Party spin on human rights: MEPs deny ‘supporting’ spy tech for dictators

MEPs Simon Busuttil and David Casa have categorically denied voting in favour of the sale of spy technology to dictators as claimed in Labour e-newspaper maltastar.com, describing the claims as a "blatant lie".

Instead they have accused their Labour counterparts of voting in favour of abortion.

The two versions are just different stories on the vote on the annual human rights report of the EU, which calls for greater control on the sale of technology to autocratic regimes, as well as giving women access to reproductive rights and abortion services.

Maltatstar.com said the two MEPs were among 28 MEPs who voted against a resolution in the European Parliament to restrict the export of spy gear and censorship tools to autocratic regimes.

The resolution calling for stricter oversight of companies selling equipment to countries such as Syria or China was passed overwhelmingly on Wednesday, with 580 votes for, 28 against, and 74 abstentions.

"These claims are a pure Labour invention and they are libellous. We never voted in favour of anything of the sort and we shall consider legal action unless these unfounded claims are immediately rectified," the two MEPs said.

Busuttil and Casa said they had voted against the report - "Annual Report on Human Rights in the World and the European Union's policy on the matter, including implications for the EU's strategic human rights policy" - because it contained a paragraph "that calls for the promotion of abortion, a red line for PN MEPs."

"On the other hand, Labour MEPs voted in favour," the two MEPs said.

On abortion, the annual report actually calls on the Commission to:

-       Emphasises that women must have control over their sexual and reproductive rights, notably through easy access to contraception and abortion;

-       to combat gender-selective abortion, the infanticide of girl babies and all other harmful traditions still pervasive in many societies - which promote the image of daughters as a burden and of sons as financial providers; asks the Commission to use its development and aid budget for this purpose;

-       condemns and calls for specific measures to counter cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment such as forced abortion and forced sterilisation;

calls on the Council to include the issues of 'forced marriages' and of "gender-selected" abortion in the EU guidelines on violence against women and girls.