42 Amendments of Marie-Christine VERGIAT related to 2018/2155(INI)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 1
Citation 1
– having regard to the international legal protection of freedom of religion or beliefthought, conscience and religion, guaranteed by Article 18 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), Article 18 of the 1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the 1981 Declaration on the Elimination of all Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination based on Religion or Belief, Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Articles 10, 21 and 22 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union,
Amendment 3 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 2
Citation 2
– having regard to the United Nations Human Rights Council Comment No 22 of 30 July 1993 on Article 18 of the 1948 UDHR and to its Resolution 16/18 of 12 April 2011 on combating intolerance, negative stereotyping and stigmatisation of, and discrimination, incitement to violence and violence against, persons based on religion or belief, NB: HORIZONTAL AMENDMENT droits de l'Homme ( H upper case - does not apply to English version)
Amendment 5 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 7
Citation 7
– having regard to the EU Guidelines of 24 June 2013 on the promotion and protection of freedom of religion or beliefthought, conscience and religion,
Amendment 6 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8
Citation 8
– having regard to the European Parliament recommendation of 13 June 2013 on the draft EU Gguidelines on the Ppromotion and Pprotection of Ffreedom of Religion or Beliefthought, conscience and religion1, _________________ 1 OJ C 65, 19.2.2016, p. 174.
Amendment 8 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 13
Citation 13
– having regard to the mandate of the Special Envoy on the promotion of freedom of religion or beliefthought, conscience and religion outside the EU,
Amendment 11 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas the right to freedom of religion or belief (FoRB)thought, conscience and religion is a human right inherent to all human beings and a fundamental right of individuals which should be subjected to no kind of discrimination, as enshrined by international and European founding texts, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the European Convention on Human Rights and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union;
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas secularism is a characteristic of certain states and cultures that must be preserved and is defined as the emancipation of society and State from all religious control and vice versa, guaranteeing to all, whether believers, agnostics or atheists, equal freedom of not only conscience but also public expression of belief (especially worship), subject only to public order in a democratic society and respect for the freedom of others.
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
Amendment 28 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas FoRB isall human rights and fundamental freedoms are indivisible, is interdependent on and interrelated to fundamental freedoms , and freedom to manifest one’s religion or belief includes and is dependent on elements of mandy other human rights, and is a cornerstonefundamental freedoms, such as freedom of expression, and freedom of assembly and association and should be considered a basic human right that protects the core of human dignitying one’s fundamental outlook on life;
Amendment 35 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas respect for FoRB directly contributes to democracy, development, the rule of law, peace and stability; whereas violations of FoRB are increasingly widespread, affect people in all parts of the world and may exacerbate intolerance, often constituting early indicators of potential violence and conflicts;
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion directly contributes to democracy, development, the rule of law, peace and stability; whereas violations of FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion are increasingly widespread, affect people in all parts of the world and may exacerbate intolerance, often constituting early indicators of potential violence and conflicts; NB: HORIZONTAL AMENDMENT Etat de droit (E upper case - does not affect English version)
Amendment 42 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas, in pursuit of the objective of advancing FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion through the EU’s foreign policy, the Council adopted in June 2013 the EU Guidelines on the promotion and protection of freedom of freligion or belief,edom of thought, conscience and religion and in May 2016 the Commission appointed the first Special Envoy for the promotion of FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion outside the EU, for a one-year mandate which has since been twice renewed on a yearly basis;
Amendment 44 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G
Recital G
G. whereas the EU has promoted FoRB, at international level and through multilateral fora, in particular by taking the lead on thematic resolutions on FoRB at the UN General Assembly (UNGA) and the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and supporting the mandate of and engaging with the UN Special Rapporteur on FoRB, but also through cooperation with those third countries that have similar FoRB guidelines and special envoys, such as the United Statlike-minded third countries;
Amendment 45 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H
Recital H
H. whereas the promotion of FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion , including through civil society support for the protection of the rights of believers and non-believers, individuals belonging to religious and belief minorities in particular, support for human rights defenders (HRDs) and the fight against discrimination on grounds ofsuch as religion and belief , as well as the promotion of intercultural and interreligious dialogue, is a funding priority under the 2014-2020 European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR); whereas the European Development Fund (EDF) and EU financial instruments such as the Development Cooperation Instrument (DCI), the European Neighbourhood Instrument (ENI), the Instrument contributing to Stability and Peace (IcSP) and the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) have also supported projects that are conducive to improving the environment for FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion ;
Amendment 52 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Stresses that religion or belief is an important undeniable pillar of democracy and human identdignity, greatly impacting individuals and societies, and is therefore a reality that must not be neglected or denied in policies but requires proper recognition and addressing;
Amendment 57 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Considers that secularism, defined as strict separation between religious and political authority, implies rejection of any religious interference in the functioning of public institutions and of any public interference in religious affairs, except to uphold the rules governing the preservation of public safety and order, ensure respect for the freedom of others and guarantee to all, whether believers, agnostics or atheists, the same freedom of conscience;
Amendment 60 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Affirms that the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, commonly referred as freedom of religion or belief (FoRB), as a fundamental human right and a founding value of the EU, has tois a fundamental human right that must be duly protected, promoted and safeguarded by all actors; underscores the duty of states to guarantee FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion in order to preserve peaceful, democratic and pluralistic societies that are respectful of diversity and beliefs;
Amendment 66 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Expresses its deep concern at the fact that recent years have seen a dramatic rise in violations of FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion worldwide, including persecution based on religion or belief; condemns the exploitation of religious issues for political ends in numerous countries in recent years; stresses that these violations are frequently at the root of or increasingly exacerbate wars or other forms of armed conflict, resulting in violations of humanitarian law, including mass murders or genocide; stresses that violations of FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion undermine democracy, impede development, and negatively affect the enjoyment of other fundamental freedoms and rights; emphasises that this obligates the international community, the EU and its Member States to reaffirm their determination and strengthen their actions in promoting FoRB;
Amendment 69 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Reaffirms that freedom of thought, conscience and religion includes the freedom to believe or not to believe, to practice or not the religion of one's choice, to give up or change religion; considers, therefore, that the right to apostasy and the right to espouse atheistic views, must be enhanced unconditionally through interreligious and intercultural dialogue; deplores that certain state actors are taking measures such as the adoption and implementation of blasphemy laws in order to limit freedom of thought, conscience and religion and freedom of expression; requests that further action be taken to protect religious and cultural minorities, non-believers and atheists and calls for support to be given to the victims of blasphemy laws; and calls on the EU and its Member States to step up their engagement in political discussions in a bid to repeal such laws;
Amendment 71 #
4. Stresses that, in accordance with Article 21 TEU, the EU and its Member States have pledged to enhance respect for human rights, as a principle guiding EU foreign policy; strongly welcomes the fact that the 2013 EU Guidelines mainstream this fundamental freedome promotion and protection of FoRB into EU foreign policy and external actions, and in this regard calls for its further strengthening activities aimed at awareness raising and implementation of the Guidelines;
Amendment 76 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Stresses that, in accordance with Article 17 TEU, the EU is committed to maintaining open, transparent and regular dialogues with churches and religious, philosophical and non-confessional organisations; highlights the supporting effect of these dialogues for respect for other human rights, equal rights for women, children’s rights, as well as for democracy, development, the rule of law, good governance, peace and stability, and environmental and labour standards; stresses that such interreligious and intercultural dialogues are often met by greater openness by some EU international partners and create a starting-point for progress in other areas;
Amendment 81 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 1
Subheading 1
EU strategy to promote and protect FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion through international relations and cooperation
Amendment 84 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. CommendNotes the creation of the post of Special Envoy for the promotion of FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion outside the EU in 2016 by the President of the Commission, in response to the resolution of Parliament of 4 February 2016; considers the appointment of the Special Envoy as an important step forward and a clear recognition of FoRB as one of the core parts of the human rights agenda of EU foreign policy and external actions, both bilateral and multilateral, and within development cooperation; praises the Special Envoy for his continuous engagement and cooperation and complementarity of actions with the EU Special Representative for Human Rights on this issue, including the promotion of the EU Guidelines; commends the Commissioner on International Cooperation and Development, together with the Commission’s DG DEVCO, for actively supporting the Special Envoy;
Amendment 90 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Stresses the importance of linking up efforts to promote FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion and intercultural and inter- and intra-religious dialogues with the prevention of violent extremism on a complementary and mutually reinforcing basis, in particular within neighbouring and other countries with which the EU has special relations;
Amendment 102 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Deplores the fact that some countries have, enforce or seek to introduce penal laws providing punishment for blasphemy, conversion or apostasy, including the death penalty; also draws attention to the situation of some other countries facing or being at risk of conflicts of ain which religious dimensionissues are most frequently exploited; calls for the EU to prioritise in its foreign policy efforts towards all the countries concerned with a view to the repeal of such discriminatory laws;
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 2
Subheading 2
Special Envoy foron the promotion of freedom of religion or beliefthought, conscience and religion outside the EU
Amendment 110 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Welcomes the fact that the Special Envoy has developed effective working networks within the Commission, as well as with the Council, and the European Parliament, as well as withnd other stakeholders; deploregrets, however, the fact that the Special Envoy’s mandate was not established and consolidated with sufficientat due to his place within the Commission, and despite attempts to come to informal arrangements, co-operation between the Special Envoy and the EEAS was not optimal and made it difficult for the Special Envoy to draw upon the EEAS’ human and financial resources;
Amendment 114 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
Amendment 148 #
Amendment 155 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Recommends the setting up of a regular advisory working group of Member States’ FoRB institutions and European Parliament representatives together with experts, scholars, and representatives of civil society, including churches and other faith-based organisations, providing advice on FoRB issues to assist the Special Envoy;
Amendment 160 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Recommends that the Special Envoy further develops cooperation with counterparts outside the EU, in particular by working in close cooperation with the UN Special Rapporteur on FoRB, as well as exploring the possibility of EU-UN joint annual reporting on discrimination against religious minorities, also formulating common proposals on how to put an end to such acts;
Amendment 163 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 3
Subheading 3
EU Guidelines on the promotion and protection of freedom of religion or beliefthought, conscience and religion
Amendment 165 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Considers that the EU Guidelines present a clear set of political lines, principles, norms and themes for priority actions, as well as a toolkit for monitoring, assessing, reporting and demarches by any EU representatives in third countries, that constitute a solid strategic approach for the EU and its Member States to exert an efficient role in promoting FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion outside the EU;
Amendment 171 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Urgently calls for the implementation of the EU Guidelines on FoRB to be increased in intensity and effectiveness; notes that further dedicated efforts need to be made by the EU and its Member States to implement more effectively the EU Guidelines and make the EU more influential in advancing FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion worldwide; stresses that understanding how societies may be shaped and influenced, in particular by religions and other cultures and beliefs is instrumental to better comprehending the promotion of FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion in EU foreign policy and international cooperation;
Amendment 177 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Commends, in this respect, the efforts made to date by the EEAS and the Commission to provide training on in religious literachistory to EU officials and national diplomats; stresses, however, the need for broader and more systematic training programmes which would raise awareness of and increase the use of the EU Guidelines among the EU’s and Member States’ officials and diplomats and strengthen cooperation with the Special Envoy; asks for churcheacademics and religious communities and associations from across the spectrum to be involved in this training process, which should also be extended to non-believers; calls on the Commission and the Council to earmark resources for establishing such training programmes;
Amendment 182 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Calls on the Commission and the EEAS to produce EU Annual RepoHR/VP to submit annual progress reports in respect of the implementation of the EU Guidelines, as parts on FoRB in the world, to be communicaf the general human rights report , to be submitted to the European Parliament and the Council; notes that the EU Guidelines provide for an evaluation of their implementation by COHOM after a period of three years, and that no such evaluation has been communicated or made public; calls for the evaluation to be made public without delay; considers that the evaluation should highlight best practices, identify areas for improvement, and provide concrete recommendations on implementation in accordance with a specified timeline and milestones subject to regular annual evaluation; calls for the evaluation to be includsubmitted into the EU Annual Reports on FoRB in the worlduropean Parliament and the Council;
Amendment 189 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21
Paragraph 21
21. Underlines the responsibilities fulfilled by human rights focal points within all EU Delegations and CSDP Missions; calls for the designating of FoRB-specific focal points for freedom of thought, conscience and religion in every EU Delegation and CSDP Mission; calls for more resources to be allocated to EU Delegations and CSDP Missions so as to allow them to carry out their work of promoting FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion, including non-belief;
Amendment 192 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
22. Recalls the importance of human rights country and democracy strategies (HRDCSs), which tailor EU action to each country’s specific situation and needs; calls for adequate attention to be paid to FoRB-issues related issuesto freedom of thought, conscience and religion, with lines for EU action being drawn up so that they can be tackled under the HRDCSs wherever respect for FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion is endangered; reiterates its call for Members of the European Parliament to be given access to the content of HRDCSs;
Amendment 196 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 4
Subheading 4
EU actions on FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion in multilateral fora
Amendment 199 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23
Paragraph 23
23. Welcomes the EU commitment to promoting FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion in multilateral fora, in particular within the UN, the Council of Europe and the OSCE and with the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC); supports, in this respect, EU cooperation with the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or beliefthought, conscience and religion, and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights; recommends continuing the EU practice of taking the lead on resolutions at the UNGA and UNHRC on FoRB and seeking to build alliances and defend common positions with third countries and international organisations; calls on the EEAS and the OIC to consider preparing a joint resolution on FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion within the UN framework;
Amendment 203 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23 a (new)
Paragraph 23 a (new)
23a. Recommends the EU Special Representative for Human Rights and the Special Envoy to pursue their efforts to bring forward the Istanbul Process on promoting tolerance and inclusion, ending violence and discrimination based on religion or belief, following the UN Rabat Plan of Action and to offer hosting the next round of this process; welcomes the ‘Faith for Rights’ initiative of March 2017 of the OHCHR, that led to the adoption by religious leaders and civil society actors of the Beirut Declaration and its eighteen commitments; recommends the EU institutions to support and mobilise all the actors of the ‘Faith for Rights’ initiative to promote the universal and uniform goals of the Declaration, across the world;
Amendment 207 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
24. Expresses its satisfaction that FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion is identified as a priority of the European Instrument of Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR); welcomes the significant increase of EIDHR funding allocated to FoRB-related projectsprojects related to freedom of thought, conscience and religion since the adoption of the EU Guidelines; calls on the Commission and the EEAS to ensure that EU diplomatic work for the promotion of FoRB and EIDHR-funded projects is mutually reinforcing; stresses that FoRBfreedom of thought, conscience and religion can also be supported by other instruments than human rights- oriented funds, among others those dedicated to the conflict prevention dimension or to education and culture; calls on the Commission and the Council to maintain sufficient funding for FoRB-related projectsprojects related to freedom of thought, conscience and religion under the EU external financial instruments, within the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for 2021-2027;