B4-0038/94

Resolution on the situation in Rwanda

The European Parliament,

A.having regard to the genocide which has taken place in Rwanda,

B.deploring the violation of the Arusha Accords,

C.whereas the actions of the former Rwandan government forces, notably the Presidential Guard and the militia forces (Interhamwe), were, inter alia, responsible for these events, following armed invasion, civil war and the murdering of both the Rwandan and Burundian Presidents,

D.whereas the UN Security Council, on 1 July 1994, requested the establishment of a Committee of Enquiry to identify the individuals who were responsible for such acts of genocide in order that they be brought to trial before an International Tribunal,

E.whereas, in spite of the commitment of the UNAMIR I and II forces in Rwanda, and bearing in mind that they act on the orders of the UN Security Council which failed to take appropriate decisions to prevent the massacres occurring, the UN, the EU and the OAU have lost much of their political credibility in the eyes of the Rwandan people,

F.disturbed by the apparent inability of the Council of the European Union to act decisively in such circumstances and regretting the fact that individual Member States therefore had to act alone to minimise the extent of the humanitarian catastrophe by sending in troops, as was the case with the French "Operation Turquoise" and operations in and around Goma and Bukavu, both under UN auspices, followed by British and other Member States' contributions to the humanitarian effort,

G.bearing in mind that many individual citizens and the European Union and its Member States have provided some ECU 350 million in humanitarian aid, administered notably via ECHO, to the UNHCR, the ICRC and NGOs who have done their utmost to provide assistance in the most difficult and tragic of circumstances,

H.recognising the support of the many countries, including African countries, who have provided personnel for the UNAMIR operations and who are therefore contributing to the aid effort,

I.deploring, however, the fact that the international community did not bring its political weight to bear to prevent the massacres, the destruction and the total destitution of millions of men, women and children,

J.having regard to the risk of a renewed outbreak of violence, especially in Burundi,

K.bearing in mind the report, and the recommendations contained therein, of the official delegation of the European Parliament which visited Rwanda and Goma (Zaire) from 27 to 31 July 1994,

1.Calls upon the European Union to recognise the new Rwandan government sworn in on 19 July 1994, which has resolved to bring about national reconciliation in the spirit of the Arusha Accords and involving all democratic forces in Rwandan society, and which is cooperating fully with the UN and other international agencies in the effort to repatriate a largely traumatised population, and urges the government to proceed with the organization of free democratic elections as soon as is possible and feasible and to re-establish the rule of law;

2.Urges the European Union to act in conjunction with the appropriate international agencies and NGOs to establish "humanitarian relay stations" to facilitate the repatriation process; advocates in this connection the involvement of Rwandan NGOs;

3.Calls upon the European Union to create a "human rights observer team", to work closely with the UN and the OAU in support of the confidence-building effort and thus actively encourage those who have a clear conscience to return to their place of origin within Rwanda; notes in this respect that the UN has so far deployed only 26 human rights observers in the country, which is inadequate;

4.Calls on the European Union, in cooperation with its Member States, to investigate the establishment of structures to contribute to the prevention of such disasters, recognising that "declaratory diplomacy" is almost completely useless in such critical situations;

5.In line with the above recommendations, urges the Commission to take on a more strategic function and coordinate NGO operations in such situations as have arisen in Rwanda and the neighbouring countries;

6.Instructs its committee responsible to formulate more detailed proposals on the establishment, as part of the CFSP, of a "humanitarian observatory" designed to monitor the situation in sensitive regions of the world and to prepare the ground for preventive political action, on the basis of a report to be submitted to the European Parliament at the earliest opportunity;

7.Urges the Council and the governments of the Member States to bring such pressure to bear as is necessary to ensure that the former Rwandan government forces are not allowed to regroup and re-arm themselves in Zaire or elsewhere, and once again perpetrate killings through an extension of the civil war which, if appropriate measures are not taken, could degenerate into a fully fledged regional conflict;

8.Calls on the European Union and its Member States to provide the necessary resources to enable the Rwandan people to have access to objective information on living conditions and the situation in the country;

9.Furthermore, urges the European Union to find ways, in conjunction with the UN and the OAU, to put a stop to the intimidation being carried out by supporters of the former government in the refugee camps, thus obstructing repatriation;

10.Stresses the urgent need, if famine is to be prevented, for efforts to be made by the donor community, and the African countries also, to restore the country's agriculture and the food distribution network and requests the UN to cooperate with the new government of Rwanda and establish suitable institutional mechanisms to resolve the problems related to land rights and the restoration of property of displaced persons;

11.While praising the efforts of the aid agencies to reduce suffering amongst the Rwandan population, calls for these efforts to be maintained and intensified, especially for the abandoned children and war orphans;

12.Calls on the Commission, in liaison with the government of Rwanda, to provide urgent technical assistance in order to rehabilitate the administrative apparatus, including the judicial system, a civilian police force, the banking system and the educational and health systems, and financial assistance for the rehabilitation of the country's infrastructure;

13.Urges the international community to take measures to restore the assets of the Rwandan government, seized by the former government, so that they can be used to finance part of the rehabilitation effort;

14.Welcomes the approval given by the Rwandan authorities for the rapid establishment of an international tribunal to judge war crimes committed in Rwanda and calls upon those countries which are harbouring persons suspected of such crimes to extradite them for trial before this tribunal;

15.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and Commission, the parliaments of the Member States, the governments of Rwanda, Burundi and Zaire, and the Secretaries-General of the United Nations and the OAU.