucijos/Más intézmények/ Istituzzjonijiet oħra/Andere instellingen/Inne instytucje/Outras Instituições/Alte instituţii/Iné inštitúcie/Druge institucije/Muut toimielimet/Andra institutioner/organ
PE462.199v01-00 6/8 PV\870886EN.doc EN Други участници/Otros participantes/Ostatní účastníci/Endvidere deltog/Andere Teilnehmer/Muud osalejad/Επίσης Παρόντες/Other participants/Autres participants/Altri partecipanti/Citi klātesošie/Kiti dalyviai/Más résztvevők/Parteċipanti oħra/Andere aanwezigen/ Inni uczestnicy/Outros participantes/Alţi participanţi/Iní účastníci/Drugi udeleženci/Muut osallistujat/Övriga deltagare
Françoise Macé, Geoffroy d'Aspremont, Charles Kleinermann (Assemblée des Citoyens et des Citoyennes de la Méditerranée) Garali Moez (Tunisian Consulate)
Секретариат на политическите групи/Secretaría de los Grupos políticos/Sekretariát politických skupin/Gruppernes sekretariat/ Sekretariat der Fraktionen/Fraktsioonide sekretariaat/Γραμματεία των Πολιτικών Ομάδων/Secretariats of political groups/Secrétariat des groupes politiques/Segreteria gruppi politici/Politisko grupu sekretariāts/Frakcijų sekretoriai/Képviselőcsoportok titkársága/Segretarjat gruppi politiċi/Fractiesecretariaten/Sekretariat Grup Politycznych/Secr. dos grupos políticos/Secretariate grupuri politice/Sekretariát politických skupín/Sekretariat političnih skupin/Poliittisten ryhmien sihteeristöt/Gruppernas sekretariat
PPE Jorge Soutullo S&D Teresa Moleres, Evangelos Lepouras, Maria Soledad Guirao ALDE ECR Verts/ALE GUE/NGL EFD NI
Кабинет на председателя/Gabinete del Presidente/Kancelář předsedy/Formandens Kabinet/Kabinett des Präsidenten/Presidendi kantselei/Γραφείο Προέδρου/President's Office/Cabinet du Président/Gabinetto del Presidente/Priekšsēdētāja kabinets/Pirmininko kabinetas/Elnöki hivatal/Kabinett tal-President/Kabinet van de Voorzitter/Gabinet Przewodniczącego/Gabinete do Presidente/ Cabinet Preşedinte/Kancelária predsedu/Urad predsednika/Puhemiehen kabinetti/Talmannens kansli
Alexandre Stutzmann, Dariusz Serowka
Кабинет на генералния секретар/Gabinete del Secretario General/Kancelář generálního tajemníka/Generalsekretærens Kabinet/ Kabinett des Generalsekretärs/Peasekretäri büroo/Γραφείο Γενικού Γραμματέα/Secretary-General's Office/Cabinet du Secrétaire général/Gabinetto del Segretario generale/Ģenerālsekretāra kabinets/Generalinio sekretoriaus kabinetas/Főtitkári hivatal/Kabinett tas- Segretarju Ġenerali/Kabinet van de secretaris-generaal/Gabinet Sekretarza Generalnego/Gabinete do Secretário-Geral/Cabinet Secretar General/Kancelária generálneho tajomníka/Urad generalnega sekretarja/Pääsihteerin kabinetti/Generalsekreterarens kansli
PV\870886EN.doc 7/8 PE462.199v01-00 EN Генерална дирекция/Dirección General/Generální ředitelství/Generaldirektorat/Generaldirektion/Peadirektoraat/Γενική Διεύθυνση/ Directorate-General/Direction générale/Direzione generale/Ģenerāldirektorāts/Generalinis direktoratas/Főigazgatóság/Direttorat Ġenerali/Directoraten-generaal/Dyrekcja Generalna/Direcção-Geral/Direcţii Generale/Generálne riaditeľstvo/Generalni direktorat/ Pääosasto/Generaldirektorat
DG PRES DG IPOL DG EXPO Marco Aguiriano, Ciril Štokelj, Pekka Hakala, Silivio Gonzato DG COMM DG PERS DG INLO DG TRAD DG INTE DG FINS DG ITEC
Правна служба/Servicio Jurídico/Právní služba/Juridisk Tjeneste/Juristischer Dienst/Õigusteenistus/Νομική Υπηρεσία/Legal Service/ Service juridique/Servizio giuridico/Juridiskais dienests/Teisės tarnyba/Jogi szolgálat/Servizz legali/Juridische Dienst/Wydział prawny/ Serviço Jurídico/Serviciu Juridic/Právny servis/Pravna služba/Oikeudellinen yksikkö/Rättstjänsten
Секретариат на комисията/Secretaría de la comisión/Sekretariát výboru/Udvalgssekretariatet/Ausschusssekretariat/Komisjoni sekretariaat/Γραμματεία επιτροπής/Committee secretariat/Secrétariat de la commission/Segreteria della commissione/Komitejas sekretariāts/Komiteto sekretoriatas/A bizottság titkársága/Segretarjat tal-kumitat/Commissiesecretariaat/Sekretariat komisji/ Secretariado da comissão/Secretariat comisie/Sekretariat odbora/Valiokunnan sihteeristö/Utskottssekretariatet
Michael Reinprecht, Aydan Bahadir, Stefan Krauss
Сътрудник/Asistente/Asistent/Assistent/Assistenz/Βοηθός/Assistant/Assistente/Palīgs/Padėjėjas/Asszisztens/Asystent/Pomočnik/ Avustaja/Assistenter
Franziska Haiml, Lars Nielsen
* (P) = Председател/Presidente/Předseda/Formand/Vorsitzender/Esimees/Πρόεδρος/Chair(wo)man/Président/Priekšsēdētājs/Pirmininkas/ Elnök/President/Voorzitter/Przewodniczący/Preşedinte/Predseda/Predsednik/Puheenjohtaja/Ordförande (VP) = Заместник-председател/Vicepresidente/Místopředseda/Næstformand/Stellvertretender Vorsitzender/Aseesimees/Αντιπρόεδρος/ Vice-Chair(wo)man/Vice-Président/Priekšsēdētāja vietnieks/Pirmininko pavaduotojas/Alelnök/Viċi President/Ondervoorzitter/ Wiceprzewodniczący/Vice-Presidente/Vicepreşedinte/Podpredseda/Podpredsednik/Varapuheenjohtaja/Vice ordförande (M) = Член/Miembro/Člen/Medlem./Mitglied/Parlamendiliige/Μέλος/Member/Membre/Membro/Deputāts/Narys/Képviselő/ Membru/Lid/Członek/Membro/Membru/Člen/Poslanec/Jäsen/Ledamot (F) = Длъжностно лице/Funcionario/Úředník/Tjenestemand/Beamter/Ametnik/Υπάλληλος/Official/Fonctionnaire/Funzionario/ Ierēdnis/Pareigūnas/Tisztviselő/Uffiċjal/Ambtenaar/Urzędnik/Funcionário/Funcţionar/Úradník/Uradnik/Virkamies/Tjänsteman
PE462.199v01-00 8/8 PV\870886EN.doc EN