B4-0522/94

Resolution on the situation in Rwanda

The European Parliament,

-having regard to its resolutions of 15 September 1994 and 27 October 1994 on the situation in Rwanda,

-having regard to the various reports tabled in the United Nations Security Council by Mr René Degni-Segui, the special rapporteur on human rights in Rwanda,

A.whereas the requests made in its above-mentioned resolutions have not been fully met,

B.pointing out that genocide has cost the lives of several hundred thousand people and has caused a massive influx of refugees into neighbouring countries,

C.pointing out that, according to the report submitted on 2 December 1994 to the UN Secretary-General by an ad hoc committee of African lawyers, the genocide committed against the ethnic Tutsi minority had been planned a long time ago by the former regime of President Juvenal Habyarimana,

D.mindful of the constant deterioration in the economic situation and living conditions in Rwanda,

E.deeply disturbed by the re-formation in the refugee camps of the militias responsible for the massacres, who are improperly controlling food aid and preventing refugees from returning to their homes and who no longer conceal the fact that they are planning to restart the civil war,

F.noting the Council Decision of 25 November 1994 granting initial aid of Ecu 67 million as a stage in the conditional procedure laid down in the Council Decision of 24 October 1994,

G.whereas the goals to be pursued in Rwanda, such as the return home of refugees, the restoration of the administrative system and justice, respect for human rights and the rule of law, a process of national reconciliation, the rehabilitation of infrastructures and the economic recovery of the country, depend on aid being given to the new Rwandan Government by the international community and, in particular, by the European Union,

1.Calls on all the governments of the Member States to restore relations and cooperate again with the Rwandan government, which seeks to build up the country and create the conditions for true national reconciliation;

2. Requests that all the aid proposed be released without delay and, if necessary, increased in order to enable the Rwandan Government to deal with the requirements of reconstruction and restore normal life in the country, without such aid being subject to any political condition other than the observance of human rights and the restoration of the rule of law to create the secure conditions needed to enable the refugees to return;

3.Asks the EC to overcome current bureaucratic obstacles and recruit and deploy human rights monitors without further delay;

4.Calls on the United Nations Security Council to give the peace-keeping force in Rwanda the manpower proposed by the Secretary-General so as to help restore a climate of security and confidence and facilitate the repatriation of refugees;

5.Considers that the situation in Rwanda remains very fragile and calls on the government to guarantee the observance of human rights and to continue the dialogue with all democratic forces;

6.Considers that the return home of the refugees represents a major humanitarian and political goal and calls on the Rwandan Government and the international community to ensure that the practical and institutional conditions are established for the voluntary return of the refugees under the auspices of the UN and the OAU and in coordination with the Rwandan Government and the authorities of the host countries;

7.Calls on the international community and, in particular, the countries neighbouring Rwanda to prevent any armed reorganization of the militias responsible for the massacres and to move all the refugee camps away from the Rwandan borders;

8.Calls on the Security Council to ensure that a deputy prosecutor and judges are appointed to implement its resolution 955;

9.Calls on the Security Council to ensure that there is the political and financial commitment for the investigations into crimes against humanity to be tried by the international tribunal;

10.Calls the European Union Member States to contribute to the Trust Fund created by the UN Secrutiy Council as a matter of urgency;

11.Asks the Member States to commit themselves to cooperating with the international judicial process by handing over those suspected of committing crimes against humanity to the international tribunal;

12.Calls on the European Union to provide financial and technical support to the Rwandan government to help rebuild its judicial system and civil administration;

13.Welcomes the extension of the jurisdiction of the United Nations International Tribunal on Human Rights to include genocide carried out in Rwanda and calls on the Union and its Member States to cooperate fully, particularly by refusing to protect those living on their territory who have been involved in genocide;

14.Asks the European Union to support the immediate deployment of 5000 peacekeeping troops in the Rwanda refugee camps in Zaire and to create conditions conducive to continued humanitarian relief and the voluntary repatriation of refugees;

15.Calls on the Commission to provide information on the action taken in response to its resolutions and on the operations carried out in Rwanda;

16.Calls on its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the governments of the Member States, the Secretaries-General of the United Nations and the OAU, the governments of Rwanda, Zaire, Burundi, Tanzania and Uganda and the co-presidents of the ACP-EU Joint Assembly.