No L 85/8 Official Journal of the European Communities 27. 3. 97 COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 552/97 of 24 March 1997 temporarily withdrawing access to generalized tariff preferences from the Union of Myanmar THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 3281/94 of 19 December 1994 applying a four-year scheme of generalized tariff preferences (1995 to 1998) in respect of certain industrial products originating in developing countries ('), and in particular Article 12 (3) thereof, Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1256/96 of 20 June 1996 applying multiannual schemes of gen- eralized tariff preferences from 1 July 1996 to 30 June 1999 in respect of certain agricultural products originating in developing countries (3), and in particular Article 12 (3) thereof, Having regard to the proposals from the Commission (%), Having regard to the opinion of the European Par- liament (), Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee (), Whereas pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 3281/94 and Regulation (EC) No 1256/96 the Union of Myanmar (hereafter referred to as ‘Myanmar’) is a beneficiary of generalized tariff preferences; Whereas Article 9 of Regulation (EC) No 3281/94 and Atticle 9 of Regulation (EC) No 1256/96 provide that the preferences in question may be temporarily withdrawn in whole or in part in circumstances including the practice of any form of forced labour as defined in the Geneva Conventions of 25 September 1926 and 7 September 1956 and International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions Nos 29 and 10S; Whereas on 7 June 1995 the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) and the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) made a joint complaint to the Commission under Article 9 of Regulation (EC) (") OJ No L 348, 31. 12. 1994, p. 1. Regulation as amended by Regulation (EC) No 2948/95 (O] No L 308, 21. 12. 1995, p. 32 ) (®» OJ No L 160, 29. 6. 1996, p. 1. Regulation as amended by Regulation (EC) No 2448/96 (O] No L 333, 21. 12. 1996, p. 12). 0) O_]) No C 35, 4. 2. 1997, p. 14 and O] No C 80, 13. 3. 1997, p. 18 () Opinion delivered on 14 March 1997 (not yet published in the Official Journal). () Opinion delivered on 27 February 1997 (not yet published in the Official Journal). No 3281/94 and called for Myanmar to be temporarily withdrawn from the Community scheme of generalized tariff preferences because of its use of forced labour; Whereas on 2 January 1997 the ICFTU and the ETUC notified the Commission that they were extending the scope of the joint complaint lodged under Regulation (EC) No 3281/94, with a view to obtaining the withdrawal of Myanmar's preferential entitlement also under Regula- tion (EC) No 1256/96; Whereas the Commission examined the complaint of 7 June 1995 in consultation with the Generalized Pre- ferences Committee; whereas the evidence put forward by the complainants was judged sufficient to justify the opening of an investigation, and whereas the Commission decided by a Notice of 16 January 1996 () that an investi- gation should take place; Whereas the Myanmar authorities were formally notified of the opening of the investigation; whereas they denied that the practices referred to in the complaint constituted forced labour, citing the exceptions in Article 2 (2) of ILO Convention No 29, and claiming that those exceptions covered the 1907 Town Act and the 1908 Village Act, which allow the population to be made to carry out works and services; whereas that interpretation has been chal- lenged by the ILO, whose competent bodies have called for the immediate repeal of the laws in question in order to ensure compliance with the letter and the spirit of Convention No 29; " Whereas the written and oral statements collected by the Commission during the course of the investigation conducted in consultation with the Generalized Pre- ferences Committee corroborate the allegations contained in the complaint; whereas it has emerged that the authori- ties in Myanmar have routinely used forced labour, not only for military operations but also for civilian and military infrastructure building projects, backed by coer- cion and frequently violent reprisals; Whereas, seeking to add to the information it had gathered during the investigation, the Commission requested the authorities of Myanmar to cooperate with that investigation by allowing a fact-finding team into the country; whereas this request was denied and since the conditions in Article 11 (5) of Regulation (EC) No 3281/94 are thus fulfilled the findings of the investi- gation could be based on the information available; () OJ No C 15, 20. 1. 1996, p. 3.