Development cooperation: democracy and the rule of law, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms

The common position retains - fully or in part, and in some cases with certain adaptations - 10 of the 37 amendments proposed by the European Parliament in its first reading. The EP amendments retained by the Council relate in particular to : - the involvement of NGOs having no prior experience in the area of human rights, - the support for initiatives in favour of the abolition of the death penalty, - the launch of activities to explain the objectives and results of measures to the general public in the countries concerned and administrative and technical assistance for the mutual benefit of the Commission and the beneficiaries, - the taking into its charge by the Commission of the programming, the appraisal, decisions concerning and the management of operations, - the annual evaluation report on operations undertaken. However, the Council was not in a position to retain a series of amendments that relate to institutional aspects, such as comitology and information procedures, or to budgetary aspects (for example, the EP's amendment suggesting the deletion of the financial reference amount of 260 million euros); nor could the Council agree to the amendment providing for an unlimited duration of the proposed Regulation. Furthermore, the Council did not retain the amendments that would introduce the concept of good governance into the title, certain recitals and the body of the text.�