APPENDIX 4
Letter from the FCO to the Clerk of the
Committee on the Publication of EU Report on Human Rights in Israel/Occupied
Territories, 19 January 2000
I am writing as promised in paragraph 6 of the
FCO memorandum following Mr Hain's evidence to the Foreign Affairs
Committee on 23 November, on the subject of the EU Human Rights
Watch report on Israel and the Occupied Territories. I apologise
for the delay in replying.
As you may be aware, a summary of the report
is published on the European Council's web site. We agree that
1 February to 15 June EU Human Rights Watch Report on Israel and
the Occupied Territories, mentioned at the session, did not contain
direct policy advice and drew largely on publicly available material.
However, as stated in the memorandum, EU Human
Rights reports are confidential EU documents, and the United Kingdom
cannot unilaterally release them to the public. The separate preparation
by the EU of a version of each report for publication would absorb
enormous time and effort, and almost certainly lead to a text
which was so watered down and hedged about by caveats that it
would be of little use. Agreeing what is, essentially, a despatch
from the 15 EU representatives to their governments is one thing.
Agreeing a public statement among all 15 governments in capitals
would be quite another, requiring far greater effort and verification.
It would also not be possible in such a document to include material
derived only from secondary sources, such as NGO reports.
Bearing that in mind, it is our view that the
best (publication) really would kill the good (production of a
useful synthesis).
Tabitha Brufal's letter of 22 November asked
whether the next report is due for publication soon. It has not
yet been produced. We expect it to be available during the next
few months and we will be glad to make it available to the Committee,
subject to the usual safeguards.
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