WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1773/98 by Joan VALLVÉ to the Commission. Use of certain methods of capturing wild animals
22. 2. 1999 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 50/89 symbols (for insufficiently sampled bathing areas) and red symbols (for not sampled and thus incompliant bathing areas) in the report. (1) OJ L 31, 5. 2. 1976. (2) OJ L 377, 31. 12. 1991. (1999/C 50/129) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1770/98 by Nikitas Kaklamanis (UPE) to the Commission (5 June 1998) Subject: Autonomy in Northern Epirus According to the UN Charter, autonomy is one of the inalienable civil rights of peoples. In the EU, autonomy is a common form of institution; countries such as Italy, Spain and Finland have granted fundamental rights to autonomous regions on their territory. Northern Epirus is a region of Albania whose right to autonomy has been established (as long ago as 17 May 1914 by the Corfu Protocolí) and provision made for the protection of the populationís language and religion. Moreover, the Protocol was signed at the time by the plenipotentiary countries of the (present-day) EU (Italy, Great Britain, Germany, Austria and France) and by the Special Representative of Albania himself. Will the Commission state its position on this issue, which concerns the protection of human rights in a country which desires closer relations with the EU but which has refused for years to honour the commitment that it undertook? Answer given by Mr van den Broek on behalf of the Commission (2 July 1998) It is not for the Commission to judge the reference made by the Honourable Member to the UN Charter or to assess, in the current Albanian context, the validity and exact scope of the 1914 Corfu Protocol granting specific rights for the autonomy of the southern part of Albania and in particular of the Greek ethnic minority in the region. Albania, which joined the Council of Europe in 1995, has ratified the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (including almost all of the related protocols) and in 1995 signed the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. The High Commissioner for National Minorities of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) noted in the course of a mission in 1994 that minority rights in Albania were adequately respected and that certain improvements had been made, notably in education in Greek. Following this mission, an office for minorities was set up in 1995 enabling members of minorities to file complaints. An agreement on the opening of additional Greek-language schools in certain villages in southern Albania was obtained under a friendship agreement between Albania and Greece signed in March 1996, which also set up bipartite committees for settling outstanding problems. As part of the Communityís regional policy towards certain countries of south-east Europe, including Albania, the Commission will continue to monitor political and economic developments in the countries concerned, including respect for democratic principles, human rights and the rights of minorities. (1999/C 50/130) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1773/98 by Joan VallvØ (ELDR) to the Commission (5 June 1998) Subject: Use of certain methods of capturing wild animals Is it legal to use snares with an in-built catch or selective snares (taken to mean those which cannot shut with a circumference of less than 19 cm, thus preventing most species from being caught provided that they are not used