EP talks tough about the CIA flights, but I doubt anything will happen
The European Parliament’s special committee to look into CIA rendition flights has now reported its findings and the MEPs don’t mince their words (see news from EUObserver, and comments from Human Rights Watch) – the report is hard hitting, accuses Javier Solana of not telling the whole truth, and contains a call for disciplinary procedures to be taken against Member States.
Yet what will happen? I really wonder whether anyone will give a damn. All of the work of the Committee, and the Council of Europe work from Dick Marty (more from my blog about that here), has so far been met either with bland reassurances from countries’ governments, or simply silence. While the EP report is highly critical, MEPs don’t have any power to actually do anything, so the report will just be filed away and life will carry on. We’re in a war on terror, and with that one lousy line we allow torture to go un-noticed.
For whatever his faults, Borrell was at least a bit passionate. But with Poettering it’s even worse… 🙁
Hm, I wonder if that also has something to do, that you do not have at the top of the EP someone that would be willing to take such an issue seriously. I agree that in the current EU many discussions are hopless (the one seat debate for example), because of the impossible position the EP has vis-a-vis national governments.
But I imagine a passionate leader of a majority in the EP that could actually stand above average and make headlines with a tough stance on such a matter of principles.