Corruption scandal in the European Parliament. The tip of the iceberg? |
Prosecutors in Belgium over the weekend Europe Vice-President of the Parliament (AP). Eva Kaili and charged three others with corruption, money laundering and participation in a criminal organization. Among those accused of parliament There is also a former member from Italy. The charges are said to be related to an alleged bribery campaign in Qatar, which is currently hosting the World Cup.
The BBC writes that the prosecutors “several months in the Gulf country of parliament economic and political they suspect that they influence their decisions, especially targeting assistants.
RFE/RL reporter Rikard Jozwiak was arrested by the police for 1.5 million euros (1.6 million euros). dollars) writes that he has discovered cash nearby. It is known that a suitcase full of cash was found in a Brussels hotel room, 600,000 euros in a private residence, and 150,000 euros in the apartment used by Kylie. Kaili has pleaded not guilty through her attorney.
On December 12 Europe Several offices and private residences belonging to the Parliament were raided. Working in Parliament 10 IT equipment belonging to a person was confiscated. Additional evidence is being collected.
Qatar also says it did not make any mistakes.
On December 14, the four accused in Brussels court will be presented. Kaili has been an outspoken supporter of Qatar. His Italian partner Francesco Giorgi worked as an assistant in the parliament. Parliament former Italian member Antonio Panzeri “War on Untouchability”. NGO is the head. A fourth accused, Kaili’s adviser, has not yet been named. Two more people were detained, but they were later released.
More people in this business hand can it be Europe Some people in the parliament think that this is only the tip of the iceberg, as the events develop, more people will be named. The other part says that the worst is over and “several crooks” have been caught.
However, the impact of this event is felt in the main left-of-center Socialists and Democrats (S&D) group, of which Kaili is a member. Several group members associated with the accused four have resigned from the committee’s chairmanship, or their names have been omitted from the pending reports.
Jozwiak the limits of the European Parliament and this scandal political He writes that he will cross the left front. Although not formally charged, the former chief spokesperson of the European Commission Margaritis Shinasin (Margaritis Schinas) name is mentioned in the media in connection with the scandal. Currently a right-wing politician responsible for migration and rule of law at the European Commission, he attended the opening of the World Cup in Qatar. Qatar has been criticized for corruption, abuses against workers in construction for the tournament. However, Shinas wrote positive tweets about this Gulf country and tried to liberalize visa regulations for its citizens.
Not only is the EP cooperating with Belgium, it has also launched an internal investigation. 705 members of this parliament are directly elected by voters of 27 member countries.
A vote on visa easing with Qatar was scheduled for this week, postponed and parliament It was returned to the appropriate committee as a rare event in its history. The S&D group expelled Kaili, the parliamentarians vice president they will also receive the status. However, according to the rules, it is impossible to remove him from the parliament once and for all. To this Greece decides, this country has frozen Kylie’s assets.
But reputational damage also works. Even in good times, ordinary Europeans disliked members of the EP because of their high salaries and privileges, so they were mostly Eurosceptics. One of the biggest critics of this institution, the Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orban He did not hide his joy.
2018That’s it in parliament the rule of law has initiated a special procedure against Budapest – triggering Article 7 – due to yellow concerns. This process may result in Hungary losing the right to vote in the Council of Europe.
But how did all this happen? Some say that Brussels is a haven for lobbyists. Thousands of influential legislators, diplomats and bureaucrats work under very little control within a few square kilometers of space. The EU Transparency Register is voluntary, and politicians can easily circumvent it. Countries do not register, parliamentarians do not disclose details of all their meetings. That is, it is easy to hide how much the lobbyist gives to the client.
In addition, there is no independent ethics control body in Brussels and the European Parliament.
As for why the EP was targeted, this question has left many in Brussels a little confused. After all, this institution is not considered a strong player in foreign policy. report and resolutions are not binding. Parliament when you put something up for a vote, it’s rarely voted against. That is, the European Commission would be a better target for a malicious foreign power. Because its officials law comes up with initiatives. Or the Council of Europe, where key decisions are made in Brussels, might be a better target.
Rikard Rozwiak writes that either Doha was ill-advised about how the EU’s capital works, or Qatar’s lobbying was so extensive that the irregularities uncovered in the European Parliament are yet to come to light.