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T D I P. Temporary Committee on the alleged use of European countries by the CIA for the transport and illegal detention of prisoners. TDIP. Terrorist attacks. TDIP. War On Terror. TDIP. Reports & Inquiries. TDIP. Justification.
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T D I P Temporary Committee on the alleged use of European countries by the CIA for the transport and illegal detention of prisoners
TDIP Terrorist attacks
TDIP War On Terror
TDIP Reports & Inquiries
TDIP Justification • European Union's attachment to the principles of liberty, democracy and respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms and of the rule of law, • Protection of fundamental rights is part of the constitutional order of the Community, • Protecting human dignity is one of the key objectives of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.
TDIP Mandate • If territory of the European Union, includingcandidate and associate countries… • …Was used by the CIA or the intelligence services of other third countries… • …For the transportation and illegal detention of prisoners.
TDIP TASK Collect and analyse information to find out whether: • Intelligence services of other third countries have carried out detention at secret sites or torture or other degrading treatment, • Or have used the European territory for example through flights, • If such actions could be considereda violation of European and international agreements concluded by the EU and its Member States, • Or if any person entitled to protection from the EU, the Member States or the candidate countries have been amongthose involved in or subjected to alleged illegal activities, • Member States, public officials, persons acting in an official capacity or EU institutions have been involved.
TDIP Goal • Cooperate with the Council of Europe and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, as well as with national parliaments, • Present an interim report within four months, • To submit to the plenary any recommendation in this matter, to be drawn at European level as well as possible consequences for EU relations with third countries.
TDIP Political Co-ordination Bureau Deputy Chairpersons Carlos COELHO Chairman Portugal, EPP SarahLUDFORDUK, ALDE Giorgos DIMITRAKOPOULOSGreece, EPP Cem ÖZDEMIRGermany, GREENS Rapporteur Claudio FAVA Italy, PSE
TDIP Activities • Analyzing data:- victims’ testimonies and experts’ reports- legal documents- media and NGO reports • Informing and requesting information from:- Governments- International Organisations- National Parliaments • Organizing:- public and in camera hearings- fact finding missions
TDIP Figures • 92 MEPs + Assistants + 6 Observers • 2 reports • 12 months • 14 hours of official sittings per month • Over 30 governments and parliaments to contact • Almost 40 people have been officially interviewed • Around 1000 articles in the press 9 Staff
TDIP Case of Mr. el MASRI
Case of Mr. el MASRI – FYROM stage • Travelled by bus from Germany to Skopje, • When entering FYROM from Serbia has been stopped and interrogated at the border crossing – 31.12.2003, • Has been taken against his will, by FYROM officials to a hotel in Skopje, • Has entered FYROM as a free man, • Has been detained incommunicado and interrogated by FYROM & possibly US services for 3 weeks, • No information what was he doing in Skopje, • Has left the hotel on 23.01.2004, Has paid a hotel bill, • Against his will has left from Skopje airport, with secret CIA flight, to Afghanistan, • Has left FYROM overland to Kosovo, • His passport was stamped on 23.01.2004, at Skopje airport. the stamp is no clear enough, to say from where is it.
Claudio FAVA Italy, PSE TDIP The Draft Report • Presented by the Rapporteur - April • Discussed by the Committee - May • Voted by the Committee - June • Voted by the Parliament - July Work of the Committee shall be continued
TDIP Human Rights in the report • Serious violations of fundamental human rights, • CIA has on several occasions been clearly responsiblefor the illegal abduction, detention, “extraordinary renditions”:- on the European territory,- in a number of cases, this has concerned EU nationals, • Condemns the practice of “extraordinary renditions”, • CIA has used aircraft to secretly abduct, detain and transfer persons to hand them over to countries, which frequently use torture.
TDIP Governments’ Involvement in the report • Impossible that certain European governments were not aware of the activities taking place on their territory, • Swedish authorities handed over the Egyptian nationals to CIA for transfer to Egypt, while being aware of the risk of torture facing these persons, • Extraordinary rendition of “the Algerian 6” by the Bosnian authorities to CIA agents in the absence of judicial guarantees and despite a formal decisionto the contrary by the human rights chamber for Bosnia-Herzegovina.
TDIP Use of Torture in the report • Prohibition of torture is absoluteand allows no exceptions, • Information extracted under torture may under no circumstances be considered as valid evidence, • Urges the Member States strictly to complywith Article 3 of the United Nations Convention against Torture.
TDIP Airspace & Airports in the report • Chicago Convention has been breached on several occasions during hundreds of flights carried out by the CIA using the airspace and airports of Member States, • Regrets that no Member State has adopted procedures aimed at verifying whether civilian aircraft are being used against internationally established human rights standards, • Considers European legislation on the use of national airspace and the airports to be totally inadequate; stresses the need to establish new national, European and international standards.
TDIP More Info Needed? www.europarl.europa.eu Tomasz.Banka@europarl.europa.eu