Activities of Cyrus ENGERER related to 2023/2113(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Report on the Commission’s 2023 Rule of Law report (debate)
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT report on the Commission’s 2023 Rule of Law report
Amendments (15)
Amendment 71 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Notes that the Commission finds that whereas certain Member States, including Finland, Austria, Slovenia, Cyprus, Sweden and Hungary, have taken or announced initiatives to improve judicial appointment processes and high courts’ functioning, challenges persist in appointing high-level judges in Malta, Greece, Lithuania, Latvia, and Ireland; highlights that serious concerns persist in Poland regarding previously appointed Supreme Court judges, including its First President, and regarding the continuous non-implementation of a CJEU preliminary ruling on a judicial appointment to the Chamber of Extraordinary Control; notes that the Commission finds that in Slovakia the crime of abuse of law introduced for judges as regards their judicial decisions continues to raise concerns, as it has a negative psychological impact on judges and is burdensome for the investigatory authorities; recognises that the Commission finds that some progress can be seen in the implementation of the recommendation made in the 2022 Rule of Law Report on the efficiency of the justice system, particularly in Malta and Spain
Amendment 74 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Calls for legislation that would require justices in all Member States to adopt a Code of Conduct, create independent mechanisms to investigate alleged violations of the code of conduct and other laws, improve disclosure and transparency in conflicts of interest and in gifts received by the judiciary, and require justices to explain their recusal decisions publically;
Amendment 91 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Condemns the fact that Malta continues to operate its Citizenship by Investment (CBI) scheme, which is a major risk for corruption and other crimes, especially in light of the steps taken by several other Member States to ensure that investor citizenship schemes are abolished; reaffirms its position thatcalls on the Commission shouldto use its prerogative to propose legislation and initiate an EU legislative ban on all CBI Schemes in the EU; Awaits in this regard the judgement of the CJEU in the case of European Commission v Republic of Malta brought on 21 March 2023;
Amendment 137 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 a (new)
Paragraph 15 a (new)
15a. Notes the European Parliament’s vote on the Media Freedom Act and anti- SLAPP legislation; calls upon the institutions to conclude negotiations and adopt the most ambitious of laws in this regard;
Amendment 143 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Calls for the EU institutions to reach a swift agreement on an ambitious anti-SLAPP directive; calls on the Commission to explore the possibility of further legislation to cover all SLAPP cases; calls on the Member States to implement the Commission Recommendation on protecting journalists and human rights defenders who engage in public participation from manifestly unfounded or abusive court proceedings; remarks that his can be done by removing prison sentences for defamation cases, decriminalising defamation and favouring civil or administrative procedures instead;
Amendment 157 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23 a (new)
Paragraph 23 a (new)
23a. Calls on Member States to regulate lobbying by introduce national mandatory transparency registers for all politicians, government officials and members of authorities and agencies; calls on politicians, government officials and members of authorities and agencies to make a list of all their meetings public;
Amendment 170 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 a (new)
Paragraph 24 a (new)
24a. Urges the Commission to establish a strategy which provides for minimum standards for the protection of Civil Society OrganisationsCSOs in all Member States in order to promote a regulatory and political environment free from threats and attacks, and to provide them with a sustainable and non-discriminatory access to resources whilst supporting and encouraging their engagement in civil dialogue and participation in policy making;
Amendment 173 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 b (new)
Paragraph 24 b (new)
24b. Deplores that the situation of human rights defenders in the EU continued to increasingly deteriorate in recent years; urges the Commission and the Member States to take the necessary measures to ensure that human rights defenders are able to work free from hindrance and insecurity;
Amendment 191 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27 a (new)
Paragraph 27 a (new)
27a. Deeply regrets that the Bulgarian Supreme Court held earlier this year that legal gender recognition through change of civil status would not be possible in Bulgaria, following a binding interpretative decision of the court that the constitution only recognises biological sex. Regrets that this is in contradiction to ruling from the European Court of human rights such as Y.T. v. Bulgaria brought by a transgender individual who wish to have legal gender recognition through the civil status register, in the European Union. It is a violation of fundamental rights . Expresses disappointment also at the lack of effort and will by the Bulgarian government to come up with a decent plan of action in their communication labelled DH- DD(2023)987, in response to the judgement given by the CJEU on the 9th July 2020 which became final on the 9th October 2020;
Amendment 192 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27 b (new)
Paragraph 27 b (new)
27b. Calls for including the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and sex characteristics in the EU’s anti-discrimination legal framework, based on a broad interpretation of the grounds of sexual orientation and sex and the principle of equality between women and men set forth in the Treaties. Notes that this will ensure legal certainty and comprehensiveness of the protection of all citizens of our Union, as this Parliament has already agreed in the Equality Bodies directive;
Amendment 193 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27 c (new)
Paragraph 27 c (new)
27c. Calls for a European ban on ‘conversion practices’; calls for a ban on genital mutilation that also harm intersex people (IGM); calls for a ban on forced abortions and forced sterilisations, that constitute a form of gender-based violence and particularly harm people with disabilities; underlines the importance of respecting self-determination and autonomy and of promoting LGBTIQ+ people’s physical and mental health. Underlines that the position of the Parliament on the proposal for a directive on combatting violence against women and domestic violence includes adding FGM, IGM and forced sterilisation to the so-called Eurocrimes;
Amendment 199 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28 a (new)
Paragraph 28 a (new)
28a. Strongly deplores the numerous deaths of refugees and migrants at sea who are often victims of human trafficking and who have to face inhumane and degrading treatment without any consideration for their safety or fundamental rights;
Amendment 202 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28 b (new)
Paragraph 28 b (new)
28b. Reminds Member States of their obligation under the international law of the sea to assist persons in distress and calls urgently for permanent coordinated search and rescue operations and for Member States to take every possible action to save the life of people at risk at sea;
Amendment 210 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 31 a (new)
Paragraph 31 a (new)
31a. Notes that national electoral laws are not the competence of the Union; reiterates however its belief and the Union’s values that all elected bodies in the European Union should be representative of the diverse voices within the electorate; expresses its deep concern at some electoral systems across the Union that quash pluralism and hinder proportionality; notes that in some Member States’ constituencies, a political party would need at least 17% of total votes to represent citizens; encourages national electoral reforms in cases where large parts of the population remain unrepresented;
Amendment 254 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 40
Paragraph 40
40. Affirms that the annual rule of law report is not an end in itself, as monitoring the situation is not enough but should rather lead to specific enforcement action on the identified shortcomings; calls therefore on the Commission to ensure that this rule of law report is indeed part and parcel of an entire process within the ambit of the Rule of Law Mechanism as a whole, and to ensure full use of the complete rule of law toolkit at its disposal, including Article 7 of the Treaty of the European Union in cases where the rule of law report keeps finding continuous breaches year after year in certain Member States;