Activities of Kostadinka KUNEVA related to 2017/2089(INI)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the implementation of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union in the EU institutional framework
Amendments (22)
Amendment 9 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Recalls that an increasing number of petitions submitted to Parliament after the entry into force of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights in December 2009 invoke the Charter as the legal basis for the alleged violation of their fundamental rights as EU citizens; notes that these petitions are evidence, on the one hand of the expectation of the EU citizens that the EU will be reincarnated to prioritize the rule of law and fundamental rights, and on the other of a serious structural lack of a fundamental rights- based approach in the drafting of legislation and policymaking both at EU level and in the implementation of legislation in Member States;
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Deplores the fact that the Charter of Fundamental Rights only applies in Member States when implementing EU law; reiterates that many citizens have found its implementation to be unclear and unsatisfactory; Stresses nonetheless that the Charter is primary law of the Union not only for the institutions but also for the member states. Therefore the restricted applicability does not offer a ''carte blanche'' to violate rights of the Charter.
Amendment 19 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Highlights that a more rigorous interpretation and application of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union would suffice to ensure protection and promotion of fundamental rights throughout the Union. This robust interpretation shall be in line with international human rights obligations of the European Union, as they emanate from the Union's duty to uphold international customary law and general principles of public international law, hence not necessitating a treaty change to be accommodated.
Amendment 21 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Considers that the expectations of most EU citizens submitting petitions in relation to the rights conferred on them by the Charter go far beyond their current scope of application; stresses that an excessively narrow or incoherent interpretation of Article 51 alienates citizens from the EU; urges the Commission to take steps to ensure that the interpretation of the scope of Article 51 is as coherent and wide as possible; , that would safeguard the universal and uniform implementation of the Charter through the Union and for all citizens; Considers that the universal application of the Charter is a condition for the promotion and consolidation of European citizenship and the strengthening of citizen's participation in democratic processes in the EU.
Amendment 26 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Expresses the wish that the European Social Charter will be offered the same standing as the treaties in the same manner that the Charter of Fundamental Rights was. This way the profound proclivity towards civil and political rights will be eventually equilibrated with economic, social and cultural rights, bringing the Union in line with the universality, inalienability, indivisibility, interdependence and interrelation of human rights.
Amendment 28 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Insists that Article 7(7) of Regulation (EU) No.472/2013 on the strengthening of economic and budgetary surveillance of Member States in the euro area experiencing or threatened with serious difficulties with respect to their financial stability, which specifies that the budgetary consolidation efforts required following the macroeconomic adjustment programme must "take into account the need to ensure sufficient means for fundamental policies, such as education and health care", is interpreted in line with the requirements of the social provisions of the Charter and the principles of the European Social Charter.
Amendment 30 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 c (new)
Paragraph 3 c (new)
3c. Suggests the development and implementation of a Code of Conduct applicable to all Staff in line with the Charter of Fundamental Rights. Set up mechanisms for compliance that ensure that any violation is detected, reported and processed in a timely manner. Protection of the personal data of the alleged victim and of the involved whistle-blowers should be considered inalienable in the process. Organize training sessions for Staff with the view to eliminate issues of discrimination and hate speech on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, ethnic origin or any other status.
Amendment 33 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 d (new)
Paragraph 3 d (new)
3d. Reiterates the need to interpretatively expand the scope of the Charter ratione temporis bringing an evaluation of the legislation that has been adopted prior to its entry into force and remains unrevised. Opines that the Charter should also be unexceptionally applicable apart from all legislative, to all administrative acts of the institutions.
Amendment 35 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 e (new)
Paragraph 3 e (new)
3e. Deplores the blockage in the Anti- discrimination Directive (Directive implementing the principle of equal treatment outside the labour market, irrespective of age, disability, sexual orientation or religious belief) that would materialize the principle of non- discrimination as enshrined in the Charter and conform with the obligations born by the Union after acceding to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Amendment 37 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Insists that it is of paramount importance in the interests of EU citizens to guarantee the effectiveness of the protection granted them under the current system, particularly in the field of social rights, but also with regard to civil liberties and democratic participation, by broadening the application of the Charter; calls on the Commission, in this regard, to introduce a fundamental rights impact assessment in all relevant new legislative proposals for the purposes of mainstreaming fundamental rights in all relevant policy areas; stresses nevertheless that the existence but non-application of such an article - as is currently the case with art. 9 TFEU regarding high employment and social protection - would not serve the democratic nature of the EU but would on the contrary add to its de- legitimisation;
Amendment 42 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Highlights the importance of the Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) in the institutional setting. Regrets the lacking integration of the agency's work in the evaluation of the compatibility of the institutional activities with the fundamental rights and the expertise on a regular basis on legislative files pertinent to internal and external competences of the Union.
Amendment 46 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4b. Reiterates that independent and impartial expertise to systematically prepare compatibility checks on all sectors of activity of the Union institutions is essential and to that end the contribution of the agencies relevant (European Institute for Gender Equality, FRA) could be systematized and further upgraded with substantial contributions to the legislative institutions and those with operational competences on the field.
Amendment 47 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 c (new)
Paragraph 4 c (new)
4c. Strongly believes that the Strategy for the effective implementation of the Charter of Fundamental Rights by the European Union 1a was an initial effort after the entry into force of the Charter, but needs to be urgently updated. The fundamental rights ''check list'', a methodology supposed to serve the systematic and rigorous monitoring of compliance with the Charter, in particular adherence to the principle of proportionality at the stage of a new legislative proposal needs to be quantified, expanded and published with the communication in an understandable manner. Points out that the impact assessment should be more thorough when comparing different options and the Commission shall prioritize the policy option that has no or policy impacts on fundamental rights, as only fundamental rights shall be considered legitimate objective of general interest. _________________ 1a Communication from the Commission, Strategy for the effective implementation of the Charter of Fundamental Rights by the European Union, Brussels 19.10.2010, COM(2010) 573 final
Amendment 52 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Underlines the fact that the Charter of Fundamental Rights can be considered the cornerstone to develop a fully-fledged Union of peoples and not merely a Union of economically active mobile consumers, bridge inequalities and implement robust social policies with a clear anthropocentric orientation. The Charter has the potential to act as the basis of a strong legitimacy of the Union, and remedy the democratic deficit and the imbalances between the dominant economic component vis-à-vis the atrophic social one.
Amendment 60 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Calls on the Commission to reinforce of public consultation process that should be expanded and allow for active engagement of civil society and stakeholders. Targeted consultation should be equilibrated to include all affected stakeholders and groups, allowing for both written submissions and meeting. The outcome of those should be available online in detail to ensure that the Union's actions are coherent and transparent pursuant to article 11 TEU. Wide consultation should fully respect and uphold the principle of non- discrimination. Commission should consider revisiting the guidelines on stakeholder consultation and the minimum standards thereof and provide for adequately broad participation standards.
Amendment 61 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 b (new)
Paragraph 6 b (new)
Amendment 67 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. Stresses the need to ensure the respect of the Charter, particularly its social provisions, is complied with during and throughout all stages of the European Semester process, including the Annual Growth Survey (AGS) with a simultaneous upgrade of the Joint Employment Report (JER). Calls for the development of social benchmarks to be monitored and form part of an integrated approach in the country-specific recommendations (CSRs).
Amendment 73 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 b (new)
Paragraph 7 b (new)
7b. Concerned by the limited justiciability and the lacking constitutive nature as introduced by article 51 par. 1 does not allow but only limited invocation by individuals.
Amendment 74 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 c (new)
Paragraph 7 c (new)
7c. Recalls the fact that the Charter introduces third generation rights as is the one to transparent administration and access to documents. Regrets the fact that the revision of the Regulation 1049/2001 has been blocked by the Council. Shares the viewpoint of the Ombudswoman on her strategic inquiry concerning the transparency in the Council legislative process (OI/2/2017/TE) and regrets the fact that the Council did not reply within the deadline in the findings. It is regrettably a recurring topic that is constantly showcased also from complaints submitted to the Ombudswoman. This matter should be considered of high importance in the democratic life of the Union and the effective participation of citizens across the continent hindering the fulfilment of the constitutional treaties and the Charter. Most recently a decision in case 1272/2017/LP (the refusal to give public access to the opinion of its Legal Service concerning an inter-institutional agreement on Transparency Register) indicated that the issue is threatening principle institutional balance and the negates the essential practice of the mutual sincere cooperation. It is impossible to perform an ex post check on an ad hoc basis after the refusal of a request.
Amendment 76 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 d (new)
Paragraph 7 d (new)
7d. Expresses its concerns for the large discrepancies that characterize the implementation of the Charter in the economic and monetary governance of the EU, particularly of the Eurozone. Underlines that Regulations as 472/2013 and 473/2013, despite being part of the secondary law of the Union, assign crucial roles to institutions that are informal (as the Eurogroup) or lie outside the legal framework of the EU, as the ESM, and are not bound by the Charter, regardless of it enjoying the same standing as the Treaties. Notes the need to promote European integration with a reform that would place all institutions, unexceptionally, within constitutional setting and under the obligation to comply with the Charter.
Amendment 77 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Invites the different EU institutions to consider an enhancement of the scope of application of the Charter, including the deletion of its Article 51, in the next revision of the Treaty. In the event that is deemed unfitting the Commission shall strive to reopen the accession of the Union to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) eventually materializing its legal obligation under article 6 par. 2 of the TEU, contributing to the creation of a coherent framework for human rights protection throughout Europe. The Commission shall strive to draft a new Accession Agreement that would cure the inadequacies pointed out by the Court of Justice of the European Union in the Opinion 2/13.
Amendment 79 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Voices its discontent for the interpretations of article 51 and 52 which bring in artificial contradiction rights with principles - especially civil and political rights with social and economic principles. Echoes the position of the FRA in the Fundamental Rights Report 2017, that the Charter '' is unique in combining with equal status civil and political and social and economic rights in a single document''. Considers that social and economic rights are considerably lacking and should be decisively reinforced constitutively by rendering legally binding for all institutions and all members states the 20 principle of the European Social Charter.