Eurostep WeeklyRegular News Update from Eurostep, N° 511 9 June 2008 EU Commissioner "deeply concerned" for upcoming second round of Zimbabwe elections EU officials have expressed strong concerns over the political and humanitarian situation in Zimbabwe in the run-up to the second round of the presidential elections, scheduled for 27 June. Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai was detained by police for the second time in three days on 6 June, and the government has banned all aid organisations from operating in the country. Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid Louis Michel released a press statement expressing deep concern over reports that some leaders of the Zimbabwean opposition had been detained during electoral campaigning. "We are endeavouring to clarify the situation and obtain further information on the ground. The situation raises the wider concern that appropriate conditions be in place ahead of and during the second round of Presidential elections on 27th June", he said. On the issue of the ban on humanitarian organisations, Michel stated: "This ban must be lifted right away. I am deeply distressed to think that hundreds of thousands of people who depend on aid from the European Commission and others for their very survival now face an even more uncertain future. It is essential that relief workers be given unrestricted and secure access so they can provide assistance to the most vulnerable." The European Commission is the most important aid donor in Zimbabwe, providing 90.9 million euros in 2007. Human rights groups and aid NGOs claim that the intention of the Mugabe government's ban is to remove independent witnesses to its campaign of violence against the opposition, and to manipulate food supplies as a political tool in the election. Source: Global food crisis: EU support for biofuels partly to blame, say NGOs In a letter sent to the European Commission on Monday 2 June, international development and environmental groups warned that the EU's policy of promoting biofuels is contributing to the global food crisis. They urge the Commission to revoke its 10 per cent target for the use of biofuels in transport, and to pursue other alternatives in the fight against climate change. Adrian Bebb of Friends of the Earth Europe said, "Biofuels are a false answer to our climate and energy problems. "It is morally irresponsible to use crops to feed cars whilst people go hungry. The EU must abandon it support for biofuels and invest in real solutions such as cleaner cars and an energy efficient Europe." The Commission has denied that the EU's targets have any impact on world food price rises, but the letter expresses strong criticism of the Commission's stance and claims that biofuels production is the cause of around 30 per cent of the recent increase in food prices. Rob Bailey of Oxfam International, commented: "To continue the pursuit of biofuels in the face of the credible, impartial and growing opinion that this is exacerbating the food crisis is morally outrageous and utterly indefensible." At the High Level Conference on World Food Security, held in Rome on 3-5 June, biofuels proved extremely controversial, and the final declaration avoided taking a stance on the issue, calling only for a "coherent, effective and results-oriented international dialogue on biofuels in the context of food security and sustainable development needs". Sources: Lisbon Treaty: Czech Republic releases presidency back-up plans On Monday 2 June, the Czech government released two versions of its programme for the EU presidency, which it will assume in January 2009: one for the eventuality of the Lisbon Treaty being ratified by all 27 Member states by the end-of-year deadline, and a back-up plan should this not happen. The clearest obstacle to the ratification of the treaty is the 12 June referendum in Ireland, the outcome of which is shown by recent polls to be increasingly uncertain. The Czech Republic has not yet ratified the treaty, as its Senate requested that it be first examined by the Constitutional Court to assess whether it is consistent with the Czech constitution. The Czech Deputy Premier for European Affairs, Alexandr Vondra, expressed concerns regarding the consequences for his country's EU presidency if the treaty comes into force in 2009 as planned. "There must still be a role for the prime minister of the presiding country," he said, in reference to the treaty's creation of a new permanent Council President. The division of roles and responsibilities between the head of state of the presiding country and the new Council President remains unclear, and the Czech Republic will be the first country to experience such "co-habitation" should the treaty come into force. Vondra added: "The future permanent chairman of the European Council should not be any European president." "If anything, he should fulfil the role of a moderator of a discussion, not of a steam roller who would crush the rest by his body or force of his ideas." Source: Stakeholder meeting on European Development Days On Thursday 5 June, a stakeholder meeting was held in Brussels to coordinate NGO activities during the third European Development Days (EDD) forum, which will take place in Strasbourg on 15-17 November 2008. At the meeting, Deputy Director General of DG Development Bernard Petit stated that the three main issues which will be discussed during the EDD will be local governance, media and development and twinning. He added that the Commission is encouraging broader participation by national parliamentarians, especially from Africa, and the private sector than in the previous editions, and has to date received around 50 proposals for events and 90 reservations for the stands of the development village. Given that the number of events should not be higher than 28/30, Petit stressed that there is an urgent need to rationalise the proposals on the basis of criteria such as north/south balance, gender balance and joint approach. The Commission is therefore encouraging all stakeholders to coordinate and possibly merge their proposed events by the end of June. Organisations still wishing to participate are recommended to get in contact with the organisations that have already registered their events, in the hope that they would want to cooperate. The Commission will produce the final list of events and stands by 15 July, and a third stakeholder meeting will follow in September. Source: Europeans urged to sign petition for more women leaders in EU institutions A petition entitled "Females in Front" has been launched on the initiative of the Danish MEP Christel Schaldemose calling for the fair representation of women among the new EU posts that will be created under the Lisbon Treaty. EU politics remains male dominated, with men accounting for 67 per cent of Commissioners, 69 per cent of MEPs and 75% of senior ministers in the Member States. The petition urges that at least one woman be selected for one of the top four EU positions which will become available in 2009: European Council President, High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy (both created under the Lisbon Treaty), Commission President, and President of the European Parliament. The petition states: "For fifty years now, the picture of European political leadership has remained the same. It is time for a change. International top posts should always go to the most competent candidate. There are 250 million women in Europe; it should not be too hard to find qualified candidates among all these." "The Treaty of Lisbon introduces the principle of participatory democracy with a "citizen's initiative" which requires the signatures from a minimum of 1 million EU citizens from a significant number of Member States. With 1 million signatures, we can ask the Commission to take action to secure that the Union fulfils the Treaty's goal of gender equality, starting with the upcoming nominations." Source: - Click here to sign: http://www.femalesinfront.eu/default.asp?view=front&lang=gb
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