2023/2122(INI) | [ParlTrack]

Draft opinion
Recital A a (new)

A a. whereas Article 11 of the Treaty of the European Union (TEU) requires the EU institutions to maintain an open, transparent and regular dialogue with representative associations and civil society;

Amendment 10 #

Jaak MADISON, Jean-Lin LACAPELLE, Anders VISTISEN, Harald VILIMSKY, Anna BONFRISCO, Susanna CECCARDI, Silvia SARDONE, Marco ZANNI

Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)

1 a. Insists that NGOs cannot fulfil the role of a democratically-elected government and should therefore not unilaterally undertake government functions such as search and rescue operations as this effectively amounts to human smuggling;

Amendment 11 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 2

2. Highlights the serious risks that people working for human rights NGOs face in their activities around the world, including threats against them and their families, intimidation and all forms of harassment, including through online channels and social media, abusive legal proceedings and prosecution, arbitrary detention, violence, torture, disappearances, killings and executions, that can force them to exile;

Amendment 12 #

Karol KARSKI

Draft opinion
Paragraph 3

3. Is alarmed by the fact that some governments, whose aim is to shrink civil society space and silence dissenting voices, have adopted legislation ~~based, inter alia, on security, counter-terrorism and the fight against foreign interference,~~ that imposes discriminatory obligations on human rights NGOs, stigmatises, restricts or bans their activities, including by closing these NGOs, freezing their assets, deterring their donors from contributing funds or depriving them from access to funding;

Amendment 13 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 3

3. Is alarmed by the fact that some governments, whose aim is to shrink civil society space and silence dissenting voices, have adopted legislation based, inter alia, on security, counter-terrorism and the fight against foreign interference, that imposes discriminatory obligations on human rights NGOs and their workers, stigmatises, restricts or bans their activities, including by closing these NGOs, freezing their assets, deterring their donors from contributing funds or depriving them from access to funding;

Amendment 14 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 3

3. Is alarmed by the fact that some governments, whose aim is to shrink civil society space and silence dissenting voices, have adopted legislation based, inter alia, on security, counter-terrorism and the fight against foreign interference, that imposes discriminatory obligations on human rights NGOs, stigmatises, restricts or bans their activities, including by closing these NGOs, freezing their assets, deterring their donors from contributing funds or depriving them from access to funding; expresses its deep concern regarding the fact that similar laws have also been proposed and adopted in some EU Member States;

Amendment 15 #

Draft opinion
Subheading 2

Transparency and accountability of human rights NGOs funded by the EU ~~2021-2027~~ external action budget

Amendment 16 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 4

4. Underlines the ~~need to make more~~importance of ensuring transparent and accessible ~~to the public, the available~~ information on the beneficiaries, including NGOs, of EU external action funds dedicated to human rights and democracy support and to the related EU-funded projects which are implemented worldwide; acknowledges the precarious conditions faced by some human rights defenders and NGOs in non- EU countries; believes, in this regard, that confidentiality and data protection must be ensured in order not to put them at risk;

Amendment 17 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 4

4. Underlines the need to make ~~more~~as transparent and accessible as possible to the public, the available information on the beneficiaries, including NGOs, of EU external action funds dedicated to human rights and democracy support and to the related EU- funded projects which are implemented worldwide; acknowledges the precarious conditions faced by some human rights defenders and NGOs in non- EU countries; believes, in this regard, that confidentiality and data protection must be ensured in order not to put them at risk; calls on the Commission to develop more flexible strategies of supporting civil society actors in repressive environments that have difficulties benefitting from assistance through traditional funding channels due to their legal status, for instance non-registered entities or individuals;

Amendment 18 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 4

4. Underlines the need to make more transparent and accessible to the public, the available information on the beneficiaries~~, including NGOs,~~ of EU external action funds dedicated to human rights and democracy support and to the related EU- funded projects which are implemented worldwide; recognizes that NGOs have championed further transparency at EU level for years; acknowledges the precarious conditions faced by some human rights defenders and NGOs in non-EU countries; believes, in this regard, that confidentiality and data protection must be ensured in order not to put them at risk;

Amendment 19 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 4

4. Underlines the need to make more transparent and accessible to the public, the available information on the beneficiaries, including NGOs, of EU external action funds dedicated to human rights and democracy support and to the related EU- funded projects which are implemented worldwide; acknowledges the ~~precarious~~risky and life threatening conditions faced by some human rights defenders and NGOs in non- EU countries; believes, in this regard, that confidentiality and data protection must be ensured in order not to put them at risk;

Amendment 2 #

Draft opinion
Recital C a (new)

C a. whereas interest representatives, including NGOs, should be subject to scrutiny, due diligence and transparency rules, in particular with regard to financing, with proportional criteria and non-cumbersome procedures, in particular for small NGOs;

Amendment 20 #

David LEGA

Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)

4 a. Stresses that the EU external action funds should not go directly or indirectly to non-governmental entities that do not adhere to European standards and values regarding human rights and democracy;

Amendment 21 #

Nathalie LOISEAU

Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)

4 a. Welcomes the Commission’s new awareness, which has led to the cessation of EU funding and the recovery of funds paid to associations whose actions were contrary to EU values; calls on the Commission to continue its efforts to ensure that EU funds do not finance associations that do not respect EU values;

Amendment 22 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)

4 a. Calls on the EU and its Member States to be fully transparent about the allocation of funds to third countries for cooperation in migration matters, and to ensure that migration-related European funding, training or other forms of support to third countries do not directly or indirectly facilitate the perpetration of human rights violations, nor reinforce and perpetuate impunity for such violations; urges to subject any EU or Member State-funded migratory cooperation project or initiative to thorough and independent ex-ante human rights impact assessments and monitoring throughout the project, and to disclose the results of such assessments and monitoring to the European Parliament;

Amendment 23 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 5

5. Calls on the Commission to improve the clarity and organisation of information and data available in the Financial Transparency System on the beneficiaries of EU-funded projects ~~to be implemented~~, in particular, in the field of human rights and democracy support; stresses that the publication of this information should in no terms put at risks the beneficiaries;

Amendment 24 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 5

5. Calls on the Commission to improve the clarity and organisation of information and data available in the Financial Transparency System on the beneficiaries of EU-funded projects to be implemented~~, in particular, in the field of human rights and democracy support~~;

Amendment 25 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 5

5. Calls on the Commission to improve the clarity and organisation of information and data available in the Financial Transparency System on the beneficiaries of EU-funded projects to be implemented, in ~~particular,~~cluding in the field of human rights and democracy support;

Amendment 26 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 6

6. Recommends that the legal obligations on transparency and financial accountability be applied identically to all human rights NGOs benefiting from EU funding, independently of whether they take on the role of coordinator or member of an EU-funded project consortium;deleted

Amendment 27 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 6

6. Recommends that the legal obligations on transparency and financial accountability be applied identically to all ~~human rights NGOs benefiting from EU funding, independently of whether they take on the role of coordinator or member of an~~interest representatives benefiting from EU- fund~~ed project consortium~~ing;

Amendment 28 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 6

6. Recommends that the legal obligations on transparency and financial accountability be applied ~~identically to all human rights NGOs benefiting from EU funding, independently of whether they take on the role of coordinator or member~~to all NGOs beneficiaries of an EU- fund~~ed project consortium~~ing;

Amendment 29 #

Jaak MADISON, Jean-Lin LACAPELLE, Anders VISTISEN, Harald VILIMSKY, Anna BONFRISCO, Susanna CECCARDI, Silvia SARDONE, Marco ZANNI

Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 a (new)

6 a. Calls for the scope of the anti- money laundering directive to be broadened to also apply to NGOs;

Amendment 3 #

Draft opinion
Recital C b (new)

C b. whereas strengthening the transparency requirements for interest representatives and entities, including NGOs, could serve the purpose of tracing foreign interference; whereas these requirements, however, should not stigmatise legitimate foreign funding;

Amendment 30 #

Anna BONFRISCO, Susanna CECCARDI, Marco ZANNI, Silvia SARDONE, Jean-Lin LACAPELLE, Jaak MADISON, Harald VILIMSKY

Draft opinion
Paragraph 7

7. Points out that human rights NGOs receiving EU funding give visibility to the EU’s support in different ways, and sometimes incompletely, through various communication channels, including official websites; calls for the establishment of harmonised approaches to make EU funding for human rights and democracy support more transparent and visible to the public; calls for ensuring that the EU does not fund NGOs that facilitate illegal migration by sea or by land;

Amendment 31 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 7

7. Points out that ~~human rights~~ NGOs receiving EU funding give visibility to the EU’s support in different ways~~, and sometimes incompletely,~~ through various communication channels, including official websites; calls for the establishment of harmonised approaches to make EU funding ~~for human rights and democracy support more~~ transparent and visible to the public;

Amendment 32 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 7

7. ~~Points out~~Notes that human rights NGOs receiving EU funding give visibility to the EU’s support in different ways, and sometimes incompletely, through various communication channels, including official websites; underlines that sometimes these differences could also depend on the fact that, under certain authoritarian and illiberal regimes, the dissemination of such information may put human rights NGOs at risk; calls for the establishment of harmonised but flexible approaches to make EU funding for human rights and democracy support more ~~transparent and~~ visible to the public, while avoiding putting at risk NGOs that operate in critical local civic space contexts;

Amendment 33 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 7

7. Points out that human rights NGOs receiving EU funding must be transparent about the funding received and give visibility to the EU’s support in different ways, ~~and sometimes incompletely,~~ through various communication channels, including official websites; calls for the establishment of harmonised approaches to make EU funding for human rights and democracy support more transparent and visible to the public;

Amendment 34 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 7

7. Points out that human rights NGOs receiving EU funding give visibility to the EU’s support in different ways, and sometimes incompletely, through various communication channels, including official websites; recognizes that visibility may put the human rights NGOs at risk in some countries with reduced civic spaces; therefore calls for the establishment of harmonised approaches to make EU funding for human rights and democracy support more transparent and visible to the public while always enabling exemptions to such visibility requirements based on local civic space contexts ;

Amendment 35 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 8

8. Stresses that the funding by non- EU countries of EU-based legal entities, including human rights NGOs, while also carrying out lobbying or advocacy activities within the EU and aiming to influence EU foreign policymaking, raises questions as to their objectives; denounces the use of organisations sponsored by non- EU country governments (government- organised NGOs (GONGOs)) to spread disinformation and false narratives related, in particular, to human rights issues; highlights that, in the context of recent corruption allegations against some Members of the European Parliament, an NGO, whose stated purpose was to carry out advocacy activities on human rights, is suspected to have been used as a vector of foreign interference; considers that there is a public interest in knowing the financial sources, including non-EU funding, of the stakeholders active in the fields of lobbying or advocacy, while any measures in this regard need to be proportional, preventing any unintended limitations on fundamental rights;

Amendment 36 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 8

8. SDenounces the use of organisations sponsored by governments of non-EU countries (government- organised NGOs (GONGOs)) to spread disinformation and false narratives related, in particular, to human rights issues; stresses that the funding by non-EU countries of EU-based legal entities, including human rights NGOs, while also carrying out lobbying or advocacy activities within the EU and aiming to influence EU foreign policymaking, raises questions as to their objectives; denounces the use of organisations sponsored by non-EU country governments (government-organised NGOs (GONGOs)) to spread disinformation and false narratives related, in particular, to human rights issuesmay at times expose these NGOs to external influences; believes that transparency requirements should not, however, stigmatise legitimate foreign funding; highlights that, in the context of recent corruption allegations against some Members of the European Parliament, an NGO, not registered in the EU Transparency Register and whose stated purpose was to carry out advocacy activities on human rights, is suspected to have been used as a vector of foreign interference; considers that there is a public interest in knowing the financial sources, including non-EU funding, of ~~the~~all stakeholders active in the fields of lobbying or advocacy;

Amendment 37 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 8

8. Stresses that the funding by non-EU countries of EU-based legal entities, including human rights NGOs, while also carrying out lobbying or advocacy activities within the EU and aiming to influence EU foreign policymaking~~, raises questions as to their objectives; denounces the use of organisations spons~~ may at times expose these NGOs to external influences; denounces the use of government-organised NGOs (GONGOs), think tanks, companies, or other private bodies, financially supported by non-EU country governments ~~(government-organised NGOs (GONGOs))~~, to spread disinformation and false narratives related, in particular, to human rights issues; highlights that, in the context of recent corruption allegations against some Members of the European Parliament, an NGO, which was not registered in the Transparency Register and whose stated purpose was to carry out advocacy activities on human rights, is suspected to have been used as a vector of foreign interference; considers that there is a public interest in knowing the financial sources, including non-EU funding, of all the stakeholders active in the fields of lobbying or advocacy; be they NGOs or private companies and lobby groups, and that similar requirements should apply to both;

Amendment 38 #

Nathalie LOISEAU

Draft opinion
Paragraph 8

8. Stresses that the funding by non-EU countries of EU-based legal entities, including human rights NGOs, while also carrying out lobbying or advocacy activities within the EU and aiming to influence EU foreign policymaking, raises questions as to their objectives; denounces the use of organisations sponsored by non- EU country governments (government- organised NGOs (GONGOs)) to spread disinformation and false narratives related, in particular, to human rights issues; recalls in this respect the findings of its resolution of 1 June 2023 on foreign interference in all democratic processes in the European Union, including disinformation, and of 13 July 2023 on recommendations for reform of the European Parliament’s rules on transparency, integrity, accountability and anti-corruption, highlighting the risks of foreign interference and disinformation stemming from some NGOs funded by non-EU countries; highlights that, in the context of recent corruption allegations against some Members of the European Parliament, an NGO, whose stated purpose was to carry out advocacy activities on human rights, is suspected to have been used as a vector of foreign interference; considers that there is a public interest in knowing the financial sources, including non-EU funding, of the stakeholders active in the fields of lobbying or advocacy;

Amendment 39 #

Karol KARSKI

Draft opinion
Paragraph 8

8. Stresses that the funding by non-EU countries of EU-based legal entities, including human rights NGOs, while also carrying out lobbying or advocacy activities within the EU and aiming to influence EU foreign policymaking, raises questions as to their objectives; denounces the use of organisations sponsored by non- EU country governments (government- organised NGOs (GONGOs)) to spread disinformation and false narratives related, in particular, to human rights issues; highlights that, in the context of recent corruption allegations against some Members of the European Parliament, an NGO, whose stated purpose was to carry out advocacy activities on human rights, is suspected to have been used as a vector of foreign interference; considers that there is a public interest in knowing the financial sources, including non-EU funding, of the stakeholders active in the fields of lobbying or advocacy; calls for a thorough overhaul of the processes leading to monitor the activities of NGOs aiming to influence EU foreign policymaking and detect corruption schemes, especially the activities of GONGOs;

Amendment 4 #

Draft opinion
Recital C a (new)

C a. whereas the Commission has strong mechanisms for the control of NGO expenditure, among the most strict in Europe; whereas the “Qatargate” and “Moroccogate” scandals involved an NGO which was not registered in the Transparency Register;

Amendment 40 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 8

Amendment 41 #

Anna BONFRISCO, Susanna CECCARDI, Marco ZANNI, Silvia SARDONE, Jean-Lin LACAPELLE, Jaak MADISON, Harald VILIMSKY

Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 a (new)

8 a. Calls for a review of the current rules for NGOs, in particular those related to governance, budget, anti money-laundering, foreign influence and persons of significant control, with the aim of increasing their transparency and accountability; calls on the Commission to study if broadening the scope of anti- money laundering rules, particularly by including NGOs, would have prevented these events from taking place;

Amendment 42 #

Jaak MADISON, Jean-Lin LACAPELLE, Anders VISTISEN, Harald VILIMSKY, Anna BONFRISCO, Susanna CECCARDI, Silvia SARDONE, Marco ZANNI

Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 a (new)

8 a. Recalls that the NGO "Fight Impunity" was a central player in the recent Qatargate scandal in the European Parliament;

Amendment 43 #

Jaak MADISON, Jean-Lin LACAPELLE, Anders VISTISEN, Harald VILIMSKY, Anna BONFRISCO, Susanna CECCARDI, Silvia SARDONE, Marco ZANNI

Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 b (new)

8 b. Expresses concern about the lobbying practices of certain NGOs in the European Parliament; notes that certain political groups use the texts provided by NGOs without any changes and table them in the form of motions for resolution in the Parliament, specifically when it comes to Rule 144 motions;

Amendment 44 #

Anna BONFRISCO, Susanna CECCARDI, Marco ZANNI, Silvia SARDONE, Jean-Lin LACAPELLE, Jaak MADISON, Harald VILIMSKY

Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 b (new)

8 b. Strongly affirms that under no circumstances, NGOs or any other stakeholder shall substitute Members of the European Parliament in making political decisions;

Amendment 45 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 9

9. Welcomes the progress made in the use of the EU Transparency Register and is committed to continuing its work to expand the scope of the Register and strengthen the monitoring of the data it contains; points out that, as a general rule, annual financial data on the sources of funding, including EU grants and domestic and non-EU donations, of registered legal entities are made publicly available under the EU Transparency Register; stresses that, since 12 July 2023, the participation of ‘interest representatives’ as invited active guests at Parliament’s events is conditional on their prior registration in the EU Transparency Register, except if registration is likely to endanger an individual’s life or personal safety or where other compelling reasons require confidentiality; recalls that the EU Transparency Register (Annex II) requires that NGOs provide their main sources of funding by category; stresses that the measures requiring NGOs to disclose all funding sources must take into account the situation of NGOs operating in countries under authoritarian and illiberal regimes, in particular when the disclosure of such information could put them and their work at risk because of the application of repressive legislation such as ‘foreign agents’ laws and similar;

Amendment 46 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 9

Amendment 47 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 9

9. Welcomes the progress made in the use of the EU Transparency Register and is committed to continuing its work to expand the scope of the Register and strengthen the monitoring of the data it contains; points out that, as a general rule, annual financial data on the sources of funding, including EU grants and domestic and non-EU donations, of registered legal entities are made publicly available under the EU Transparency Register; stresses that, since 12 July 2023, the participation of ‘interest representatives’ as invited active guests at Parliament’s events is conditional on their prior registration in the EU Transparency Register, except if registration is likely to endanger an individual’s life or personal safety or where other compelling reasons require confidentiality and also imposes a heavy bureaucratic burden on small civil society organizations based in other continents who do not usually work or conduct advocacy activities in Brussels;

Amendment 48 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 10

10. Recognises, however, that the EU institutions, including Parliament, should have been more diligent in ensuring greater transparency, integrity and accountability regarding their framework for interaction with entities listed in the EU Transparency Register; also acknowledges that further resources are needed to strengthen the transparency and accountability of the lobbying or advocacy activities of legal persons or entities, including human rights NGOWelcomes the European Parliament's decision of 13 September 2023 amending Parliament’s Rules of Procedure with a view to strengthening integrity, independence and accountability; stresses that these measures should, under no circumstance, contribute directly or indirectly to endanger or put at risk any individual such as human rights defenders or journalists;

Amendment 49 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 10

10. Recognises, however, that the EU institutions, including Parliament, should ~~have been~~be more diligent in ensuring ~~greater~~ transparency, integrity and accountability regarding their framework for interaction with entities listed in the EU Transparency Register; calls in this regard for an increased scrutiny by Parliament's services in order to enforce the amended rules on integrity and transparency as adopted by Parliament on 13 September 2023; highlights that resources should be provided for this as a matter of priority; also acknowledges that further resources in general are needed to strengthen the transparency and accountability of ~~the~~all lobbying or advocacy activities of legal persons or entities~~, including human rights NGOs~~;

Amendment 5 #

Draft opinion
Recital C b (new)

C b. whereas the European Parliament resolution of 8 March 2022 on the shrinking space for civil society in Europe (2021/2103(INI)) states that CSOs report discriminatory and restrictive funding practices in certain Member States;

Amendment 50 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 10

10. Recognises, however, that the EU institutions, including Parliament, should have been more diligent in ensuring greater transparency, integrity and accountability regarding their framework for interaction with entities listed in the EU Transparency Register; highlights that requirements demanded to NGOs in accessing the EU institutions are far greater than for other interest groups for example companies, or consultancies; also acknowledges that further resources are needed to strengthen the transparency and accountability of the lobbying or advocacy activities of legal persons or entities, including ~~human rights NGO~~NGOs, companies, business/professional associations, academia, consultants, think tanks, including the sprawling network of consultancies or third countries;

Amendment 51 #

Karol KARSKI

Draft opinion
Paragraph 10

10. Recognises, however, that the EU institutions, including Parliament, should have been more diligent in ensuring greater transparency, integrity and accountability regarding their framework for interaction with entities listed in the EU Transparency Register; also acknowledges that further resources are needed to strengthen the transparency and accountability of the lobbying or advocacy activities of legal persons or entities, including human rights NGOs; recognizes the threat posed by NGOs carrying out illegal activities, inter alia, the organizations operating in the Mediterranean Sea, which are profiting from human trafficking and increasing the security challenges for all EU Member States;

Amendment 52 #

Deirdre CLUNE

Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 a (new)

10 a. Welcomes its own decision adopted on 13 September 2023, to make amendments to Parliament’s Rules of Procedure with a view to strengthening integrity, independence and accountability; acknowledges that Members of European Parliament should only meet interest representatives in the field of human rights that are registered in the EU Transparency Register;

Amendment 53 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 11

11. Recommends that legal entities 11. engaging in lobbying, including NGOs, be required to register in the EU Transparency Register as a condition for applying for EU grants and receiving EU funding; cCalls all EU institutions for far stricter implementation, enforcement and supervision of adherence to the current provisions on the EU Transparency Register; calls for the opening of interinstitutional tallks ~~on the Commission to present proposals to enhance the transparency of interest representati~~to review the Interinstitutional Agreement on the EU Transparency Register long b~~odies and to ensure that lobby~~efore the deadlinge o~~r advocacy activities, in particular on behalf of non-EU country governments, their~~f July 2025; insists that the EU Transparency Register should be strengthened by increasing its budgets and ~~their policy scope are properly disclosed under the EU Transparency Register and that false declarations are subject to sanctions.~~its staff so that it is able to offer support to all applicants and registrants, especially small entities and NGOs, throughout the registration process and verify the information they provided more thoroughly;

Amendment 54 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 11

11. Recommends that legal entities engaging in lobbying, including NGOs, be required to register in the EU Transparency Register as a condition for applying for EU grants and receiving EU funding as long as it does not put at risks their existence due to the use of that information by authoritarian or illiberal regimes to attack them; calls on the Commission to present proposals to enhance the transparency of interest representation bodies and to ensure that lobbying or advocacy activities, in particular on behalf of non-EU country governments, their budgets and their policy scope are properly disclosed under the EU Transparency Register and that false declarations are subject to sanctions.

Amendment 55 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 11

11. Recommends that legal entities engaging in lobbying, including NGOs, be required to register in the EU Transparency Register as a condition for applying for EU grants and receiving EU funding and that their data be subject to the confidentiality exceptions outlined above; calls on the Commission to present proposals to enhance the transparency of interest representation bodies and to ensure that lobbying or advocacy activities, in particular on behalf of non-EU country governments, their budgets and their policy scope are properly disclosed under the EU Transparency Register and that false declarations are subject to sanctions.

Amendment 56 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 11

11. Recommends that legal entities engaging in lobbying~~, including NGOs,~~ be required to register in the EU Transparency Register as a condition for applying for EU grants and receiving EU funding; calls on the Commission to present proposals to enhance the transparency of interest representation bodies and to ensure that lobbying or advocacy activities~~, in particular on behalf of non-EU country governments,~~ their budgets and their policy scope are properly disclosed under the EU Transparency Register and that false declarations are subject to sanctions., while thoroughly assessing new measures, which shall not create disproportionate burdens nor have unintended limitations on fundamental rights;

Amendment 57 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 11 a (new)

11 a. Requests that all changes proposed to current procedures be discussed with NGOs to ensure that a full understanding of the potential consequences of changes on the sector is discussed with representatives, so as to weigh transparency and accountability objectives with potential consequences and implications on an enabling environment for civil society, and to ensure adopted measures are proportional and fair;

Amendment 6 #

Draft opinion
Recital C c (new)

C c. whereas in September 2023, the European Parliament amended its Rules of Procedures with a view to strengthening integrity, independence and accountability;

Amendment 7 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 1

1. Stresses that NGOs and CSOs working for the promotion and protection of human rights, democracy and the rule of law both within and outside the EU play an important role in our societies ~~around the world~~; highlights, in this regard, the crucial work of these organisations in ~~collecting public interest information, exploring and~~actively promoting and defending human rights and democracy, combating any form of discrimination, pro~~pos~~moting ~~new ways of promoting human rights and democracy~~intercultural dialogue, fighting for a clean, healthy and sustainable environment, informing individuals, especially the most vulnerable, about their rights and standing up for them when those rights are violated, promoting civic engagement and public participation, countering disinformation and hate speech, collecting public interest information and holding governments and elected representatives accountable to citizens, and fighting corruption and impunity for human rights abuses;

Amendment 8 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 1

1. ~~Stresses~~Commends the important role that NGOs and CSOs working for the promotion and protection of human rights, democracy and the rule of law play ~~an important role~~ in societies around the world; highlights, in this regard, the crucial work of these organisations in collecting public interest information, exploring and proposing new ways of promoting human rights and democracy, informing individuals and groups, especially the most vulnerable, about their rights and standing up for them when those rights are violated, denouncing human and civil rights violations, promoting civic engagement and public participation, countering disinformation and hate speech, holding governments and elected representatives accountable to citizens, and fighting corruption and impunity for human rights abuses;

Amendment 9 #