Activities of Csaba SÓGOR related to 2017/2125(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Situation of fundamental rights in the EU in 2016 (debate)
Amendments (29)
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 a (new)
Citation 5 a (new)
- having regard to the Copenhagen criteria, and the body of Union rules that a candidate country must fulfil if it wishes to join the Union (the acquis),
Amendment 34 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 b (new)
Citation 5 b (new)
- having regard to the Council of Europe’s Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities and the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages,
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 c (new)
Citation 5 c (new)
- having regard to the judgment of 3 February 2017 in Case T-646/13 T-646/13 - Minority SafePack - one million signatures for diversity in Europe v Commission
Amendment 37 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 d (new)
Citation 5 d (new)
- having regard to its resolution of 8 June 2005 on the protection of minorities and anti-discrimination policies in an enlarged Europe,
Amendment 38 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 e (new)
Citation 5 e (new)
- having regard to its resolution of 11 September 2013 on endangered European languages and linguistic diversity in the European Union,
Amendment 39 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 f (new)
Citation 5 f (new)
- having regard to the study commissioned by the Policy Department C of the European Parliament at the request of the LIBE committee in 2016 entitled “Towards a Comprehensive EU Protection System for Minorities”
Amendment 40 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 g (new)
Citation 5 g (new)
- having regard to the study commissioned by the Policy Department C of the European Parliament at the request of the PETI committee in 2017 entitled “Discrimination(s) as emerging from petitions received”,
Amendment 92 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C a (new)
Recital C a (new)
Ca. whereas approximately8 % of EU citizens belong to a national minority and approximately 10 % speak a regional or minority language; whereas their language and culture contribute to the richness of Europe and represent an inalienable part of the cultural and linguistic diversity the Union is founded on;
Amendment 96 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C b (new)
Recital C b (new)
Cb. whereas , while protection of minorities is an essential part of the Copenhagen criteria, there are no common EU standards for minority protection for EU Member States; whereas experience shows that, pre- accession countries are more willing to respect the Copenhagen criteria on democracy, rule of law and fundamental rights and to advance the situation of minorities; whereas at present there is no adequate framework to guarantee the fulfilment of these criteria after accession and thus to protect EU citizens from the effects breaches of the Copenhagen criteria would entail;
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C c (new)
Recital C c (new)
Cc. whereas the right to equal treatment is one of the founding principles of the European Union; whereas equal treatment is a basic right, not a privilege, of all citizens; whereas , when laying down the citizenship of the Union, article 9 of the TEU expressly mentions that the Union shall observe the principle of equality of its citizens, who shall receive equal attention from its institutions, bodies, offices and agencies;
Amendment 98 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C d (new)
Recital C d (new)
Cd. whereas at present, except for infringement procedures, the EU has only tools of limited efficacy to respond to systematic and institutional manifestations of discrimination, racism and xenophobia against minorities across EU Member States; whereas infringement proceedings do not cover threats falling outside the scope of EU secondary law;
Amendment 99 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C e (new)
Recital C e (new)
Ce. whereas independent monitoring show worrying violations by Member States of minority protection principles and standards;
Amendment 100 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C f (new)
Recital C f (new)
Cf. whereas there is a difference between the protection of minorities and anti-discrimination policies; whereas the protection of autochthonous national or linguistic minorities cannot be guaranteed through the existing EU tools for combating xenophobia and discrimination, but only by adopting comprehensive policy standards addressing all aspects of their minority status and by guaranteeing and protecting their cultural and linguistic rights;
Amendment 101 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C g (new)
Recital C g (new)
Cg. whereas despite explicit references in the treaties to the EU being a community of values in which the rights of minorities are respected and in which cultural and linguistic diversity is protected and enhanced there still is no secondary EU legal framework to protect and guarantee the rights of national minorities living in the European Union; whereas there are very high discrepancies across member states in the recognition of such minorities and the respect of their rights;
Amendment 102 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C h (new)
Recital C h (new)
Ch. whereas respect for the rule of law is a prerequisite for the protection of fundamental rights and vice-versa; whereas Article 2 TEU and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights expressly mention the rights of persons belonging to minorities and these rights deserve the same treatment as the other values enshrined in the Treaties;
Amendment 103 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C i (new)
Recital C i (new)
Ci. whereas so far the EU has not been able to sanction or prevent discriminative practices having a negative impact on the languages and cultures of persons belonging to autochthonous minorities; whereas people belonging to such groups across the EU still face institutionalized discrimination and encounter obstacles in the enforcement of their basic rights, such as the right to use their own language and to have access to justice, public services, education, health and social services;
Amendment 104 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C j (new)
Recital C j (new)
Cj. whereas the 2005 EP resolution on the protection of minorities and anti- discrimination policies in an enlarged Europe already called for greater attention to minority issues at the EU level; whereas in spite of numerous calls on the Commission, no real step has been taken in order to ensure an effective protection of minorities;
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C k (new)
Recital C k (new)
Ck. Whereas in its resolution of 11 September 2013 on endangered European languages and linguistic diversity in the Union, the European Parliament called on the Commission to pay attention to the fact that with their policies, some Member States and regions are endangering the survival of languages inside their borders;
Amendment 258 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 1 a (new)
Subheading 1 a (new)
Addressing the gap in EU legislation on the protection of autochthonous national and linguistic minorities
Amendment 260 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Highlights that national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities, who have been living together with or alongside majority cultures for centuries in Europe, still do not enjoy in the EU the same rights and freedoms as the majority populations, they habitually face institutionalized discrimination and are the subject of derogatory stereotypes and even their acquired rights are often curtailed or selectively applied, dependent on the whims of the political authorities of the moment;
Amendment 262 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 b (new)
Paragraph 6 b (new)
6b. Points out the inconsistency of the EU’s attitude toward minorities - while protection of minorities is an essential part of the Copenhagen criteria, there are still no common EU standards for minority rights in the EU, which still lacks effective tools to monitor and enforce the respect of minority rights; considers that not giving effect to the treaty provisions on the protection of minorities by adopting a legal framework to protect and guarantee their rights is all the more conspicuous considering that this is an area where the EU is very active in relation to third countries;
Amendment 263 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 c (new)
Paragraph 6 c (new)
6c. Points out that in the field of minority protection the EU has either taken for granted the assumption that its Member States comply with minority rights or has relied on external monitoring instruments, such as those of the UN, CoE and OSCE, which present an uneven coverage regarding geography and scope as well as limitations regarding monitoring and follow-up;
Amendment 264 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 d (new)
Paragraph 6 d (new)
6d. Reminds that the EU has long cultivated a self-image in the world as an area where the rule of law and the respect for all citizens’ fundamental rights are fully respected and a source of aspiration for candidate and other third countries; strongly believes that the EU should be a true trendsetter in matters of rule of law and fundamental rights globally; believes that acting on the treaty provisions on minority protection by building a legally binding common protection framework would not only solve the Copenhagen dilemma with a special regard to the prospect of Western-Balkan enlargement, but would also strengthen its credibility vis-à-vis third countries and its capacity to act in matters of human rights violation across the globe;
Amendment 265 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 e (new)
Paragraph 6 e (new)
6e. Points out that EU citizens belonging to autochthonous national or linguistic minorities expect more to be done on a European level for the protection of their rights, as attested by the large number of petitions submitted to the European Parliament in this regard, as well as by the initiation of the 'Minority Safepack' European Citizens' Initiative, asking the EU to adopt a set of legal acts aimed at improving the protection of persons belonging to national and linguistic minorities and at strengthening cultural and linguistic diversity in the Union; Regrets that the Commission only accepted to register the ECI only when forced by a judgment of the EU Tribunal;
Amendment 266 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 f (new)
Paragraph 6 f (new)
6f. Emphasizes that minority rights are an inalienable part of the principle of rule of law; notes that there is a higher risk of violation of rights of minorities when the rule of law is not respected;
Amendment 267 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 g (new)
Paragraph 6 g (new)
Amendment 268 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 h (new)
Paragraph 6 h (new)
6h. Considers that the Court of Justice of the European Union should play a fundamental role in ensuring the compliance of member States’ compliance with EU-relevant legal standards on minority protection;
Amendment 269 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 i (new)
Paragraph 6 i (new)
6i. Urges the Member States to end linguistically discriminatory practices and take action to lift administrative and financial obstacles that hamper linguistic diversity at national and European level;
Amendment 270 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 j (new)
Paragraph 6 j (new)
6j. Calls on the Commission and Member States to collect reliable and comparable equality data in consultation with minority representatives in order to measure inequalities and discrimination; Calls on the Commission and the FRA to take targeted actions to monitor the situation of autochthonous minorities in the EU;