"We have many indications that countries such as Pakistan or entities such as the Palestinian Authority, funnel EU money towards terrorist organisations, such as Al-Qaeda or Hamas. With this Written Declaration we are urging the European Court of Justice and the European External Action service to follow up on these indications and deliver final proof, so that funding can be frozen,’’ said German Liberal MEP Michael Theurer, one of the signatories.
"Seldom has a Written Declaration been tabled in such a timely fashion. We are currently reacting to the heightened security risk and threat through international terrorism in our societies and to this institution through the announced code yellow, which is followed by special measures, such as the Belgian army guards stationed outside the building," he added.
‘’While we protect ourselves from this imminent danger, we simultaneously need to tackle the problem at the root,’’ Theurer added.
He mentioned in particular the so called ‘aw of prisoners of the Palestinian Authority which, he said, "raised suspicion to how EU financial assistance might be spent".
The law grants prisoners that participated in “the struggle against Israel's occupation” an average monthly salary of 3129 US Dollar,’’ according to a report by Palestine Media Watch (PMW).
In the declaration, the MEPs stress that "in times of economic stringency and heightened security concern, it is important to ensure that EU funds are not wasted or abused.This would be the case if EU funds were being channelled, deliberately or by neglect, to terrorist organizations".
It continues: "The European Court of Auditors (ECA) and the European External Action Service (EEAS) are called upon to subject to special scrutiny those recipients of high levels of EU funding, for example the Palestinian Authority and Pakistan, where there is a suggestion of evidence of support for terrorist activity."
"Where there are indications of such abuse, the European Commission is called upon to freeze or reduce funding until the necessary checks and control measures have been put in place," the declaration states.
The declaration was also signed by MEPs from various political groups: Antanas Guoga (Lithuania, ALDE), Petras Austrevicius (Lithuania, ALDE), Johannes Cornelis van Baalen (Holland, ALDE), Tunne Kelam (Estonia, EPP), Lars Adaktusson (Sweden, EPP), Indrek Tarand (Estonia, Greens, EFA), Geoffrey Van Orden (UK, ECR) Ryszard Czarnecki (Poland, ECR), Bas Belder (Holland, ECR), Monika Flasikova Benova (Slovakia, S&D).
