G. whereas the opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi have been held illegally under house arrest and arbitrarily confined since 14 February 2011; whereas these leaders, along with their politically active spouses, have for periods of time been forcibly disappeared to unknown locations and cut off from all contact with friends and family, periods during which they have been at severe risk of torture;

The Commission and the RAPEX Contact Points ensure that officials responsible for operating RAPEX can always be contacted (by phone, e-mail or other equally effective means) and that they can take whatever action is necessary, including in an emergency and outside regular working hours, such as weekends and holidays.

Ulla-Maj Wideroos, President-in-Office of the Council (FI) Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the Council will continue its work, during which it will be in close contact with the European Parliament to ensure that consensus is reached soon on the proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on common standards and procedures in Member States for returning illegally remaining third country nationals.

Ulla-Maj Wideroos, President-in-Office of the Council (FI) Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the Council will continue its work, during which it will be in close contact with the European Parliament to ensure that consensus is reached soon on the proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on common standards and procedures in Member States for returning illegally remaining third country nationals.

in articles referred to in point (b) where these have a non-nickel coating unless such coating is sufficient to ensure that the rate of nickel release from those parts of such articles coming into direct and prolonged contact with the skin will not exceed 0,5 μg/cm/week for a period of at least two years of normal use of the article.

47. Supports the Council decision to lift the ban on political contacts with the Belarusian authorities and to suspend the visa ban for six months for certain Belarusian officials, including President Lukashenka; calls on the Council to continue the dialogue with and devise a policy vis-à-vis Belarus, subject to strict positive conditionality; calls on the Council and the Commission to consider selective application of the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument and the European Instrument for Human Rights and Democracy to Belarus by extending more support to Belarusian civil society; emphasises that the democratic oppositio ...[+++]n of Belarus must be fully involved in the dialogue between the EU and Belarus; insists that the Belarusian authority lift the de facto visa ban on MEPs; calls on the Council to take further steps towards the facilitation and liberalisation of visa procedures for Belarusian citizens, including lowering the cost of visas for Belarusian citizens entering the Schengen Area, as such action is crucial to facilitate and intensify people-to-people contacts and to democratise the country; supports further cooperation with Belarus in areas of mutual interest, such as trade, transport, environment, energy, customs, etc.;