Proposition 53K0463

Proposition de résolution relative à la mise en place d'un corps européen de secours civil.

General information ¶

Authors

LE Christian Brotcorne, Georges Dallemagne

Submission date

Oct. 26, 2010

Official page

Visit

Status

Adopted

Requirement

Simple

Subjects

European Union civil defence coordination of aid first aid aid to disaster victims humanitarian aid resolution of parliament natural disaster

Voting ¶

Voted to adopt

Groen CD&V Vooruit Ecolo LE PS | SP Open Vld N-VA LDD MR VB

Contact form ¶

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Discussion ¶

Jan. 30, 2014 | Plenary session (Chamber of representatives)

Full source

The rapporteur, Mr. Vanackere, is absent and refers to his written report.

Mr. Speaker, dear colleagues, the voluntary positioning of our group in favour of the greater integration of the state at European level in various fields is no longer to be demonstrated. We are convinced of the European added value in all areas. Thus, we have been at the origin of a resolution on the Europe of Defence, adopted in May last year, but also of a text of aid to the Nation, a text that draws the similar findings to those drawn from the text presented to us today by Mr. Germany, but on a more military than civilian scale.

In the face of major crises, a solidary and rapid European response must be coordinated, both within and outside the European borders. At the European civil level, national civil rescue needs to be evolved in order to increase synergies and coherence at the level of training, from the purchase of equipment by giving an accelerator to a EU-FAST structure based on the Belgian model B-FAST, which has demonstrated its multi-body effectiveness repeatedly. This European structure must be flexible in order to remain efficient and fast, and its fixed costs must be limited.

My group made some additions to this text through amendments. These had no other purpose than to ensure the coherence between the work and political volunteerism displayed in the Committee on Foreign Relations and those of the Committee on National Defense. The excellent work of the army is no longer to be demonstrated in emergency situations and assistance to the population.

In the face of certain crisis situations, only the Defense has the material and human resources to respond to them and help the Belgian and even European citizens. There are synergies to be found. As the Minister’s representative in committee stressed, in the face of situations of force majeure, such as cross-border disasters, Defence is already today the most competent.

I was very pleased with the amendments I submitted to my colleague. Jabour, were voted unanimously. They reinforce the importance of fully taking into account the so-called tasks of aid to the Nation in the future strategic plan that will be drafted by the next Minister of Defense, in a spirit of intra- and extra-European solidarity.

For all of these reasons, my group will support this text so that the European Union appears as a credible and tangible player at the service of the most vulnerable populations in Europe and elsewhere in the world.

First of all, I would like to thank the colleagues of the Committee on Foreign Relations for their support and interest in this matter, and in particular Mr. Blanchart who helped improve this resolution.

This resolution is based on a triple observation. First, natural disasters are increasingly devastating, increasingly frequent. The expert we received in the committee said that, over a decade, these natural disasters have cost the lives of a million people worldwide and that they have also had a direct impact on the economies of the countries concerned, amounting to $100 billion. This number is obviously considerable. And there is every reason to think—it is, in any case, what some forecasters say—that these natural disasters will be increasingly devastating. The phenomenon is, in particular, related to human demography, but also and more than likely to climate disorder.

Second, Europe and Belgium in particular have developed capabilities for a number of years and are intervening. Belgium responds quickly in the event of a natural disaster. She has recently been in the Philippines. She has also intervened in Haiti, Turkey or other areas.

That said, European efforts are still insufficiently coherent, insufficiently coordinated. The European Commission is making efforts to make interventions more effective in the future. It was interesting that we could act to encourage these efforts.

Third, and not least – a series of surveys and surveys show that – the European population is very favourable to the idea that Europe is better equipped, more efficient and more attentive to disaster relief today, and that more lives can be saved in a major disaster tomorrow. This is a strong demand from the public. This is in line with both our values and Europe’s ambition towards the world to play a more important role in disaster relief.

This is the triple consistency of increasingly devastating disasters, already existing means, political will and support from the European population that is at the origin of this resolution, so that we can, tomorrow, be even more effective than today, and that we can truly weigh in rescue in the event of a natural disaster and save more human lives.

What does it mean to be more efficient? This means, first of all, intensifying efforts to prevent the occurrence of certain disasters. There are obviously disasters we cannot act on, but there are others, such as the devastating fires in Europe. We know that in this context, we can be more effective in preventing them. It also means being able to prepare better, to carry out joint exercises, to have common rules and procedures, to have devices that are prepositioned, stocks that are prepositioned in places and countries subject to natural disasters.

It is also of course, when the disaster occurs, to be able to demonstrate speed but also to be able to rely on teams available immediately, competent, sufficiently coordinated, sufficiently numerous, available in the duration, truly professional in relation to the disasters, the rescue and the services they will have to render to the population.

These are also relief that must be articulated, complementary to relief that is developed by national teams, by local populations, who are the first to help their fellow citizens, which must also be complementary and articulated and subsidiary to relief that is developed by NGOs and by the United Nations system.

What is most lacking today – this is where Europe can be more efficient tomorrow – is that in the event of a major disaster, there is truly a need for means, shipping, air transport, road transport, civil engineering machinery. It is this very heavy logistics that is lacking most of the time to reach up to the victims, access to the disaster site, unleash and ensure that the rescue organised by local populations and local governments can effectively develop in a more efficient way. This is also an area in which, I think, the future European Rescue Corps could be more effective.

I will not be much longer. There is, of course, also the aspect of reconstruction, rehabilitation after rescue. I think that is very important. It can be seen that the earthquakes that shook Nicaragua several decades ago have left significant consequences to cities like Managua. Countries like Haiti, today, still suffer from the earthquake, more than three years later.

We see how important it is to articulate emergency relief well with longer-term relief as well as rehabilitation and reconstruction. I believe that these are also areas in which we can make efforts that are even more coordinated at the European level.

I will not be longer. I think Belgium has shown its interest, its availability, its involvement in disaster relief. I believe it is important and useful that Belgium can play a driving role in this European construction of rescue and humanitarian aid in the event of a disaster.

This is, in any case, my wish and the wish of my group and it is the wish of the people who helped improve this resolution. I thank them and I thank you.