Parliament wants a European civil protection force, now!
(BRUSSELS2) 643 votes for, 1 vote against, 33 abstentions... doing more would have been difficult! It was with this quasi-unanimity that the European Parliament, meeting in plenary session in Strasbourg, adopted on 9 February a resolution calling for the establishment of an EU rapid reaction force in the field of civil protection.
As soon as possible ! The Parliament thus asks the Commission to submit proposals to establish, as soon as possible, a European Union civil protection force based on the European Civil Protection Mechanism and to enable the Union to bring together the necessary resources to provide initial humanitarian aid emergency within 24 hours of a disaster ». In other words, there is no longer any question of procrastinating under the pretext of hostility or reluctance on the part of one or the other..
Ten conditions. Parliament has set ten conditions which provide a framework for this European rapid intervention system:
− be of a civilian and/or humanitarian nature,
− be permanent,
− be able to be mobilized at any time and as soon as possible,
− to act under the banner of the European Union,
− respect international humanitarian law,
− be open to cooperation with other humanitarian actors,
− be willing to cooperate with the United Nations system,
− be open to contributions from third countries,
− respect the voluntary nature of Member States' participation in the system to be put in place,
− be mindful of the permanent upgrading of both human and material capacities that can be mobilized at any time,
− be based on the principle of "burden sharing".
Please be a little more active Lady! This is in summary what is said quite diplomatically to the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs. MEPs have indeed "invited" him - as well as the Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and
to crises — to play a leading role in coordinating the European Union's response to crisis situations, making use of the powers established by the Treaty of Lisbon to better coordinate the European Union's response to future crises and building on progress already achieved ". If that's not a warning...
Other points to note
A disaster prevention system. MEPs would like the EU to work with the Haitian authorities to " put in place a long-term disaster prevention and capacity management mechanism ". He also insisted that " reconstruction is carried out according to national priorities, while respecting the principles of aid effectiveness, and providing assistance to Haitian institutions to enable them to function effectively”.
“You have to invest in the long term”, Parliament insists, "through the construction of anti-seismic buildings and basic infrastructure such as water supply, the road network or electricity, which were lacking or not sufficient before the earthquake, which considerably multiplies the impact of natural disasters”. Parliament has asked the European Commission to " present a comprehensive assessment of post-disaster needs and a follow-up report on the progress of reconstruction ».
A moratorium on adoptions. MEPs ask the EU to support the establishment of a temporary moratorium on new adoptions of children from Haiti, for a period of two years after the launch of tracing actions. Unaccompanied children separated from their families should benefit from services enabling them to be reunited with their parents, stress MEPs, who also call on the international community to draw up a coordinated plan for the care of the thousands of children orphaned by THE
earthquake.
