EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 2014 - 2019

Delegation for relations with

DRAFT REPORT

on the 10th EP/ Interparliamentary Meeting ( & )

16 / 20 February 2015

by

Ms. Jean Lambert, Chair of the Delegation

------05/03/2015 PK/am

1/18 EN EN Introduction

The last time the EP South Asia Delegation also led by Ms Jean Lambert MEP, visited Pakistan, was in late 2012; the country was already in pre-electoral mood, 6 months before the elections that saw the victory of the PML-N. This was the first democratic transition from one elected civilian government to another in Pakistan’s modern history – and recognised as such by the EU, which fielded an EOM led by Chief Observer Michael Gahler MEP; Richard Howitt MEP had led, at the time, the EP Delegation which was part of the overall observation team.

The 2012 talks had focused on the steps taken by Islamabad in rule of law and good governance issues, which had helped the country successfully apply for the EU’s special incentive arrangement for sustainable development and good governance – or, more colloquially, the GSP+ scheme, in effect since 1.1.2014. This arrangement, which was examined by the EP Plenary in December 2013, entails enhanced trade preferences, i.e. the full removal of tariffs on essentially the same products as those covered by GSP. MEPs had thus welcomed the ratification of all the major human rights conventions directly linked to the scheme, as well as the lifting of a series of reservations on many of those, such as the ICCPR or the CAT. It should be recalled that the D-SAS had already raised, repeatedly, the need to withdraw or reformulate these reservations in the context of its previous mission to the country in November 2010. As to the EP as a whole, it has since often examined developments in Pakistan – with the last related resolution being passed by the House on 15 January 2015.

Making the most of their four days on the ground, the EP Delegation met with a wide range of stakeholders in Islamabad and Lahore; this included Prime Minister , Speaker of the National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, the EU-Pakistan Parliamentary friendship group led by Minister for Commerce , and Foreign Affairs Advisor . More specialised meetings took place with Punjab’s GSP+ compliance committee presided on this occasion by the Chief Minister of Punjab Shahbaz Sharif, newly appointed Chief of the Election Commission Justice Sardar Muhammad Raza, Interior Secretary Shahid Khan, as well as think tanks (Institute for Strategic Studies, Research Society on International Law), civil society, business community and trade unions.

The mission furthermore included visiting, and assessing by way of separate reporting sheets, two EU-financed projects: one linking trade with water & sanitation (water recycling) in Lahore, and the IP3 programme to increase parliamentary capacity – strengthen democratic oversight of the National Assembly in Islamabad, in direct follow-up of the EU-EOMs recommendations. On the eve of their departure, MEPs also had the opportunity to appreciate Pakistan's vibrant cultural scene by participating in the EU-sponsored Lahore literary festival – and of raising EP visibility in this respect, with the participation of the Chair in one of its main panels.

The EP Delegation wishes to express its gratitude to all diplomatic authorities in Pakistan for the facilitation of this visit. In a similar vein, preparatory meetings with the EEAS in Brussels allowed identifying in advance the main priorities and agenda issues to be discussed. Against this backdrop, the EP Delegation was happy to be able to count on the expertise of M. Sajjad Karim MEP, Chair of the Monitoring Group for South Asia of the EP’s International Trade Committee. Last but certainly not least, the EU Delegation in Islamabad spared no efforts, despite operating in a sometimes challenging environment, in devising an intensive programme of activities and meetings, which allowed the EP Delegation to better grasp realities and be able to thus report back to line Committees (AFET; DROI; INTA) on the current situation and issue policy recommendations.

2/18 EN EU/Pakistan relations

Since 2001, EU policy has been to stay constructively engaged with Pakistan - and the 2013 and 2008 EOMs were generally felt to have been instrumental in establishing EU credibility in this engagement. The EU and Pakistan also signed, in January 2012, a 5-year Engagement Plan - not a legal instrument replacing the existing cooperation agreement but, rather, an umbrella framework to further develop bilateral relations beyond traditional areas, thus covering six areas of common concern (including political and security cooperation or counter- terrorism). A Strategic Dialogue has also been established – the last taking place in March 2014, three months after the country started benefiting from GSP+.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif thus underlined that relations with the EU were "now moving, beyond trade alone to a new strategic level", also looking forward to working with the newly elected European Parliament. Foreign Affairs Advisor Sartaj Aziz stressed for his part, the value of the roadmap on EU-Pakistan relations, hoping that a 3rd EU-Pakistan summit would take place in 2015 – while stressing the value of the on-going Human Rights dialogue and the good work done in a joint readmission committee setting.

GSP+: a new paradigm?

The EP Delegation repeatedly stressed the need of effective implementation of the 27 international conventions linked to the GSP+ scheme, in particular in view of the 2016 review process – and explained that the European Parliament, as an institution, was now a stakeholder in the scorecard exercise – with the relevant services of the European Commission expected to present to the EP the results of this on-going monitoring by January 1st 2016.

Not a single interlocutor met by the EP Delegation during its stay in the country appeared to ignore the GSP+ scheme;: “a shining light”, in the words of Commerce Minister Dastagar Khan. EU market access facilitation had had benefits of such a magnitude “that we are still evaluating them”. Most stakeholders saw in the scheme the proof of the significance the EU attached to its relations with Pakistan: the increase in Pakistani exports to the EU in 2014 by over one billion USD was concrete evidence of how GSP+ was yielding results. For Minister Khan, there were already clear positive effects in terms of youth employment and women employment; given the surge of exports of ready-made garments, where women are predominantly employed, there was “a direct correlation”.

3/18 EN The scheme had helped “keep Pakistan afloat in very difficult times”, also conveying the message that “we are not just exporting bombs” – which was an image to be dispelled. Especially after the Peshawar bombings, this concrete proof of EU support to Pakistan’s democracy was very much appreciated. The PML-N mantra, Minister Khan recalled, was achieving a ‘sustainable democracy’. In this sense, GSP+ was “an additional incentive for us to do so and makes our case easier in Government”. This said, both Members and Minister Khan agreed that the priority ought to now be diversification, moving from textile exports to commodities such as leather, agricultural products, fruits and vegetables – while meeting EU health standards.

The EP Delegation further met in Lahore, the All-Pakistan Textile Mills Association – insisting on the need to see that the benefits of EU market access would also trickle down to the workers rather than be translated in ‘property development in Dubai’, in order to be of profit to Pakistan’s economy as a whole. Commerce Minister Khan had already stressed that the business community was very much aware of the fine print, related to the implementation of the 27 international conventions ratified by Pakistan on good governance, rule of law, human rights, environment – and had taken concrete steps in this direction (the Pakistan Textiles Exporters Association – ILO agreement was mentioned in this respect). Minister Khan insisted that “for us, compliance with labour standards is not seen as a impediment, but as a strength – this is how we can attract worldwide investment”; he felt that “most of the large manufacturers are already in compliance”, stressing that the situation in Pakistan was far from being comparable to a Rana Plaza type of image.

Trade-unions met in Lahore, were however less upbeat – stressing that the Government ‘would always paint a very rosy picture’, preferring to turn a blind eye to the fact that the minimum wage, as per law, would often not be paid or that safety conditions and labour standards in the workplace would not be respected: the whole of the country, with less than 400 labour inspectors, faced a real problem of implementation in labour law terms. Likewise, enforcing provisions on each worker having a valid social security card or on the health and safety standards in the work place were a known problem. In Lahore alone, there were about 14,000 unregistered manufacturing companies, making law enforcement a real challenge.

Beyond this issue, the EP Delegation was told that, in the whole of the country, about 20 million workers were employed in brick kilns under conditions that could be described as bonded labour – and where GSP+ was not really a direct incentive. The problem was not so much lack of legislation –existing since 1992- but of implementation. Some slow progress had been taking place, but it was very difficult to ensure that GSP+ would really trickle down to the informal sector. This was also a matter of political will, in a country where, in the past, social movements had been seen as a mere law and order issue, and trade-unionists even charged on anti-terrorism grounds – which perhaps explained why the percentage of trade-unionised workforce was at a bare minimum (circa 2%).

4/18 EN Human rights: in the shadow of anti-terrorism

On the other hand, Commerce Minister Khan had stressed that formal GSP+ monitoring, and ensuring the effective implementation of the 27 Conventions ratified by Pakistan, was a priority: Treaty Implementation Cells had been created in each Province; this was an on-going process, dealing both with monitoring and ensuring implementation, but was also the proof that it had been understood that the scheme was not ‘a one-off for two years only” and that Pakistan wanted to keep it.

With Punjab accounting for two-thirds of Pakistan’s exports, this was certainly the view conveyed by the Punjab GSP+ compliance committee, composed of all relevant provincial Ministers, which was met by the EP Delegation. Chaired on this specific occasion by Chief Minister Shabhaz Sharif, the committee explained the work it had been doing in ensuring progress in the follow-up to the 27 international conventions included in the GSP+ scheme, focusing more particularly on women’s rights and empowerment (education, health) while also dealing with thorny inheritance law issues. An Ombudsman office had been created to tackle anti-harassment issues as well as acid attacks.

Chief Minister Sharif further explained that Punjab was modifying its education curricula in schools and universities in order “to focus on the values of tolerance and harmony against the ones of sectarianism and extremism as preached in some madrassas” – stressing that radicalisation had to be addressed at the roots. This is also in compliance with the implementation of the recently adopted Anti-Terrorism National Action Plan, which includes measures designed at prevention: these include changes in the education system and tackling hate speech. During discussions held with organisations focusing on human rights, it was confirmed that this was indeed a crucial dimension: with sectarian / terrorist attacks on the rise, there was a need for a concerted response, which would affirm equality before the law.

Commenting on the state of implementation of the 27 Conventions linked to GSP+, Foreign Advisor Aziz stressed that “in 10 of them, we have good progress, in 4 of them low progress, with the rest in the middle”. The Foreign Advisor was however open to a candid discussion on the issue – stressing that “all countries have problems” with Pakistan being no exception. In the wake of the 16 December 2014 Peshawar school attack, Pakistan had lifted the death penalty moratorium for crimes related to terrorism, and had, by way of the adoption of the XXIst Amendment of the Constitution, established military courts with jurisdiction over civilians accused of militancy. Difficult choices, but, in the Foreign Advisor’s words, “in light of our difficult circumstances, you will understand’.

5/18 EN Military courts

Commenting on the XXIst constitutional amendment, Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq admitted the military courts had been established “with a heavy heart”; Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif explained that in order to try “hardened criminals” this was the only option, as civilian courts trials took a long time– and, post Peshawar, “our people demanded immediate punishment”. Foreign Advisor Aziz, likewise, stressed that due to the length of normal trials, suspects were very often released on bail – which meant that leaving things as they stood would have resulted in “taking a policy decision allowing to release all of the accused” – which had become politically impossible. Many interlocutors insisted that the measure was only a temporary one; Foreign Advisor Aziz thus put an emphasis on the 2-year sunset clause – after which the courts, as Punjab Chief Minister Shabhaz Sharif put it, “would go into oblivion”. Commerce Minister Dastagar Khan had appeared, in a previous meeting, a bit less categorical, informing Members that he “hoped” these “very draconian measures” would only last two years.

As to the cases to be judged, Punjab Chief Minister Shabhaz Sharif stressed that the military courts would limit themselves to strictly terrorist-related cases, and no others; acknowledging the structural deficiencies of the civilian courts, he argued that “the Military Courts were thought to be an answer - perhaps not the best, but at least an answer”. While he affirmed that, post- Peshawar, “the civilian and military hierarchy are on the same page”, the Chief Minister did not appear to claim civilian ownership of the military courts concept – which he however very vocally did with other measures to combat terrorism: “we have adopted laws on hate speech”, “this is our achievement – not of the military”.

On whether due course would be followed in the framework of these military trials, most interlocutors assured the EP Delegation this would be the case – “even for jetblack terrorists”. The EP Delegation thus repeatedly stressed that it expected international observers would have access to these proceedings – without eliciting any firm reaction. Foreign Advisor Aziz had however mentioned that a law would soon be passed to ensure that sessions took place in camera. This said, Speaker Sardar Ayfaz Sadiq had conceded there was indeed “a possibility of misuse” of these courts, which is why all cases to be deferred to them would be under the responsibility of a special committee under the ministry of interior. Senator Chadhry Aitzaz Ahsan (Leader of the Opposition, PPP) had also reminded that “most of us are viscerally instinctively against the death penalty and against the military courts” but that, at least, the military would not have to use discretion to decide which cases would be referred to military courts – this lying with the civilian authorities instead.

Interior Ministry Secretary Shahid Khan was thus a key interlocutor for the EP Delegation: asked about the conventions Pakistan had ratified and how he saw the obligation subscribed to in this context, his appreciation was that “the security of the people of Pakistan is our paramount concern” adding that “I don’t deal with GSP+: this is for the Commerce Secretary”. Elaborating on the military courts, he stressed that mechanisms to screen and select cases were being put in

6/18 EN place. There was nothing inherently incorrect with the courts judging civilians – as this had already taken place in the past anyway. “What counts in the expected result – i.e. the elimination of terrorists as per the National Action Plan against terrorism” which had been adopted in December 2014 after the Peshawar School Attack. The Interior Secretary stressed that, simply, “we cannot afford to wait for the courts to judge them and then wait for executions to take place”. Against this backdrop, would international observers be allowed to attend these trials? “Not sure.”

Death penalty

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif confirmed that, after the Peshawar attack, “there was no choice: extraordinary measures for an extraordinary situation”. While Pakistan “had an understanding with the EU on the death penalty moratorium”, executions of hard-core terrorists would have to resume1 - this was government policy. Foreign Advisor Aziz added that the measure was announced to the “relief and satisfaction” of society. However, the death penalty as an effective deterrent in itself, for suicide-bombers remained an open question.

The Foreign Advisor stressed that, out of the approximately 8,500 convicts on death row2 “less than 5%” would be executed, this being presented as amounting to “a few dozens” – which would however require “lots of formalities” and would thus take some time3. M. Aziz did stress that there were many kind of terrorists – but also conceded that “a big change that has occurred in Pakistan is that there is no good and bad terrorists” any longer. All were bad, but not equally bad: “you can’t kill all of them’; but “once you break their back and the rest falls in line”, there was room for deradicalisation measures. This meant that measures such as a “Madrassa reform and a FATA reform” were needed as well. Senator Sehar Kamran (PPP) had also stressed the need to address root causes of radicalisation, calling for reforms. In the FATAs the whole economy of the area was built on militancy: “if we just return refugees there, what will they do? This is less about religion, and more about the economy.”

Interior Secretary Shahid Khan, for his part, recalling the heavy price paid by Pakistan on the altar of the war on terror, hinted that ‘not all of this is our doing’. The APS children “could have been anyone’s children”, and this only strengthened the resolve to implement the National Action Plan against terrorism – and thus “we lifted the moratorium”. If, in Azad Jammu & , two executions had already taken place whereas the convicts had never been sentenced on grounds on terrorism, this was certainly not in contradiction with stated government policy: the AJK high court had held that the moratorium was wrongly applied in the first place. But even if this had not been the case, executing convicts sentenced to death

1 According to the Justice Project Pakistan, circa 800 prisoners on death row have been tried as ‘terrorists’. In 86% of these cases ‘there was no link to anything reasonably defined as terrorism’. 17.000 cases on similar grounds are reported to be pending. 2 Death row population in other countries (approximate numbers): USA, 3100; Iran, 2000; : 250. 3 In the first month of the lifting of the moratorium, 24 executions had already taken place. 7/18 EN for other crimes was just “for the Government to decide”. On a radically different wavelength, however, Commerce Minister Khan felt that “we will be able to go back to the moratorium after the end of the anti-terrorist operations… but not yet”.

Regional stability

In a clear contrast with previous missions, relations with were presented as steadily improving: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif explained that the new Afghan government under President Ghani was cooperating with Pakistan at every level – a major development since "neither country wants to allow terrorist groups to operate from their soil". Special Advisor on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz underlined that the Afghan transition had taken place with less complications than feared, despite the enormous electoral difficulties Afghanistan had to deal with.

This said, M. Aziz acknowledged that, in the past, there had been suspicions during the Karzai years that the Afghan Taliban had Pakistani approval. This misperception was no more - and Islamabad's position had been strengthened by the strong antiterrorist operations undertaken at Afghanistan's border in the six agencies (Bajaur, Mohmand, Khyber, Orakzai, Kurram, South Waziristan). All of these had been cleared; in North Waziristan, furthermore, on-going operation Zarb-e-Azb had been accompanied by incessant bombing, with the results reminding of "Berlin after the Second World War" but with massive terrorist infrastructure discovered and destroyed. Military operations were thus successful in 90% of North Waziristan - but not yet in the Shawal valley, of which there is very difficult access. This, however, could not overshadow the fact that the terrorist's "supply line has been broken", and that "one by one, they are captured and killed".

Prime Minister Sharif had also been clear in explaining to the EP Delegation that "there is no question of sparing anybody – and we will help the Afghan government in doing the same. Whatever we can provide Afghanistan, we will." This new cooperation had found a concrete example with Pakistan accepting to train Afghan military cadets - which would have been almost unthinkable before. The next step to be taken, according to Foreign Advisor Aziz, would be to conclude a formal Agreement with - and the fact that Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff was to pay his third visit to Afghanistan in 3 months was to be seen in this context. The aim was to have an Afghan-led coordinated military operation that would prevent any chance of ISIL infiltration.

Against this backdrop, many interlocutors, from Government and Opposition alike, described the country as being "at war with terrorism", with an extensive presentation being given on the legal implications of such a statement by the Research Society on International Law. Foreign Advisor Sartaj Aziz nonetheless had a more nuanced approach, explaining that the answer was not a simple yes or no. It was true that the TTP (Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan) had issued a declaration of war on the state of Pakistan: the national consensus now was that "this is our war, a complex war, and this why military operations enjoyed genuine popular support"; yet, in legal terms, M. Aziz described the situation as one of non-international armed conflict, reminding of Islamabad's opposition against international intervention of any kind, including drones.

8/18 EN Discussions also focused on the IDP situation; Interior Ministry Secretary Shahid Khan wished to underline in this respect how porous the Afghan/Pakistan border was, and seemed to lament the fact that the repatriation deadline for Afghan refugees had been "extended and extended" with UNHCR support - as refugees "do not confine themselves to the camps, which means they are a security concern as well". At any rate, "those without a registration should be treated as aliens". The EP Delegation was presented with various figures - while Pakistan was presented as having hosted a peak of 5 million Afghan refugees. The official position seemed to be that 1.6 million of them would have to return to Afghanistan by the 31.12.2015, which many interlocutors agreed was hardly realistic. On the other hand, asked about ways the EU could offer assistance, Interior Secretary Khan appeared somewhat dismissive, stressing that "at the end of the day, the problem is for us to solve”.

Moving to relations with Pakistan's other main neighbour, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif strongly lamented the fact little developments had taken place to solve the Kashmir issue: Pakistan was firmly standing behind the 1948 UN Security Council Resolution, and, thus, "we demand the holding of a plebiscite so that people decide which side to join, as Ban Ki Moon knows only too well". And yet, PM Sharif affirmed a strong belief in developing relations with , reminding of the proposal to the new Modi government to “sit down and do business by peaceful means [which could include] restarting composite dialogue”. Pakistan had regretted the "unilateral" cancellation of the Foreign Secretaries meeting which had been scheduled to take place in late August; it was hoped that the process could resume, with the Indian Foreign Secretary expected in Islamabad in the first week of March.

Ideally, this would allow a move to bilateral trade and cooperation, and beyond the arms race which had engulfed both India and Pakistan: wasting resources that could instead be invested in the welfare of the people was "absolutely foolish" when, in both countries, so many people were living below the poverty line. India, for PM Sharif, ought to move on as well, abandoning a hard- line: Pakistan had not shied away from according Most Favoured Nation status to India, whereas New Delhi's answer had been "indiscriminate firing at the ".

Strengthening Pakistan's parliamentary institutions

Members were further able to discuss the concrete steps Pakistan had taken to follow up the recommendations included in the EU-EOM 2013 Final Report issued under the authority of Chief EU Observer Michael Gahler, who joined the DSAS mission on these grounds. Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq thus highlighted the role played by the Parliamentary Committee on electoral reforms, stressing that 80% of the work to be done had already been achieved, despite the Committee ‘being delayed by PTI boycott”. This was no easy task, as the Committee had received a total amount of 4,000 pages on recommendations, “including the ones from the EU”. The remaining 20%, the Speaker added confidently, could be completed “within 2 weeks”.

9/18 EN Nonetheless, Members underlined the need to further entrench and strengthen the independence of the Electoral Commission – solving pending issues related to the returning officers; further steps would have to be taken to improve transparency and the swift adjudication of electoral disputes. In this respect, Chief EU Observer Gahler reminded it could hardly be understood to still have a large number of complaints pending before the courts, almost two years after the elections, when the law stipulated that such cases ought to be resolved within 120 days. Priority ought to be given to addressing such issues; exploring electronic voting options was no substitute and could actually create more problems than it would solve.

The Election Commission of Pakistan presented the EP Delegation with an overview of the steps that were being taken – including the adoption of the second five-year strategic plan (2014- 2018), which took into account many of the recommendations issued by the EU-EOM. Yet, several Members expressed their concern at the timetable for restoration of elected local government – which still appeared to be stalled. Addressing these worries, M. Shabaz Sharif, Chief Minister, announced that Punjab would hold local elections within 2015, as well as KPK in May. It remains to be seen when other provinces will also follow suit.

An issue which needs to be addressed nation-wide remains the long overdue census, largely to allow an objective redrawing of the single-seat constituencies. With the population calculated to have grown by an extra 20 million persons since the 1998 census, it was nonetheless acknowledged as an important positive step that the voting lists were to be updated “very soon”, for the first time after the 2013 elections, by including the voters that had come of age since. This was no easy task, as it meant adding approximately an extra 7.8 million new voters on the basis of the new National ID cards issued by NADRA. At the same time, about 500,000 names (mainly the deceased) would be taken off the electoral rolls. This said, Members of the Electoral Commission acknowledged the problems faced in developing accurate electoral rolls – with an estimated 10 million women not registered (or without an ID Card at all).

As to the EU’s concrete assistance to the Federal Parliament, Members had the opportunity to meet with YP3 stakeholders – i.e. Young Parliamentary Associates working in the National Assembly and Senate, with the programme being undertaken under the auspices of the EU’s Parliamentary Support Programme IP3. This initiative seeks to recruit, train and deploy in Pakistan’s Parliament fresh graduates from across the country, assigned to parliamentary committees, research activities, legislative drafting or organising hearings. Most of them assessed their experience as extremely positive, and stressed that the merit-based recruitment procedure was allowing specific expertise to be provided to Members of the National Assembly and Senators, thus helping them in return, to perform their democratic scrutiny function.

Most MNAs & Senators met by the EP Delegation shared this view, and were very positive in their appreciation of concrete EU support. The exception was MNA (PML-N) who appeared to strike a different chord, by heavily insisting that the overall EU-

10/18 EN funded IP3 programme’s very future now depended on whether it would include a clear ICT dimension, with the direct funding of hardware equipment for the National Assembly. This had become a political priority which in her stern words if not delivered ‘would impact on the relationship we have had in the past 18 months’. Speaker Sardar Ayfaz Sadiq, although extremely keen to develop E-parliament capabilities, wished to express his appreciation for the Young Parliamentary Associates – which was assessed as a “quite good” programme, especially as the selection was “100% merit-based”.

Such projects for the Speaker, were the natural complement of the “transformational agenda” that had been launched, at his initiative, with 52 universities of the country including in their courses legislative drafting, which had been a weakness of the National Assembly. Over time, these developments would help the National Assembly develop its capacities of parliamentary oversight. For the Speaker, “we have come a long way since 2002; now both the government and the opposition are more assertive” in their scrutiny of the government. While there still was room for improvement, “the political will to do so” was also present. This did not mean that the exercise would be an easy one: a full scrutiny of the Army and the defence budget “would be difficult to achieve” and would take time; but at least part of the responsibility for this sat “whether we like it or not, with western democracies which showed in 1999 that they were ready to work with dictators”.

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11/18 EN Conclusions

Democratic process

 The EU consistently stood up for electoral principles for credible and inclusive elections in 2008 and 2013. The EP Delegation wishes to recognise that since then Pakistan has taken a number of steps to improve the electoral legal framework on the basis of the EU-EOM recommendations, and has been engaging with the EU on the matter.

 Further priority areas on electoral reforms ought to include transparency and accountability, dispute resolution, the full empowerment of the Election Commission, as well as the promotion of participation of women and minorities and conducting a long awaited national census; measures should also be taken to allow for the conduct of local elections in order to ensure efficient and accountable governance. The EP Delegation recalls the EU stands ready to assist in these steps, with an aim to increase confidence in the process, at provincial and federal level.

 Likewise, the EP Delegation strongly encourages the National Assembly and the Senate to strengthen the parliamentary institutions through building public confidence on their capacity to conduct effective scrutiny over the executive, but also by taking concrete transparency measures, including a public register of Members' interests and attendance.

Human rights

 The EP South Asia Delegation recalls it had welcomed, three years ago, the ratification by Pakistan of all major human rights conventions, and the lifting of a series of reservations to several international law instruments, such as the ICCPR or the CAT in the hope that “when Pakistan's application to the GSP+ preferential regime will be before the competent bodies of the EP, the Government's efforts in efficiently protecting human rights across the country will speak for themselves”.

 The EP Delegation thus welcomes the establishment of a National Human Rights Commission and stresses the importance to provide budget and appropriate support to it, also in order for this body to be able to domestically underpin GSP+ implementation; the Federal structures are further called to helping provinces in carrying out their new competencies in this field.

 Legislation to address hate speech, for example in the Punjab, is clearly a positive development, that addresses the root causes of radicalisation; the EP Delegation is however alarmed and dismayed at the fact that recent occurrences of hate speech, within the very premises of the National Assembly, seem to have elicited no reaction whatsoever.

Death penalty

 The resumption of executions is a clearly regressive step. While the Delegation expresses its absolute condemnation of the Peshawar attack and expresses its solidarity to Pakistan in its struggle against terrorism, it has to repeat that the death penalty, for the EU, is cruel, inhuman, and in no way a deterrent to crime.

 The EP Delegation calls for the moratorium to be re-instated; at the very least, it hopes the Government will respect its own commitment to restrict the death penalty only to hardline terrorist cases; it notes with regret that, as of mid-February, this was already not the case and 12/18 EN fears the generalisation of such occurrences, apart from putting in doubt the assurances received by the EP Delegation by the civilian authorities at the highest level, would run counter to the GSP+ spirit, if not the letter.

Military courts

 The EP Delegation insists that international observers be granted full access to such courts. It strongly invites the relevant services of the European Commission to use this parameter in the Scorecard – and to consider ipso facto that lack of such access would have to be considered as an indication of a breach of binding international commitments under article 14 of the ICCPR.

 The EP Delegation further recalls that fast-track military justice by definition is questionable in terms of providing minimal conditions of international standards on due process terms, with the prolonged granting of GSP+ preferences linked to the accomplishment of certain basic standards;

 While this last recourse solution of a two-year lifespan was presented as the only way to address the shortcomings of the civilian courts, the EP Delegation stresses that it expects from the Pakistani authorities to now use this time in finding solutions in order to allow the judiciary to be able to play its role immediately at the expiry of this two-year period; it calls the EU to assist Pakistan in this endeavour.

Situation in the FATAs

 The EP Delegation reminds that the 27 international conventions signed by Pakistan fully apply to the FATAs; it would invite the European Commission services to include this precise dimension in the Scorecard exercise, and expects specific questions on the issue – including on the compatibility of the FCR with the ICCPR, the CAT or the CEDAW. It regrets DG Trade did not find it appropriate to consult with the EP Delegation on the matter at the time the questionnaire was drafted.

 The EP Delegation is nonetheless encouraged by the fact Government stakeholders accepted the fact that reforms would be needed in these tribal areas in order to address the root causes of radicalisation and bring them under the writ of law; the EP Delegation particularly welcomes, as a first step, the unanimous approval at committee level of a Senate bill seeking to extend the jurisdiction of the Pakistani Courts to the tribal areas;

Interinstitutional Cooperation

 The Delegation for relations with South Asia recalls that the EP, as an Institution, is a stakeholder in the GSP+ exercise; while it is fundamental to devise an in-House pattern that allows parliamentary missions of EP official bodies to properly deal with the political conditionality of this issue, the EP Delegation strongly encourages DG Trade to take the necessary steps to facilitate EP Delegations in fulfilling their mandate as set by the Conference of Presidents. The Delegation for relations with South Asia therefore believes DG Trade would be well advised to seriously re-consider the way EP Delegations or, indeed, AFET through its DROI Subcommittee, can be implicated in the Scorecard exercise, doing so well before the current “teething problems” observed acquire their own political dynamic.

13/18 EN Annex I

DELEGATION FOR RELATIONS WITH SOUTH ASIA

10th Interparliamentary Meeting EP-Pakistan 16-20 February 2015

LIST OF PARTICIPANTS

Members Group Country

Jean LAMBERT Greens/EFA UK Chair

Richard HOWITT S-D UK 2nd Vice Chair

Michael GAHLER PPE DE Foreign Affairs Committee, 2013 EU EOM Chief Observer

Sajjad KARIM ECR UK International Trade Committee, Chair of South Asia Monitoring Group

European Parliament Officials

Philippe KAMARIS Administrator, DG EXPO

14/18 EN Annex II PROGRAMME

10th EP/Pakistan Interparliamentary Meeting Islamabad & Lahore 16 - 20 February 2015

Monday 16 February ISLAMABAD

16:30 – 18:00 Secretariat only: Meeting on the IP3 project (EU assistance to institution-building, follow up to the EU-EOM 2013 recommendations) at the National Assembly with IP3 staff, MNAs, EU EEAS & DEVCO officials Atanassova, Marenne, Van Hout)

Compulsory flight for Members: Abu Dhabi EY 0233

20:05 – 21:00 Secretariat: Briefing with MEPs upon their arrival Islamabad Airport , Rawal Lounge

and transfer to

21:30 Serena Hotel, Khayaban-e-Suhrawardy, Islamabad, Pakistan

Tuesday, 17 February ISLAMABAD

08:30 - 09:15 Briefing with EU Delegation HoD Ambassador Wigemark Serena Hotel

09:30 - 10:00 Meeting with the Prime Minister, Mr Nawaz Sharif Prime Minister House

10:15 - 11:15 Briefing on the military courts with Mr Ahmer Bilal Soofi, former Law Minister (caretaker Govt) and President of the Research Society of International Law, RSIL office, 12 Ataturk Avenue, G-6/4

11:30 – 12:30 Meeting with the Speaker of the National Assembly Mr Sardar Ayaz Sadiq (PML- N), in the presence of Mr Khurram Dastagir Khan, MNA, Minister for Commerce, Convener EU friendship group, Mr Syed Ghulam Mustafah Shah (PPP), MNA, Convener German friendship group Parliament House, Speaker's lounge

13:00 – 14:30 Working lunch with civil society and journalists on the political situation EU Residence

15:30 - 16:45 Meeting with the Secretary of the Interior Mr Shahid Khan Ministry of the Interior

15/18 EN 17:00 - 18:15 Meeting with leading Senators, - Senator Sayed (PML), Chairman Standing Committee on Defence - Senator Haji Ghulam Ali (JUI-F), Chairman Standing Committee on Commerce - Senator Sehar Kamran (PPP), Member Standing Committee on Human Rights - Senator Rafique Ahmed Rajwana (PML-N), Member Standing Committee on Defence - Senator Sughra Imam (PPP), Member Standing Committee on Foreign Relations - Senator Nuzhat Sadiq (PML-N), Member Standing Committee on Ports & Shipping, National Food Security & Research. Parliament House

Briefing by the Head of UNIDO Mr Bruno Valanzuolo on the EU financed project on Trade Related Technical Assistance (TRTA)

18:30 – 19:45 Briefing on EU’s electoral portfolio by Head IP3, Ms Niamh O'Connor UNDP Head election and governance, Mr James Littletown, and Chief IFES Pakistan, Mr Ole Holtved, EU Residence

Wednesday, 18 February ISLAMABAD 09:30 - 10:30 Exchange of views with the Minister for Commerce, Mr Khurram Dastagir Khan, Ministry of Commerce

10:45 – 12:00 Roundtable at the Institute for of Strategic Studies, with circa 20 researchers / analysts under the chairmanship of Amb(Rd) Khalid Mahmood. Subjects covered: Afghanistan, fight against terrorism, GSP+

13:00 – 14:00 Meeting with Special Advisor to the PM on Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Mr Sartaj Aziz Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan

14:15 – 15:15 Working Group A (Ms Lambert, M. Gahler, Ph. Kamaris): Meeting with the Chief of the Election Commission Justice Sardar Muhammad Raza, Election Commission, Constitution Avenue

Working Group B (M. Karim, M. Howitt): 14:15 – 15:15 Meeting with the Special Parliamentary Secretary on Human Rights M. Saifullah Khan, Prime Minister’s House

15:30 - 16:30 Meeting with the EU friendship group headed by Convener Khurram Dasragir Khan MNA

16:45 – 17:45 Exchange of views with the Young Parliamentary Associates, supported through the EU funded IP3 project Parliament House, Constitution Room

18:00 - 18: 30 Debriefing with EU Member States Heads of Mission EU Residence 19:00 - 19:30 Press briefing EU Residence 16/18 EN 19:30 - 21:00 Informal meeting with Members of the National Assembly  Ms Marvi Memon, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)  Mr , Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)  Mr Bushra Gohar, Vice President Awami national Party (ANP)  Mr , National of Pakistan Threek-e-Insaf (PTI)  Mr Farooq Sattar, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) EU Residence

Thursday, 19 February LAHORE 07:30 - 11:30 Departure to Lahore (by road) & Check-in at Avari Hotel

12:00 – 14:00 Meeting with Mr Ahsan Bashir, Central Chairman of the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) and the board of APTMA APTMA, Aziz Avenue, Canal Bank,Off. Gulberg Road

15:30 – 18:00 Exchange of views with the Chief Minister of Punjab Mr Shahbaz Sharif and with the Provincial Committee on compliance of GSP+ Chief Minister House

18:30 – 20:30 Working dinner with leading analysts and CSOs, Andaaz Restaurant

Friday, 20 July LAHORE

08:30 - 11:30 Meeting with Director General of WWF-Pakistan and presentation of the Sanitation Movement Gains Ground Visit of Sareena Textile Factory implementing and EU financed project on water sanitation Sarena Textile, 22Km Sheikhupura Road

12:15 - 13:45 Meeting at the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) with Secretary General I.A. Rehman, in presence of former UN Special Rapporteur Asma Jahangir and Mr Shahid Kardar Human Rights Commission, Sjakir Ali Lane

14:30 - 16:30 Lahore Literary Festival (supported by the EU) ; Panel Cityscapes – living in global cities (Chair only) Alhamra Arts Council, 68 Mall Road

16:30 - 18:15 Meeting with Trade Unions representatives on GSP+ compliance issues Avari Hotel, Indus Hall

18:30 Transfer to airport for 21:00 departure to Abu Dhabi

17/18 EN DELEGATION FOR RELATIONS WITH SOUTH ASIA PRESS RELEASE

Islamabad / Lahore 20 February 2015

The EP Delegation for relations with South Asia, chaired by Ms Jean LAMBERT (Greens/UK) visited Pakistan on 17-20 February; Mr Richard Howitt (S&D/UK), Mr Sajjad Karim (ECR/UK) and Mr Michael Gahler (EPP/D), accompanied by Ambassador Lars Gunnar Wigemark, Head of the EU Delegation to Pakistan, participated in the talks.

The 4-day visit featured meetings with PM Nawaz Sharif, Speaker of the National Assembly Sardar Sadiq, as well as members of the Senate and of the National Assembly's EU friendship group. MEPs also met, amongst others, with the Advisor to the PM on Foreign Affairs, the Minister for Commerce, the Interior Secretary, the Chief Minister Punjab, the GSP+ Committee of Punjab and several civil society representatives (prominent lawyers, women leaders, journalists, the business community, and trade unions). Rounding up talks, MEPs had the opportunity to appreciate Pakistan's vibrant cultural scene by participating in the EU-sponsored Lahore literary festival.

While commending the first ever democratic transition in Pakistan from one elected Government to another in 2013, MEPs recalled the value of the recommendations made by the EU Election Observation Mission in order to strengthen the electoral process. Chief Election Observer Michael Gahler MEP underlined the need for reforms to be completed in time for the next elections, and reiterated the EU's commitment, building on the extensive support provided in the past to electoral reforms and on ongoing assistance in strengthening Pakistan's parliamentary institutions.

Since the European Parliament approval of the extension of the GSP+ to Pakistan in late 2013, Pakistan's exports to the EU have already increased by an extra billion USD - an impressive development proving the value of the scheme, welcomed by both the European Delegation and all Pakistani interlocutors. In order for this trend to be further reinforced, MEPs emphasised the need to now ensure tangible progress in implementation of the 27 international conventions Pakistan had subscribed on human rights, labour rights, governance and the environment, as covered by the GSP+ scheme; as an assessment of the state of play will be presented to the European Parliament on 1/1/2016, the EP Delegation encouraged all stakeholders to address possible shortcomings in advance.

Whilst assuring Pakistan of the EU's solidarity and support in the fight against terrorism, MEPs reiterated the EU's constant message of opposing the death penalty. The EP Delegation thus regretted both the recent decision to lift the moratorium on executions in terrorism related cases, and the fact that at least in two cases the condemned were executed for crimes that were of a different nature: both steps were clearly seen as regressive in Human Rights terms. The EP Delegation further underlined that it expected international observers would have full access to the military courts in order to ascertain that the defendants would be afforded the full legal guarantees they would be entitled to, as per binding international norms.

Extensive discussions on human rights and labour issues allowed the EP Delegation to highlight the importance of making progress in areas such as freedom of religion and belief, including the misuse of the blasphemy laws, the rights of women and girls, access to justice and wider justice sector reforms as well as in labour standards, including labour inspections, occupational safety and health and the rights of trade unions to organise. MEPs welcomed the steps taken to establish Pakistan's first National Human Rights Commission, and expressed the hope it would be fully operational very soon.

Reaffirming the value of parliamentary scrutiny in the strengthening of EU / Pakistan relations, MEPs further expressed the hope of welcoming soon in Brussels or Strasbourg their counterparts from the EU friendship group of the National Assembly, for follow-up talks. --ENDS--

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