The European Parliament adopted a resolution on Djibouti.
The text adopted in plenary was tabled by the EPP, S&D, ECR, ALDE, GUE/NGL, Greens/EFA and EFDD groups.
2016 elections: Parliament expressed its concern regarding the stalled democratisation process in Djibouti. It called for a thorough investigation into the transparency of the electoral process and the 2016 elections in which Ismail Omar Guelleh, President since 1999, enjoyed a landslide victory with 87.1 % of the vote that was criticised by opposition parties and rights groups as having been obtained by political repression.
Denouncing military and police interference in democratic processes, Members repeated the EUs call for the results from each polling station in both the 2013 and 2016 elections to be published. It recalled that no EU electoral observation mission was invited to monitor the elections and the electoral experts mission offered by the EU was turned down by the Djibouti authorities.
Rapes against civilians: Parliament also strongly denounced the rapes allegedly committed by Djiboutian soldiers against civilians and reported by various NGOs, as highlighted by the hunger strike cases in France and Belgium. It called on the Djiboutian authorities to conduct a thorough investigation into the actions of the military and called on the UN to investigate the human rights situation in Djibouti, in particular the situation of women in the country.
Independent press: the resolution condemned the lack of an independent press in Djibouti and the monitoring and censorship of websites critical of the government.
Members firmly condemned the harassment and imprisonment without charges of opposition leaders, journalists and independent human rights activists in the run-up to the presidential elections. It called on the Djiboutian authorities to: (i) grant FM broadcasting licences to any independent media bodies that so request; (ii) grant foreign journalists free access to the country to enable them to engage in their work safely and objectively; (iii) put in place the national communication commission and to authorise independent and private broadcasting.
Treatment of human beings: Parliament urged the government to continue to provide training to police and other officials for the purposes of applying the Human Trafficking Act, to step up efforts to bring human traffickers to justice and to raise awareness of the issue of trafficking. It demanded that women and men be treated equally before the law in Djibouti.
Lastly, Parliament urged the European External Action Service, the Commission and their partners to work with the Djiboutians on long-term political reform, which should be particularly facilitated by the strong relationship that already exists, given that Djibouti has been a key component of the fight against terrorism and piracy in the region, as well as hosting a military base and contributing to stability in the region.