Plenary sitting
B8-0271/2017 /rev.
24.4.2017
MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION
to wind up the debate on the statement by the Commission
pursuant to Rule 123(2) of the Rules of Procedure
on the situation in Venezuela
( 2017/2651(RSP) )
Esteban González Pons, Luis de Grandes Pascual, Cristian Dan Preda, José Ignacio Salafranca Sánchez-Neyra, David McAllister, Sandra Kalniete, Francisco José Millán Mon, Tunne Kelam, Nuno Melo, Gabriel Mato, Teresa Jiménez-Becerril Barrio, Agustín Díaz de Mera García Consuegra, Ramón Luis Valcárcel Siso
on behalf of the PPE Group
B8-0271/2017 /rev.
European Parliament resolution on the situation in Venezuela
( 2017/2651(RSP) )
The European Parliament,
– having regard to its numerous resolutions, in particular those of 27 February 2014 on the situation in Venezuela[1], of 18 December 2014 on the persecution of the democratic opposition in Venezuela[2], of 12 March 2015 on the situation in Venezuela[3], and of 8 June 2016 on the situation in Venezuela[4],
– having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948,
– having regard to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Venezuela is a party,
– having regard to the Inter-American Democratic Charter adopted on 11 September 2001,
– having regard to the Constitution of Venezuela, and in particular Articles 72 and 233 thereof,
– having regard to the statement of 31 March 2017 by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, on the Venezuelan Supreme Court’s decision to take over the legislative powers of the National Assembly,
– having regard to the warnings outlined in the OAS’ reports of 30 May 2016 and 14 March 2017 on Venezuela and its Secretary General’s call for the urgent convocation of the Permanent Council, under Article 20 of the Democratic Charter, to discuss Venezuela’s political crisis,
– having regard to the letter of 27 March 2017 from the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (VP/HR), Federica Mogherini on the worsening and severe political, economic and humanitarian crises in Venezuela,
– having regard to the OAS declaration signed by 14 of its member states on 13 March 2017 demanding that Venezuela promptly schedule elections, release political prisoners and recognise its constitution’s separation of powers, among other measures,
– having regard the OAS Permanent Council’s resolution of 3 April 2017 on the recent events in Venezuela,
– having regard to Rule 123(2) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas on 27 March 2017 the Venezuelan Supreme Court of Justice issued a decision declaring all legislation acts passed by the National Assembly unconstitutional; whereas the support for the Inter-American Democratic Charter was described as a treasonous act despite it being a legal document to which Venezuela has signed up; whereas on 29 March 2017 the Venezuelan Supreme Court of Justice issued the decision to declare the National Assembly to be in contempt and nullified its actions and competences, providing for the Supreme Court of Justice to assume the legislative function;
B. whereas legislative power may only be exercised by duly democratically elected representatives;
C. whereas the decisions were issued without any constitutional basis – either the powers granted to the National Assembly (Article 187 of the Constitution) or those enjoyed by the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court (Article 336 of the Constitution);
D. whereas the State Attorney General, Luisa Ortega Díaz, appointed by the Venezuelan Government, rejected the decision issued by the Supreme Court, being in a breach of constitutional order;
E. whereas the decisions issued by the Venezuelan Supreme Court violate both the constitutional provisions of separation of powers and the obligation on all judges to respect and ensure the integrity of the Venezuelan constitution (Article 334);
F. whereas the Supreme Court has previously declared the National Assembly in contempt and nullified its actions and competences on 1 August 2016 and on 5 September 2016, through Ruling No 808;
G. whereas universal standards, as well as regional and international agreements, to which Venezuela is a party and which it is therefore obligated to enforce, define the separation of powers as an essential guarantee to protect the rights of citizens and defend democracy and the rule of law, which are basic prerequisites for the existence of representative democracy;
H. whereas President Nicolas Maduro, under the international pressure, asked the Supreme Court to review the ruling nullifying the National Assembly; whereas on 1 April 2017 the Supreme Court issued new rulings that appeared to reinstate the National Assembly’s authority;
I. whereas Venezuela’s opposition coalition, the MUD, won 112 seats in the 167-member unicameral National Assembly, a two-thirds majority, compared with 55 seats for the PSUV; whereas the Supreme Court subsequently prevented four newly-elected National Assembly representatives, including three from the MUD, from taking office, thereby depriving the opposition of its two-thirds majority;
J. whereas, alarmingly, the latest arbitrary arrests have raised the number of political prisoners to 117, including major political leaders such as Leopoldo López, Antonio Ledezma Daniel Ceballos and Yon Goicoechea;
K. whereas Venezuelan opposition leader and former presidential candidate Henrique Capriles has been banned from holding political office for 15 years; whereas this decision was based on alleged accusations of ‘administrative irregularities’ in his role as Governor of Miranda State;
L. whereas the Venezuelan security forces, including the national guard and national police, have from the beginning of the protests repeatedly used brutal force against peaceful protesters, including Members of Congress, opposing the decision nullifying the National Assembly’s competences, and whereas this has resulted in more than 20 deaths, while a large number of people have been wounded and there have been many arrests;
M. whereas the government, alleging a lack of financial resources, has suspended the local and regional elections scheduled for December 2016, and has prevented a recall referendum from taking place – a constitutional provision that allows 20 % of the electorate to request the removal of a President - despite all the constitutional requirements having been fulfilled, and has threatened to interrupt all electoral processes indefinitely;
N. whereas regular, fair and inclusive elections, as required under Article 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, represent a crucial pillar of any representative democratic society based on human rights and rule of law;
1. Condemns the continued unconstitutional violation of the democratic order in Venezuela, including the recent ruling issued by the Venezuelan Supreme Court with the aim of taking over the legislative powers of the National Assembly, and the lack of separation of powers and independence of the branches of government;
2. Strongly rejects the decisions of the Supreme Court of Venezuela to suspend the powers of the National Assembly and to arrogate them to itself, which constitutes a clear violation of international democratic standards and the constitutional order of Venezuela; notes the recent revision of some elements of these decisions and urges the Government of Venezuela to ensure the full restoration of the democratic order;
3. Expresses its grave concerns at the seriously deteriorating democracy, human rights and the socio-economic situation in Venezuela, characterised by a growing climate of political violence and social instability;
4. Calls on the Government and the Supreme Court of Venezuela to respect the constitution, in particular the powers conferred on all duly elected members of the parliament;
5. Calls on the Venezuelan Government to safeguard the separation and independence of powers and to restore and respect full constitutional authority and competences to the National Assembly; recalls that the separation of powers is an essential principle of democratic states guided by the rule of law;
6. Calls on the Venezuelan Government to ensure the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners; recalls that the freeing of political prisoners was approved by the National Assembly through the Law of National Reconciliation, vetoed by decision of the executive power; recalls that a durable peaceful solution for Venezuela can only be achieved through full respect for freedom of speech and expression, resulting in an end to the presence political prisoners in the country;
7. Calls on the Government of Venezuela to comply with the constitution and to present an electoral calendar that will allow quick, free and transparent electoral processes to take place, as the only way to bring the current political impasse to an end;
8. Strongly condemns the Venezuelan national comptroller’s decision to ban the opposition leader Henrique Capriles from holding political office for 15 years; calls on the Venezuelan Government to put an end to the practice of sidelining opposition leaders by depriving them of their political rights;
9. Welcomes the resolution adopted by the Permanent Council of the OAS on 3 April 2017 and calls on the VP/HR to support it; calls on the VP/HR, furthermore, to actively explore, together with the OAS, other measures to return to democratic order through the effective exercise of democracy and rule of law within the Venezuelan constitutional framework;
10. Strongly condemns the brutal repression exercised by the Venezuelan security forces against the peaceful protests, as a result of which more than 20 people have died, a large number have been wounded and there have been many arrests; calls on the Venezuelan Government to respect and guarantee the constitutional right to freedom of peaceful assembly and demonstration and to investigate all deaths; calls on the Venezuelan authorities to guarantee security and free exercise of rights for all citizens, in particular human rights defenders, journalists, political activists and members of independent non-governmental organisations who are at greater risk of attacks and arbitrary detention;
11. Calls on the Venezuelan authorities to allow humanitarian aid into the country as a matter of urgency and to grant access to the international organisations that wish to assist the worst affected sectors of society;
12. Reiterates its request for a European Parliament delegation to be sent to Venezuela and to hold a dialogue with all interlocutors involved in the conflict as soon as possible;
13. 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 Government and National Assembly of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, the Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly and the Secretary-General of the Organisation of American States.