On the arbitrary detention of EU citizens Javier Marañón Montero and David Rodríguez Ballesta in Equatorial Guinea

B100440/2025

Motion for a European Parliament resolution on the arbitrary detention of EU citizens Javier Marañón Montero and David Rodríguez Ballesta in Equatorial Guinea

(2025/2904(RSP))

The European Parliament,

having regard to Rules 150 of its Rules of Procedure,

whereas Spanish citizens Javier Marañón Montero and David Rodríguez Ballesta were arrested in Malabo in mid-January 2025 in connection with the failed €34 million digital television (TDT) project;

whereas they have since been held in pretrial detention at Black Beach prison, notorious for torture and inhumane conditions, without verdict or effective judicial safeguards;

whereas on 9 April 2025 they were shown publicly before a Malabo judge after months in custody, and Vice-President Teodoro Nguema Obiang ordered the suspension and arrest of prison officers accused of showing them leniency;

whereas Mr Marañón Montero launched a hunger strike by July 2025 in protest at his arbitrary detention and degrading conditions; whereas reports describe his health as critical and worsening, amid allegations of humiliation, isolation and denial of adequate medical care;

whereas Spanish consular requests have been delayed or obstructed and the ambassador was summoned for intervening; whereas the detention of these EU citizens has strained relations between Spain and Equatorial Guinea and raises concerns for the protection of Union citizens abroad;

whereas the TDT investigation revealed overbilling and corruption implicating presidential family members, while prosecutions focus solely on foreign nationals, shielding regime insiders;

Strongly condemns the arbitrary detention of Javier Marañón Montero and David Rodríguez Ballesta; deplores the lack of due process and the conditions of their imprisonment; underlines that their prosecution appears politically motivated and aimed at unjustly shifting responsibility away from members of the regime;

Insists that any proceedings respect international fair trial standards and that the detainees be granted full access to their families, independent lawyers and Spanish consular officials;

Calls on the Equatoguinean authorities to ensure urgent medical treatment for Mr Marañón Montero and to guarantee humane conditions for all detainees, ending practices of incommunicado detention and denial of adequate healthcare;

Condemns political interference in the judicial process, including actions by the Vice-President, and recalls that separation of powers is a fundamental principle of the rule of law;

Urges the Spanish Government and the EU to intensify efforts to secure the detainees fair trial, including through coordinated démarches, high-level engagement and trial monitoring;

Calls on the VP/HR, Council and Commission to raise this case systematically in EU–Africa relations, at the UN and AU, and to consider targeted sanctions under the EU Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime against officials responsible; stresses that any cooperation with Equatorial Guinea must be conditioned on respect for human rights, the rule of law and accountability, and deplores systematic impunity for regime insiders despite credible evidence of corruption;

Recalls the case of Spanish-Equatoguinean citizen Julio Obama Mefuman, who died in custody in 2023, and reiterates concern at the systematic use of arbitrary detention and repression by the Obiang regime;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the VP/HR, the Council, the Commission, EUROPOL, EUROJUST, the AU, the CPLP, the UN SG and the Government of Equatorial Guinea.