Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1400707
14 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 11 AUGUST 2021 ŻEUROPE This article is part of a content series called Ewropej. This is a multi-newsroom initiative part-funded by the European Parliament to bring the work of the EP closer to the citizens of Malta and keep them informed about matters that affect their daily lives. These articles reflect only the authors' view. The European Parliament is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains. A group of members of the European Parliament (MEPs) have sent a letter to European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell to express their strong disapproval over the decision to send a top EU representative to Tehran to last week's inauguration of hardline Iranian president Ebra- him Raisi. MEP David Lega and the eight other parlia- mentarians signing Monday's letter raised con- cerns that the attendance of EU senior diplomat Enrique Mora could be regarded as the body "ig- noring Iran's violent and destabilizing regional policies." "Sending such senior representation to the in- auguration of a president with such a dark re- cord, at this sensitive time, contradicts European commitments to uphold and stand up for human rights," the MEPs wrote. The letter comes after Israeli officials and hu- man rights activists criticized Mora's presence, who was seated immediately behind senior lead- ers of the Hamas and Hezbollah terror groups at Thursday's inauguration ceremony. The MEPs described Raisi's win as a "sham election" unsupported by millions of Iranian citi- zens, pointing to his "appalling record of person- al responsibility for the most heinous of human rights abuses." "Raisi earned his reputation as the 'Hangman of Tehran' for his role in the execution of thou- sands of political prisoners and opponents in the late 1980s. He is personally sanctioned by the US government for his actions," they lamented. "Honoring the inauguration of the 'Hangman of Tehran' only serves to encourage such behavior." "It seems even more incongruous given Mora's senior role in coordinating the nuclear talks in Vienna. His presence risks giving the impres- sion that the EU's overwhelming concern is the nuclear agreement. While mass protests against the regime are taking place across Iran, the EU comes across as ignoring the voice of the Iranian people," they added. The MEP's urged the EU to send to send a clear message to Iran that "Europe will not turn a blind eye either to human rights abuses or acts of terror and piracy, and that Iran will face conse- quences for its actions." Commenting on the letter, ELNET, a nonprofit organisation focused on developing Europe-Isra- el ties, said, "We encourage Europe to speak out firmly against the Iranian aggression. For diplo- macy to succeed it must be backed by significant disincentives in the face of Iranian brinkman- ship. Iran's behavior is a direct affront to Europe, which is clearly demonstrating the good will re- quired for a diplomatic solution, and should be countered as such. Failing to provide such a re- sponse would only encourage Iran to escalate its violations to even more dangerous levels." European Parliament members blast EU for sending diplomat to 'honour' inauguration of new Iranian president EU Representative Enrique Mora seated behind Palestinian Islamic Jihad chief Ziad al-Nakhalah, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and Hezbollah deputy chief Naim Qassem at the inauguration of Iran's President-elect Ebrahim Raisi in Tehran, on 5 August IN July, the European Parlia- ment approved a resolution on the situation in Nicara- gua. Among the 16 points in the document, the Parliament called on the Financial Action Task Force to "ensure inter- national financial security in the face of illicit operations originating from the Orte- ga-Murillo regime and its col- laborators." The resolution was over- whelmingly approved, with 629 votes in favor, 19 opposed and 40 abstentions. 688 of the 705 MEPs were present. In the document, the MEPs once again demanded that the European Union expand the list of individuals and entities to be sanctioned, in order to target human rights viola- tors in Nicaragua. The list of recommendations included President Daniel Ortega, vice president and first lady Rosa- rio Murillo and their "inner circle". Item number 10 of the reso- lution: "calls on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to establish the necessary coor- dination with the US Office of Foreign Assets Control to ensure international financial security in the face of illicit operations originating from the Ortega-Murillo regime and its collaborators and their commercial relations and as- sets in European countries." This marks the first time that a resolution from the Eu- ropean Parliament took aim at the Nicaraguan regime's sources of funding, although, since 2018, the European deputies have approved four resolutions regarding the sit- uation in the country. Before the voting took place, MEP Soraya Rodriguez Ramos appeared in an interview on the Nicaraguan online news program Esta Noche. She ex- plained: "We need to adopt conclusive measures that re- ally identify and immobilize [the regime's] foreign finan- cial assets. The investigations should establish very clearly how personal and family busi- ness is being carried out, and if it's being done using funds from the Nicaraguan budget." "It appears that [Orte- ga-Murillo] want to convert the country into a family business," the Spanish MEP asserted. Soraya Rodriguez is a member of the "Renew Eu- rope" parliamentary group and spokesperson for the parliament's Human Rights Sub-commission. During plenary session de- bate in the European parlia- ment on 6 July, Rodriguez said: "Ortega says he's ac- customed to being called all kinds of things. But I believe that – like all dictators – he's not accustomed to have us MEPs want EU Nicaragua's Ortega