Summary: January 5, 2005: European Parliament - Tsunami: MEPs think ahead to need for reconstruction (Brussels)
The quick release of funds for humanitarian aid together with longer-term plans for rebuilding the regions affected by the tsunami will be on the European Parliament's agenda over the coming weeks and months.
"The European Parliament will do everything to facilitate assistance to the region as swiftly as possible, because speed is of the essence", said Elmar BROK (EPP-ED, DE) when he opened an extraordinary meeting on Wednesday morning of Parliament's committees on foreign affairs, development and the budget. These three committees will meet again on Monday 10 January in Strasbourg to examine the proposal by the European Commission to release 100 million euros from the reserve and use it for
emergency aid. Commissioners Michel (cooperation and development), Ferrero-Waldner (external relations) and Grybauskaité (budget) are expected to attend the meeting in Strasbourg.
At today's meeting the ambassadors of Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand and Malaysia described to MEPs the human and material losses but also the longer-term consequences of the tsunami on their countries. They all expressed gratitude for the speed of the international community's response to their appeal for aid and for the generosity of donors. But ambassadors and MEPs agreed that the most urgent issue was to ensure that aid was successfully delivered to those hit by the disaster.
Coordination of international aid was also seen as crucial and it was hoped that the first meeting of donors on Thursday 6 January in Jakarta would deal with this problem.
Apart from urgent humanitarian aid - there is a shortage of food, water and medicines in the devastated regions - all speakers stressed the need to support reconstruction and development over the longer term. The Indonesian Government has provisionally estimated that rebuilding in the north of Sumatra will take until 2009. In large parts of Sri Lanka infrastructure has been destroyed. In this country as in others, fishermen, farmers and workers in the tourist industry are the hardest hit. This
question will also be on the agenda at the donors' meeting. The European Commission told MEPs that it would reallocate funding already earmarked for reconstruction but that further contributions will be needed.
The ambassadors and MEPs welcomed the announcement by some countries that they were in favour of a moratorium or cancellation of debt so as to allocate the money to reconstruction. The donors' meeting is also supposed to look at the establishment of a system to provide alerts of similar disasters.
Glenys KINNOCK (PES, UK) and Max van den BERG (PES, NL) drew attention to the situation of African countries hit by the disaster, in particular Somalia, which is receiving no aid even though its plight was already extremely precarious.
In addition to the discussions in committee, in particular on the budget, the European Parliament will debate this subject at its plenary session next week in Strasbourg (probably Wednesday) and will adopt a resolution on the matter. The chairmen of the parliamentary committees concerned are due to go to Geneva next Tuesday to attend the meeting of donors at the United Nations. The delegation for relations with South-East Asia and ASEAN also meets next week, when it will modify the calendar of
its meetings with a view to giving the best possible help to those in need.
Ceremony in memory of the victims
Several hundred staff and Members of the European Parliament took part in a ceremony at noon on Wednesday at Schuman Square, Brussels, to commemorate the victims of the disaster. The 1500 people present included EP President Josep Borrell, the political group leaders of the EP and four Commissioners. Commission President Barroso was already on the way to the donors' meeting in Jakarta. Similar ceremonies took place at the same time in Parliament's two other places of work, in Luxembourg and
Strasbourg.
5.1.2005
Committee on Foreign Affairs
Chair: Elmar BROK (EPP-ED, DE)
Committee on Development
Chair: Max van den BERG (PES, NL)
Committee on Budgets
Chair: Janusz LEWANDOWSKI (EPP-ED, PL)
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