• Home /
• Statewatch Database /
• Racism and xenophobia (1)

Racism and xenophobia (1)

01 January 1991

Racism and xenophobia
artdoc July=1993

On 21 April the European Parliament debated the upsurge in
racism. Cesare de Piccoli (Italy, Soc) called for EC legislation
with the recognition that any racist act was a crime and for a
number of ways to better integrate the millions of non-EC
citizens legally resident in the EC such as extending voting
rights to all legal immigrants who have lived in an EC country
for more than five years. But Jean-Marie le Chevallier (France,
ER) dismissed the whole report, claiming it was based on
inaccuracies. He insisted that institutional parties of the right
had nothing to do with extreme right groups. Franz Schonhuber
(Germany, Ind) complained that the report tried to criminalise
the democratic right and he defended the right of people to
defend their own culture and national heritage. Lode van Outrive
(Belgium, Soc) said the recognition of equal rights for non-EC
citizens legally resident was a fundamental precondition for the
integration of minorities. The Parliament approved with amendment
a resolution from the civil liberties committee on ways of
curbing the rise of racism and xenophobia in Europe. The vote
was 278 for to 39 against with 30 abstentions. Among MEPs
demands are EC legislation against racism and voting rights in
local elections to immigrants legally resident in the EC for more
than five years.

Statewatch vol 3 no 3 May-June 1993