Documents and Publications
EUROPEAN COUNCIL
Minimum guarantees for asylum applications, Note from the Presidency, Brussels, 23.7.94, 8713/94, restricted.
The proposals would not lead to community legislation. The regulations on access to the asylum procedure, the basic features of the procedure itself and the designation of the authorities responsible for examination of applications are a matter of national legislation. A number of proposals referring to "manifestly unfounded" applications restrict the very access to an examination procedure and inter alia provide for deportation of the concerned to a "safe country" pending an appeal.
Explanatory note to Parliament, by the British Home Office, 10.11.94.
Guidelines for the application of the criteria for determining refugee status in Article 1 A of the Geneva Convention, Presidency proposals, Brussels, 6675/94 (no date mentioned).
The proposals include attempts to define the term of "justified fear of persecution" under the Geneva Convention. One interesting proposal says: "The fact that an individual, prior to his departure from his country of origin, was not subject to persecution or directly threatened with in that country does not mean that he cannot in asylum proceedings claim a justified fear of persecution". There, however seems to be no unanimity about this definition.
As opposed to current practice of several member states (e.g. France) that recognises only persecution by the state as a grounds for asylum, one proposal says: "People may also be persecuted by third parties, if an asylum seeker is seriously threatened by his fellow citizens . . . and the government encourages, permits or deliberately tolerates such persecution...[The] person concerned may also be eligible for refugee status if the public authorities are unable to provide adequate protection".
The draft guidelines also establish the principle of "safe areas in unsafe countries", by denying a right to asylum if a person may be "reasonably expected to move elsewhere within the country of origin in order to avoid persecution.
Considering member states' reluctance to grant asylum to war resisters from former Yugoslavia, the following proposal deserves attention: "Deliberate refusal to perform military service or desertion will in any event be deemed acceptable and will constitute grounds for fear of persecution if it can plausibly be shown that they represent a conscious refusal to participate in military action of a kind which is condemned by the international community because of its inhumane nature or in accordance with generally applicable norms under international law. In such cases the asylum seeker's political convictions, for which he is being persecuted by the authorities are in line with what is expected of him by the international community".
Explanatory note by the British Home Office, 10.11.94.
Presidency compromise text for a Council regulation laying down a uniform format for Visas, Brussels 31.10.94, 10506/94, restricted.
The draft inter alia contains regulations regarding security features of the uniform Visa format.
The visa label will include an optically variable mark ("kinegram"). "Depending of the angle of vision 12 stars, "E" signs and a globe become visible in various sizes and colours"; a logo indicating the issuing member state, appearing "light when held flat and dark when turned by 90 degrees"; the word "visa" appearing "in optically variable colouring". One box shall contain "the relevant machine-readable information to facilitate external border controls".
FECL 31 (February 1995):
UNITED NATIONS ECONOMIC AN SOCIAL COUNCIL
Nineth "Mazowiecki report" on the human rights situation in the territory of the former Yugoslavia, 31.10.94, E/CN.4/1995/54.
On the human rights situation in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, the FRY (Serbia and Montenegro) and Macedonia.
Permanent Peoples' Tribunal (Basso Foundation), Judgement pronounced on 12.12.94 in Berlin, 22 p.
The Members of the Tribunal were: F. Rigaux (President, Belgium)); M. Benchikh (Algeria), Vera Chirwa (Malawi), L. Fekete (UK), L. Ferrajoli (Italy), F. Langer (Israel), F. Meissner-Blau (Austria), A. Nesin (Turkey), G. Pontara (Sweden), G. Wallraff (Germany).
Available at: Fondatione Basso, Via della Dogana Vecchia 5, I-00186 Rome; Tel: +39/6 6833389.Vad händer med offentlighetsprincipen vid ett svenkst EU-medlemskap?, by Hans-Gunnar Axberger, Svenska Journalistförbundet (Swedish Federation of Journalists), 60 p., in Swedish only.
On the implications of EU-membership on Swedish freedom of information regulations.
Available at: Svenska Journalistförbundet, Box 1116, S-111 81 Stockholm; Tel: +46/8 6137 500; Fax: +46/8 212680.
PLEIN DROIT, periodical review published by GISTI (Paris), No 26, Oct-Nov 94, 54 p., in French.
This issue deals with the dismantling of social protection structures in France, mainly in the domain of public health care and with a focus on effects on foreigners.
Available at: GISTI, 30 rue des Petites Ecuries, F-75010 Paris; Tel: +33/1 42470760.Internationale politiesamverkning - Europol (International police co-operation - Europol, ed: Prof. L. van Outrive, E. Enhus, publ: Centrum voor Politiestudies (Flamish University Brussels, Dept of Criminology), 142 p., in Dutch.
A comprehensive overview and analysis of the various legal and organisational structures of European police cooperation.
Professor van Outrive, a former MEP and the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties an Internal Affairs, can be considered as one of the leading experts on European policing. Among others, the book contains contributions by Maarten de Jong, Chief Superintendent of the Dutch National Police and member of the Project Team Europol (The setting up of Europol and the problem of information exchange) and by Patrick Zanders, Major of the Belgian Gendarmerie and Director of International Relations at the Central Board of Operations.
We hopefully await an English translation.
Available at: Centrum voor Politiestudies vzw, p/a VUB - School voor Criminologie, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050 Brussels.