BETA

Activities of Hannah NEUMANN related to 2019/2125(INI)

Plenary speeches (1)

2020/01/14
Dossiers: 2019/2125(INI)

Shadow reports (1)

2019/12/11
Committee: AFET
Dossiers: 2019/2125(INI)
Documents: PDF(340 KB) DOC(116 KB)
Authors: [{'name': 'Isabel WISELER-LIMA', 'mepid': 197421}]

Amendments (34)

Motion for a resolution
Recital B

B. whereas the UDHR, as a set of universal values, principles and norms guiding UN member states, places the ~~protec~~respect, protection and realisation of human rights at the heart of good governance; whereas in the spirit of the UDHR and Article 21 of the TEU, the EU isconsistently states its ambition to be at the forefront of pursuing human rights-based policies and ~~engages continuously~~ in addressing human rights abuses; whereas such an ambitious commitment and rhetoric requires the EU to be consistent and lead by example; whereas in practice, the EU is regularly denounced by the human rights community as being inconsistent towards comparable human rights situations worldwide and of placing security, migration or trade interests, before its stated commitment to universal human rights;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)

Ba. whereas in 2018 a large number of human rights defenders, including environmental activists, and actors from the civil society have been targeted by private and state actors alike, and see their civic space for action shrinking continuously which prevents them from taking meaningful action while being subject to attacks, threats and persecution and in extreme cases killings;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Recital C

C. whereas the EU, through continuous actions at bilateral and multilateral level, contributed to advancing human rights in 2018, in particular by strengthening the political dialogue with non-EU countries, and by establishing new international agreements, inter alia trade and economic partnerships;deleted

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Recital D

D. whereas increased coherence between the EU’s internal and external policies, as well as between the EU’s external policies represents an indispensable requirement for a successful and effective EU human rights policy; whereas improved consistency should enable the EU to be a more credible human rights actor at global level and to respond more rapidly during the early stages of human rights violations;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2

2. Maintains that all states that adhere to fundamental freedoms as cornerstones of democracy must be at the forefront of spreading ~~good~~democratic governance practices based on human rights and the rule of law around the world, and of strengthening legal international instruments for protecting human rights; underlines the challenges posed by the use of harmful influences that undermine democratic governance and the values intrinsic to human rights, and thus thwart the positive endeavours of democratic states; is deeply concerned about the links between authoritarian regimes abroad and the extreme right and populist nationalist parties and governments in the EU, such as in Hungary, that pose a threat to the fundamental values of the Union, which are enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) and reflected in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, including respect for democracy, equality, the rule of law and human rights; believes that such links undermine the credibility of the EU efforts to promote the fundamental values; calls on the EU and its Member States to lead by example and strictly uphold universal human rights, ensure an enabling environment for their civil society and to address any negative trends in this field;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5

5. Is seriously concerned at the increase in the number of cases of murder, attacks - both physical and defamatory - and intimidation against ~~people standing up for~~ human rights defenders throughout the world, in particular journalists, scholars, lawyers and civil society activists, inter alia environmental and land defenders, mainly in countries with high levels of corruption and a poor record of upholding the rule of law and judicial oversight; notes that women human rights defenders as well as environmental rights defenders face specific risks and need adequate protection;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6

6. Stresses the importance of advancing gender equality and women’s and girls' rights worldwide; emphasises that, in spite of progress, women and girls continue to suffer discrimination and violence; stresses that m~~any~~ost societies still struggle to provide women and girls with equal rights under the law and equal access to education, healthcare, decent work and political and economic representation; expresses its grave concern regarding the widespread and continued attacks on women’s rights and sexual and reproductive health and rights, as well as over legislation in many parts of the world that restricts these rights, including within EU Member States;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9

9. Draws attention to instances of persecution and discrimination based on ethnicity, nationality, class, caste, religion, belief, language, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation and age, which remain rife in many countries and societies; is seriously concerned at the increasingly intolerant and hate-filled responses targeting people who are the victims of these human rights violations;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10

10. Notes that the number of persons forcibly displaced in 2018 exceeded 70 million, of whom 26 million were refugees3 ; takes the view that wars, conflicts, political oppression, poverty and food insecurity, uneven economic development conditions and the adverse effects of climate change on the world’s poorest countries in particular, fuel the risks of triggering new conflicts and the further displacement of populations; urges the EU to seek to counter the effects of global climate change among others by introducing effective and sustainable policy actions and to comply with the goals of the Paris Agreement; stresses that biodiversity and human rights are interlinked and interdependent and recalls the human rights obligations of States to protect the biodiversity on which those rights depend, including by providing for the participation of citizens in biodiversity-related decisions and providing access to effective remedies in cases of biodiversity loss and degradation; expresses its support to the nascent normative efforts at international level in relation to environmental crimes; __________________ 3UNHCR – Global Trends 2018 report (19 June 2019).

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11

11. Stresses that freedom of speech and expression, as well as media pluralism, are at the heart of resilient democratic societies; urges that the best possible safeguards against disinformation campaigns and hostile propaganda be put in place by developing a legal framework both at EU and international level for tackling hybrid threats, including cyber and information warfare, while not compromising on fundamental rights;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12

12. Recalls the EU’s commitment to placing human rights and democracy at the centre of its relations with non-EU countries; stresses, therefore, that the objective of advancing human rights and democracy around the world requires it to be mainstreamed in all EU policies which have an external dimension; calls for the EU to take particular care to assess and prevent any violation linked to the Union's own policies, projects and funding in third countries, including by creating a complaints mechanism for individuals or groups whose rights would have been violated by EU activities in these countries;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)

12a. Calls on the Commission and EU Member States to adopt a new, ambitious, time-bound and binding Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy; its implementation and impact should be assessed through a strong monitoring mechanism; insists that emerging human rights challenges, including digital rights, but also key human rights issues that had hitherto been neglected, such as environmental rights, the rights of the elderly, sports and human rights, and rights of migrants be adequately addressed in this future Action Plan; stresses that EU Member States should take greater ownership of the Action Plan and report back on their implementation of the latter;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13

13. Highlights that t~~rade and human rights reinforce e~~he conduct of business activities should not negatively impacht on ther enjoyment of human rights, and that the business community has an important role to play in offering positive incentives in terms of promoting human rights, democracy and corporate responsibility; reminds the Commission and the European External Action Service (EEAS) of the need to make effective use of human rights clauses within international agreements, based on political dialogue, the regular assessment of progress and recourse to the consultation procedure upon request from a party; requests that robust implementation and monitoring mechanisms of human rights clauses, including through measurable benchmarks, be put in place, involving Parliament, local civil society and relevant international organisations, as well as establishing a complaints mechanism for groups of citizens and stakeholders who are affected by human rights violations;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14

14. ~~Supports~~Considers that human rights dialogues with non-EU countries ~~as an essential tool for bilateral engagement in the promotion and protection of human rights; calls on the Commission and the EEAS~~may constitute a useful tool for bilateral engagement in the promotion and protection of human rights provided they are carried out in a result-oriented manner and are regularly reviewed; recalls that the EU guidelines on human rights dialogues outline a number of criteria for opening a dialogue, including "the extent to which the government is willing to improve the situation, the degree of commitment shown by the government in respect of international human rights conventions, the government's readiness to cooperate with United Nations human rights procedures and mechanisms as well as the government's attitude towards civil society"; believes that in a number of cases, the impact of such dialogues is hardly worth the substantial resources that are dedicated by the EEAS and the EU delegation concerned; calls for the EEAS to carry out a regular assessment of each dialogue, as foreseen by the EU Guidelines, and to ensure that if in the absence of tangible progress, the EU should either adjust its aims, or suspend the human rights dialogue with the country concerned; calls on the Commission and the EEAS, with the involvement of local and international civil society groups and relevant international organizations, to join forces to address human rights and related obligations in dialogues or negotiations in any political and economic areas, with the governments of non-EU countries, in order to reinforce the impact of human rights dialogues; insists on the importance of raising individual cases in the context of human rights dialogues and of ensuring adequate follow-up and transparency over these cases;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15

15. Strongly supports the ~~work and efforts~~mandate of the EU Special Representative for Human Rights (EUSR) in protecting and promoting human rights in the world; insists that in the future, the appointment of EUSRs be validated only after a prior hearing in Parliament; reiterates its call for greater transparency on the activities and missions of the EUSR and insists that his regular reports to Council are also shared with Parliament; underlines the important objective within the mandate of the EUSR to enhance the Union’s effectiveness in this area;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 a (new)

15a. Welcomes the expansion of the mandate of the EUSR to include promoting support for international criminal justice; expects the EUSR to be particularly active in this field and to report to Parliament on how he intends to proceed with this aspect of his mandate, as well as on international humanitarian law;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16

16. Calls for the EU and the Member States to continue to closely monitor developments that negatively affect democratic governance and civil society space worldwide, without exception, and to systematically respond, using all appropriate means, to policies and legislative changes led by authoritarian governments, that are aimed at undermining governance based on fundamental democratic principles and at shrinking civil society space; is of the opinion that synergy between the Commission, the EEAS and Parliament should be strengthened in relation to this matter; welcomes the invaluable assistance provided to civil society organizations worldwide under the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights, which continues to constitute the flagship instrument of the European Union in implementing its external human rights policy; calls for funding to civil society and human rights under the successor global instrument to be further enhanced;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 a (new)

17a. Recalls that criterion two of Common Position 944/2008/CFSP obliges EU Member States to examine each arms export licence against the country of destination’s respect for human rights; deplores the numerous cases of non- respect by EU Member States of this criterion; calls for a reform of the assessment process of arms exports projects, notably by the introduction of a risk assessment based on the overall situation in the country, therefore introducing the precautionary principle; also recommends to initiate discussions on the extension of criterion two to include democratic governance indicators, that could help establish further safeguards against unintended negative consequences of arms exports; insists on the need for full transparency and regular reporting by EU Member States on their arms transfers;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18

18. Welcomes the EU’s efforts to promote the universality of the Rome Statute in 2018, during which the 20th anniversary of its adoption was celebrated, and reaffirms its unwavering support of the International Criminal Court; calls on the Commission and the EEAS to explore ways and present new tools to help the victims of violations of international human rights law and of international humanitarian law to access international justice and obtain remedy and reparation, including through building the capacity of Member States but also third countries to apply the principle of universal jurisdiction in their domestic legal systems;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19

19. Welcomes the initial discussions within the Council regarding the establishment of an EU human rights sanctions mechanism~~, the so-called ‘Magnitsky List’,~~ allowing for targeted sanctions against individuals complicit in serious human rights violations; urges, however, the Council to swiftly adopt the necessary legislation, and points out that Parliament has expressed its backing of the mechanism already in March 2019;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19 a (new)

19a. Insists on the importance of ensuring coherence of EU policy towards situations of occupation or annexation of territory; recalls that international humanitarian law should guide EU policy towards all such situations, including in cases of protracted occupation such as in Palestine, Western Sahara, Northern Cyprus and the multiple frozen conflicts in the Eastern Partnership countries;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20

20. Stresses the invaluable and essential role that HRDs play at the risk of their lives; denounces the sharp increase in the targeting of environmental land defenders by companies and state actors; recommends strengthening cooperation between the EU institutions and the Member States, enabling them to provide continuous support to HRDs; values the ‘ProtectDefenders.eu’ mechanism established to protect HRDs at grave risk; and calls for its strengthening; underlines the need for a strategic, visible, and impact-oriented EU approach to protect human rights defenders; calls on the Council to issue annual Foreign Affairs Council Conclusions on EU action to promote and protect HRDs in the EU’s foreign policy, calls on the Council and the Commission to establish a specific coordinated procedure for awarding visas to HRDs; calls on the Commission to make full use of the financial capacity of the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR) to support HRDs and insists that the EU Delegations and Member States make full use and increase their funding and capacity for emergency protection and support for HRDs at risk;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 a (new)

20a. Notes that women’s rights organisations and defenders are specifically targeted and suffer particularly from the shrinking civic space; stresses the need for the EU to politically support, increasingly protect and raise financial allocations for independent civil society organisations that promote the rights of women and girls in all areas; urges the EU and EU Member States to ensure the protection of women human rights defenders (WHRDs) and take into account the specific protection needs they have;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22

22. Calls for new EU initiatives to prevent and combat child abuse in the world, to rehabilitate conflict-affected children and to provide them with a sheltered environment in which care and education are fundamental; calls for the EU to initiate an international movement to advocate the rights of the child, inter alia by organising an international conference on the protection of children in fragile environments; calls on the USA, as the only remaining country not to have ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, to do so as a matter of urgency;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23 a (new)

23a. Reiterates its condemnation of the continuing human rights violations committed against people suffering from caste hierarchies and caste-based discrimination, including the denial of equality and of access to the legal system and to employment, and the continued segregation and caste-induced barriers to the achievement of basic human rights and development; is deeply concerned by the alarming rate of caste-based violent attacks on Dalits and of institutionalised discrimination with impunity; reiterates its call for an EU policy development on caste discrimination, and calls on the EU to use every opportunity in its trade, development and foreign policy to publicly and privately address the EU’s grave concern over caste discrimination and to actively support applications for UN consultative status submitted by NGOs, such as the International Dalit Solidarity Network, focusing on caste-based discrimination and other forms of discrimination based on work and decent; reiterates its call on the EU and its Member States to intensify efforts and support initiatives at the UN and delegation levels to eliminate caste discrimination: Initiatives should include promotion of specific indicators, disaggregated data and special measures to tackle caste in the implementation and monitoring of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, observance of the new UN Guidance tool on descent-based discrimination and support to states;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23 b (new)

23b. Is deeply concerned that Indigenous Peoples face widespread and systematic discrimination and persecution worldwide, including persecution, arbitrary arrests and killings of human rights defenders, forced displacement, land-grabbing and corporate violations; notes that most Indigenous Peoples live below the poverty threshold and have little or no access to political representation and decision-making;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25

25. Reaffirms that the activities of all companies, whether operating domestically or across borders, must be in full compliance with international human rights standards; stresses the need to establish a binding EU mechanism to ensure compliance by those companies and establish an instrument to regulate, in international human rights law, the activities of transnational corporations and other companies; ~~reminds all countries to~~in this respect, calls, once again, on the EU and its Member States to participate constructively in the work of the UN Intergovernmental Working Group on Transnational Corporations and Other Business Enterprises; stresses the critical importance for all countries, including EU Member States, to fully implement the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights ~~(UNGPs), and~~, particularly with respect to the third pillar on access to remedy; calls on those EU Member States that have not yet adopted National Action Plans on Business Rights to do so as early as possible; calls on the Commission to establish an inter- institutional task force on business and human rights and to explore an EU-level duty of care initiative;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25 a (new)

25a. Calls on the Commission to establish, in cooperation with the EEAS, a framework for annual reporting by the European Investment Bank (EIB) on its operations outside of the EU with regard to compliance with the general principles guiding the Union’s external action as referred to in Article 21 TEU and the EU Strategic Framework and Action Plan for Human Rights and Democracy; urges the Commission to ensure that the projects supported by the EIB are in line with EU policy and commitments on human rights and that there are accountability mechanisms for individuals to raise violations related to the activities of the EIB; calls on the EIB to further develop its policy on social standards into a human rights policy in the area of banking; calls for the inclusion of human rights benchmarks in its project evaluations;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26 a (new)

26a. Welcomes the establishment of the Independent Canadian Ombudsman for Responsible Entreprise, with a mandate to investigate allegations of human rights abuses linked to Canadian corporate activity abroad; calls for the EU and its Member States to consider emulating this encouraging initiative;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27

27. Stresses the importance of elaborating an EU strategy to put new technologies, such as artificial intelligence, at the service of the people, and to address the potential threat of new technologies to human rights, including mass surveillance, ~~fake news,~~ disinformation and the abusive use of artificial intelligence, further stresses the specific threat that these technologies pose for human rights defenders in controlling, restricting and undermining their activities, and to strike the right balance between human rights and the right to privacy in particular and other legitimate considerations, such as security or fighting crime, terrorism and extremism; calls on the EU and Member States to ensure full due human rights diligence and proper vetting of exports of European surveillance technology and technical assistance; calls on the EU and Member States to engage with third country governments to end repressive cybersecurity and counter-terrorism legislation practices and legislation;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27 a (new)

27a. Recalls its resolution of 27 February 2014 on the use of armed drones; expresses its grave concern over the use of armed drones outside the international legal framework; calls on the EU to urgently develop a legally binding framework for the use of armed drones to ensure that the Member States, in conformity with their legal obligations, do not perpetrate unlawful targeted killings or facilitate such killings by other states; calls further on the Commission to keep Parliament properly informed about the use of EU funds for all research and development projects associated with the construction of drones; calls for human rights impact assessments in respect of further drone development projects; urges the VP/HR to ban the development, production and use of fully autonomous weapons, which enable strikes to be carried out without human intervention;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28

28. Stresses the urgent need to tackle the ~~root causes of~~drivers of forced migration ~~flows~~ such as wars, conflicts, persecution, ~~networks of illegal migration,~~ trafficking, smuggling and climate change; calls for ~~the external dimension of the refugee crisis to be addressed, including by~~ finding sustainable solutions to conflicts through building cooperation and partnerships with the third countries concerned; believes that compliance with international refugee and human rights law is an essential building block for cooperation with third countries; insists that the implementation of the Global Compacts on migration and refugees must therefore go hand in hand with the implementation of the UN’s 2030 Agenda as set out in the Strategic Development Goals, as well as with increased investment in developing countries; calls on the Council and the Commission to establish a specific coordinated procedure for awarding humanitarian visas to asylum seekers;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28 a (new)

28a. Reiterates its call on the EU to ensure that all migration cooperation and readmission agreements with non-EU states strictly comply with international human rights, refugee and maritime law, particularly with the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees; insists on the need to integrate pre-assessment as well as monitoring mechanisms to evaluate the human rights impact of cooperation on migration with third countries; in this context, calls on the EU to increase transparency and ensure parliamentary scrutiny and democratic oversight over these agreements; emphasises the need to delink development cooperation from cooperation on readmission or migration management; insists that human rights need to be mainstreamed and monitored in all the activities carried out by Frontex and EASO;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30

30. Reiterates its positive view of the EU’s continued support for electoral processes and its provision of electoral assistance and support to domestic observers; ~~welcomes and fully supports, in this context, the work of the European Parliament’s Democracy Support and Election Coordination Group;~~ recalls the importance of proper follow-up to the reports and recommendations of the election observation missions as a way of enhancing their impact and strengthening the EU’s support for democratic standards in the countries concerned;

2019/10/28
Committee: AFET