29 Amendments of Antoni COMÍN I OLIVERES related to 2020/2118(INI)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 a (new)
Citation 5 a (new)
- having regard to the statement of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees of 7 October 2020 to the 71th session of the Executive Committee of the High Commissioner’s Programme,
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 6 a (new)
Citation 6 a (new)
- having regard to the United Nations Secretary General's Brief of May 2020 on the impact of COVID-19 on older persons,
Amendment 5 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 15 a (new)
Citation 15 a (new)
- having regard to the proposal submitted by India and South Africa before the World Trade Organization (WTO) on 2 October 2020 under Article IX:3 and IX:4 of the WTO Agreement asking for a temporary waiver of patent obligations under the TRIPS Agreement for COVID-19 vaccines,
Amendment 28 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas measures to control COVID-19 outbreaks are affecting global food supply chains and are threatening food security in many developing countries;
Amendment 45 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C a (new)
Recital C a (new)
Ca. whereas lower income countries lose more than half what they spend on public health every year to tax havens; whereas tax evasion has especially deprived developing countries from resources to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic;
Amendment 74 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E a (new)
Recital E a (new)
Ea. whereas the COVID-19 pandemic has not put on hold most armed conflicts in the world; whereas populations living in conflict zones and refugees have more difficulties to access COVID-19 treatment and their food insecurity is increasing;
Amendment 78 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E b (new)
Recital E b (new)
Eb. whereas, at the height of the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, 168 countries fully or partially closed their borders, with around 90 making no exception for those seeking asylum; whereas some countries have pushed asylum seekers, including children, back to their countries of origin;
Amendment 82 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E c (new)
Recital E c (new)
Ec. whereas strict implementation of intellectual property rights in the framework of the COVID-19 pandemic could severely hinder manufacturing and supply of medical equipment and vaccines to developing countries;
Amendment 83 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E d (new)
Recital E d (new)
Ed. whereas European pharmaceutical industries did not complete their research on coronavirus diseases SARS (2003) and MERS (2012) due to lack of potential economic profitability; whereas the completion of the research on such diseases would have provided knowledge likely to enable faster development of vaccines against COVID-19; whereas the European pharmaceutical industry has received between EUR 200 million and EUR 1.1 billion from the public sector, especially from the Commission;
Amendment 86 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the EU’s global response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which demonstrates its ambition to lead and show solidarity with all partner countries; points out, however, that current funds are essentially reallocated from other budget lines and that the challenge of aid front-loading has to be tackled; calls, therefore, for substantial new funds to be mobilised to assist developing countries worldwide in fighting the direct and indirect consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic; stresses that making safe vaccines available globally in a fast and affordable manner must be one of the first steps; considers that patent rights should not prevent the availability of vaccines against COVID-19 in developing countries, especially when the concerned laboratories have received massive public funding without which the research to produce a vaccine in such a short timeframe could have never been carried out; is worried that compulsory licensing foreseen in the Trade Related Aspects of the Intellectual Property (TRIPS) agreement might not suffice to make vaccines and medical products available in a number of developing countries, since compensation is still to be paid to the companies owning the patents; deems necessary that the EU reconsiders its position and supports the proposal of India and South Africa for a temporary waiver of Sections 1, 4, 5 and 7 of Part II of the TRIPS Agreement in order to ensure that life-saving medical products, including vaccines, are effectively available and affordable in all developing countries in the shortest term possible;
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Insists that the momentum gained from the common Team Europe approach in terms of joint analysis, joint programming and joint implementation must translate into a new standard for cooperation in the fields of humanitarian aid and development policy, both in law and in practice; considers that the EU should promote that such increased coordination be attained not only between Member States, but also with non-EU donor countries in view of maximizing the efficacy and efficiency of international cooperation and humanitarian aid;
Amendment 108 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Is deeply concerned about the underfunding of the EU humanitarian aid budget, given the additional humanitarian needs caused by the pandemic and the devastating impacts that such underfunding could have on the provision of critical basic needs for millions of people in the midst of the pandemic, such as food, water, sanitation or health services; calls for a clear distribution of the Solidarity and Emergency Aid Reserve (SEAR) envelope, which should aim to provide balanced coverage of its obligations as follows: neither internal nor external operations may be allocated more than 60 % of the annual amount of the reserve; on 1 October of each year, at least one quarter of the annual amount for ‘year n' must remain available to cover needs arising until the end of that year; as of 1 October, the remaining funds may be mobilised to cover needs arising until the end of that year;
Amendment 118 #
4. Underlines that pastoral farming is an ecologically sound, local method of food production and is therefore part of a sustainable food system; considers it essential to support pastoralists by ensuring safe access to local markets during the pandemic in order to make sure that they are able to continue to provide protein-rich food to the local population, that their herds have access to water and grazing land and that mobile community one-health teams monitor the situation and carry out interventions in individual cases but also, where necessary, with a view to maintaining public health; underlines the need to encourage partner countries to ensure that border closures and trade restrictions do not prevent pastoralists from moving their livestock, graze their animals or sell them; calls for cash transfers and food aid for pastoralists, as well as feed aid for herds, as part of livelihood support in humanitarian aid, when this is needed;
Amendment 129 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Emphasises the need to support the actions of the FAO and the WFP aimed at mitigating hunger and loss of livelihood and building up resilient food systems, such as those to set up a global data facility for the provision of swift information on humanitarian needs, to provide food production assistance and access to diverse, balanced and nutritious food, to organise cash transfers and in-kind food distribution, to stabilise food systems, and to ensure the functioning of local food markets, value chains and systems while focusing on smallholder farmers by implementing sanitary measures in order to prevent the transmission of COVID-19; points out that special measures have to be foreseen in order to ensure that food reaches people living in areas facing special difficulties with regard to food security, such as conflict-affected states or countries that suffer most from climate change;
Amendment 157 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Underlines that global extreme poverty is expected to rise dramatically in 2020 for the first time in over 20 years, with the COVID-19 pandemic compounding the forces of conflict and climate change and having a particularly hard impact on informal and migrant workers (who represent one quarter of the global workforce), the tourism sector and Latin American and Caribbean economies; highlights, against the backdrop of this extreme crisis, the importance of universal social protection; asks the Commission to work out strategies with partner countries strategies for the economic recovery and job creation and for improving social security systemsactively supporting partner countries to establish social security systems through the provision of economic resources and technical assistance;
Amendment 182 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. Regrets that the pandemic has created an important number of difficulties and restrictions for refugee protection in several countries on the grounds of public health; affirms that protecting the populations against the Covid-19 pandemic and maintaining fair and efficient asylum procedures is compatible; stresses that the EU must promote both within and outside its borders the need to reinstate a fully functioning asylum system and grant access to its territory for all asylum seekers, in accordance with the Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees;
Amendment 194 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Reminds that the strengthening of health systems does not have to exclusively take into account the epidemiologic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on partner countries, but should also consider factors such as the need for managing increased malnutrition caused by the disruptions of food supply chains or the psychological impact of the mitigation measures of Covid-19 outbreaks;
Amendment 199 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Stresses the need to catch up on routine immunisation programmes as soon as possible and to provide adequate funding for initiatives such as Gavi, the vaccine Alliance, and CEPI, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations; calls on the Commission to ensure that the EU global response to the COVID-19 pandemic does not undermine EU funding for other vital health programmes, including the Minimum Initial Services Package for sexual and reproductive health and programmes targeting the health of women and pregnant women; points out that reallocation of resources away from sexual and reproductive health services in developing countries can severely increase maternal mortality, early pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases; urges all countries and the Commission to continue to provide services related to sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) as well as routine immunisation services, while ensuring the safety of communities and health workers;
Amendment 214 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Supports the important work of the WHO and points out its central role as the leading and coordinating authority on the COVID-19 response, while recognising the need for its reform after the acute crisis has been managed in order to strengthen its capacity to prevent threats to global health that might arise in the future and establish mechanisms through which it can increase its responsibility independently of the political interference of each of its members;
Amendment 236 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11a. Highlights that restrictions against fundamental freedoms to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic have especially affected the human rights of older people in developing countries by aggravating their social exclusion due to movement limitation measures that prevent them from relying on their traditional sources of income, or by impacting their mental health and well-being due to forced isolation; calls on the EU to take into account the situation of older persons in its response to the COVID-19 crisis in developing countries, especially by planning logistic measures which ensure that older persons can receive essential goods, basic services and psychological support;
Amendment 239 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Is concerned that, since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, many governments have used the emergency to justify placing restrictions on democratic processes and the civil space and to oppress minorities; draws attention to the growing negative impact of COVID-19 on all human rights, democracy and the rule of law and calls, therefore, for the strengthening of aid, political dialogue and support for institution-building in all these fields, with particular attention to human rights d; points out that human rights defenders can be even more exposed to attacks during the mobility restrictions imposed to fight the COVID-19 pandemic and stresses the importance that EU delegations especially oversee the action of authorities of non-EU countries with regard to the protection of threatened human rights defenders by keeping contact with them, evaluating potential dangers to their integrity, visiting detained activists, monitoring their trials and advocating for their protection, in accordance with the EU Guidelines for Human Rights Defenders;
Amendment 249 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12a. Calls on the EU Delegations to actively monitor all violations of civil, political and human rights in partner countries and engage in a positive dialogue with local authorities in order to invite them to not impose restrictions on fundamental freedoms that are not justified according to the principles of necessity and proportionality to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic;
Amendment 254 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Welcomes the temporary suspension of debt service payments for the poorest countries announced by the G20 and joins the call on private creditors to follow suit; underlines that the magnitude of the economic and social crisis in the developing world requires more profound and far-reaching measures and encourages the Commission to support international efforts in this regard; considers that interest saved thanks to this suspension should instead be invested in the health sector, which is often severely underfunded in developing countries; highlights that definitive debt cancellations should be considered in some cases, especially in countries holding debts contracted by previous non- democratic regimes or having no financial capacity at all to reimburse their overall debt; considers that debt cancellations should be subject to conditions agreed within multilateral procedures that include the participation of the civil society from both creditor and debtor countries in order to establish country-owned results frameworks that effectively enable partner countries to overcome the consequences of the pandemic and achieve the SDG;
Amendment 260 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Points out that the budgets of many developing countries were already out of balance before the crisis and that too little funding was allocated to crisis prevention, health systems and social protection; calls on the Commission to take new initiatives to tackle the problems of illicit financial flows, tax evasion and tax fraud in order to improve the tax bases of developing countries; calls, furthermore, for budget support to be directed towards basic services and resilienceonsiders that Member States should take responsibility by actively promoting more international tax coordination for avoiding tax evasion and flight of capital; calls, furthermore, for budget support to be directed towards basic services and resilience; stresses that it is essential to prioritize grants over loans in order to avoid increasing the burden of debt in developing countries, thus enabling them to invest in mitigating the effects of the pandemic and achieving the SDG;
Amendment 271 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Underlines the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic has led to unprecedented numbers of pupils missing out on months of schooling, constituting a major set-back to efforts in the education sector especially with regard to girls’ and women’s education; reminds that school closures can severely worsen undernutrition since millions of children are dependent on school meals to be properly fed, especially in developing countries; urges governments to use school closures only as a measure of last resort in the fight against the pandemic; presses for education to be kept as a spending priority in EU development policy and for due consideration to be given to the social function of schools; urges governments, in this context, to prioritise support for the most marginalised children and their families; recommends that EU countries share their approaches to keeping up teaching even in times of crisis and asks the EU and its Member States to exploit the potential of remote and digital learning in their international support programmes, while supporting actions to guarantee internet access among all local populations in order to ensure that no one is left behind with regard to online education;
Amendment 291 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Underlines the importance of assisting and exchanging best practice with partner countries, including capacity- building of local and regional administrations, in identifying vulnerabilities, building up prevention and crisis response mechanisms as well as protecting critical infrastructure in order better to deal with future systemic shocks of all kinds;
Amendment 302 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Points out that pandemics are often of zoonotic origin; underlines, therefore, the need to support education programmes regarding the dangers of hunting and trading in wild animals as well as the stricter protection of ecosystems and habitats; considers that more EU funds need to be granted to anticipatory research on the links between human health, animal health and ecosystems in order to increase the readiness to respond to future health crises created by virus mutations of zoonotic origin;
Amendment 306 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 a (new)
Paragraph 17 a (new)
17a. Is of the opinion that resilience to future public health crises must also be built upon research on diseases that cause deadly outbreaks in developing countries on a regular basis; regrets that currently there is not enough research to develop vaccines that effectively prevent diseases that are recurrent in developing countries, such as malaria or zika; calls on the EU and Member States to fund more research in view of developing vaccines that prevent future outbreaks of such diseases;
Amendment 326 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19 a (new)
Paragraph 19 a (new)
19a. Regrets that only three Member States meet the requirement to dedicate 0.7% of GNI to international aid in 2019; calls on all Member States to increase their national budgets dedicated to development cooperation and humanitarian aid in order to attain a proper humanitarian-development nexus and to effectively tackle the additional needs caused by the COVID-19 pandemic;