Plenary sitting
6.6.2012 B7‑0280/2012
MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION
to wind up the debate on the statement by the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
pursuant to Rule 110(2) of the Rules of Procedure
on the Follow-up of the elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
( 2012/2673(RSP) )
Charles Tannock, Martin Callanan, Oldřich Vlasák, Jan Zahradil, Ryszard Antoni Legutko, Ryszard Czarnecki, Tomasz Piotr Poręba
on behalf of the ECR Group
European Parliament resolution on the Follow-up of the elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
( 2012/2673(RSP) )
The European Parliament,
– having regard to the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,
– having regard to its previous resolutions on the DRC, in particular those of 17 January 2008 on the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo and rape as a war crime and 17 December 2009 on violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo, relating to sexual violence by armed groups and the persistence of human rights abuses in the DRC as well as that of 7 October 2010 on failures in protection of human rights and justice in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and that of 7 July 2011 on the Democratic Republic of Congo and the mass rapes in the province of South Kivu,
– having regard to the Cotonou Partnership Agreement signed in June 2000,
– having regard to Council Joint Action 2009/769/CFSP of 19 October 2009 amending Joint Action 2007/405/CFSP on the European Union police mission undertaken in the framework of reform of the security sector (SSR) and its interface with the system of justice in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (EUPOL RD Congo),
– having regard to the EUSEC RD Congo security sector reform mission, established in June 2005 (Council Joint Action 2005/355/CFSP of 2 May 2005 on the European Union mission to provide advice and assistance for security sector reform in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)),
– having regard to UN Security Council Resolution 1856 (2008) on MONUC’s mandate,
– having regard to UN Security Council Resolution 1925 (2010), which specifies the mandate of the UN mission in the DRC (MONUSCO),
– having regard to the joint statement of 27 August 2010 by Catherine Ashton, the High Representative, and Andris Piebalgs, the EU Development Commissioner, on the resurgence of violence in North Kivu, DRC,
– having regard to the statement of 22 February 2011 by Andris Piebalgs, the EU Development Commissioner, on the need to end impunity in DRC (République Démocratique du Congo: ‘Un pas vers la fin de l’impunité’),
– having regard to the Declaration of 9 December 2011 by the High Representative, Catherine Ashton, on behalf of the European Union, on the electoral process in the Democratic Republic of the Congo,
– having regard to the Declaration of 20 December 2011 by the High Representative, on behalf of the European Union, on the definitive results of the presidential elections in the DRC and the continuation of the current electoral process,
– having regard to the Final Observation Report of the European Union Election Observation Mission to the presidential and parliamentary elections of 28 November 2011 in DRC (EU EOM DRC 2011) that took place from 19 October 2012 to 13 January 2012,
– having regard to Rule 110(2) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas free and fair elections are one of the preconditions of democratic governance;
B. whereas the Government’s legitimacy stems from free and fair elections; whereas public policies implemented by the Government benefit from its legitimate status or pale in the absence of it;
C. whereas Presidential and parliamentary elections were held in DRC on 28 November 2011; whereas the possibility of a runoff on 26 February 2012 was repealed prior to the parliamentary elections with a change in election laws adopted by the Government;
D. whereas speaking on behalf of the EU, the EU VPC/HR Catherine Ashton reiterated concern at the serious shortcomings and lack of transparency in the compilation and publication of the electoral results which were reported amongst others by the EU Election Observation Mission;
E. whereas the political contenders to Joseph Kabila continuously pointed at the substantial amount of irregularities during the presidential and parliamentary election processes;
F. whereas despite shortcomings identified by the Congolese authorities themselves and by the Independent National Electoral Commission of DRC (CENI), the Supreme Court of Justice of DRC confirmed the definitive results of both elections and proclaimed on 16 December 2012 the incumbent Joseph Kabila as the President re-elect;
G. whereas five months after the parliamentary election, a new Government led by Prime Minister Augustin Matata Ponyo was formed on 18 April 2012;
H. whereas the human rights situation in DRC remains of outmost concern to the Congolese people themselves and the international community as horrifying testimonies about systematic human rights violations, including mass rape and related acts of torture, have been reported in recent years, including in the provinces of North Kivu and South Kivu;
I. whereas in the recent years several members of the Congolese armed forces, the police, the security services as well as other armed groups active on the territory of the DCR such as the Rwandan rebel group FDLR (Democratic Front for the Liberation of Rwanda) – which is led by perpetrators of the Rwandan genocide who fled to Congo – and Congolese Mai-Mai militia, have been identified by domestic and international Human Rights organisations as the perpetrators of these horrendous crimes;
J. whereas the natural resources and profit from the illegal extraction and trade of minerals are still often under the control of paramilitary armed groups, especially in the volatile eastern part of DRC, where conflict has been ongoing for many years despite the presence of a United Nations peacekeeping mission, MONUC, that is present in DRC to assist the FARDC in restoring peace in the country;
1. Notes the definitive results of both November 28th elections in DRC; remains however questionable due to the lack of proper monitoring of these key electoral processes;
2. Notes the EU financial contribution to these elections amounting to € 47.5 million with additional €2 million for security; appreciates the personal involvement of 147 observers in the electoral surveillance as part of the EU EOM DRC 2011;
3. Salutes the participation of Congolese citizens in this large-scale electoral process and urges them to call on the Congolese authorities to reflect upon the recommendations for electoral process reforms based on the EU EOM Final Observation Report conclusions as well as CENI and domestic civil society assessments of the elections;
4. Condemns in the strongest possible way all intentional irregularities that occurred in these elections in view of depriving the Congolese population of a free choice with respect to the country’s political establishment; regrets the unintentional irregularities that may have contributed to the same outcome;
5. Calls on the current DRC Government to step up its domestic efforts to ensure the rule of law and security of the Congolese people on the whole territory of DRC; invites the Prime Minister as the responsible Government’s official for public finances to ensure that the highest financial management standards and sound budgetary procedures become the norm in the policy making of the DRC Government;
6. Remains concerned by the high level of violence against civilians, including mass rape committed in DRC; reminds President Joseph Kabila of his pledge made on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the country’s independence to commit himself resolutely to promoting political practice that upholds human rights and strengthens the rule of law by ensuring that those responsible for breaching human rights and international humanitarian law are held to account and criminally prosecuted;
7. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the institutions of the African Union, the United Nations Secretary-General, the United Nations Security Council, and the United Nations Human Rights Council, and last, but not least, to the President, Prime Minister, and the bicameral parliament of the DRC.