The Diplomat
The European Parliament’s Committee on Citizens’ Freedoms approved last Thursday the abolition of visas for citizens of Ecuador, a measure that was formally requested by Spain to the European Commission almost five years ago at the request of the Ecuadorian government itself.
The Commission endorsed yesterday, with 42 votes in favor and 16 against, a proposal to allow citizens of Ecuador, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman to travel to the EU without visas for periods of up to 90 days. The text must now go to the plenary and, once endorsed by the whole of the European Parliament, negotiations with the EU Council, made up of the ministers of the EU-27, can begin. If the proposal is finally approved, the EU will have to negotiate bilateral visa waiver agreements with each of the countries involved.
In the case of Kuwait, MEPs stress that the measure should only be applied if the country stops imposing death sentences. They are also concerned about the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms in Kuwait as well as in Qatar and Oman. Among other issues, they are concerned about the lack of respect for the rights of workers, women, LGBTQ+ people, freedom of worship, expression and assembly, and cases of torture, as well as death penalty sentences.
MEPs took advantage of the European Commission’s proposal to exempt Kuwaitis and Qataris from visa requirements to add nationals of Ecuador and Oman, considering that both countries meet the same criteria. Regarding Ecuador, the draft report highlights its commitment to respecting human rights, although it notes that progress is still needed on prison conditions, the rights of women and indigenous people and refugees, among other issues.
After learning the news, Ecuador’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Juan Carlos Holguin, attributed (through his official Twitter account) the result of the vote to the “excellent work of our missions in Europe, especially Brussels, Madrid and the team of the Ecuadorian Foreign Ministry”.
In December 2017, the then President of the Government, Mariano Rajoy, made a commitment to the then President of Ecuador, Lenín Moreno, to “continue working in the EU” to achieve the exemption of Schengen visas for Ecuadorians. The South American leader, who was on an official visit to Spain, had asked Spain to intercede with the EU in this regard.
Spain’s commitment resulted, on January 29, 2018, in the sending of a letter from the then Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alfonso Dastis, to the European Commissioner for Immigration, Home Affairs and Citizenship of the European Commission, Dimitris Avramópulos, to request for Ecuador the “same exemption” that its neighbors Colombia and Peru already had and to recall that Spain is the main destination of Ecuadorian migration in the Community area. “The Spanish government complied with my request: it has just asked the European Union for the exemption of the Schengen visa for Ecuadorians,” Lenín Moreno later stated on his personal Twitter.
