27 Amendments of Terry REINTKE related to 2021/2180(INI)
Amendment 7 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 13 a (new)
Citation 13 a (new)
— having regard to the EU Anti- Racism Action Plan 2020-2025 launched in September 2020,
Amendment 90 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D a (new)
Recital D a (new)
Da. whereas the Council of Europe’s Committee of Experts on Combatting Hate Speech has prepared a draft Committee of Ministers Recommendation on Hate Speech, which provides non- binding guidance on how to address the phenomenon, currently awaiting adoption in 20221a; whereas the newly established Committee of Experts on Combatting Hate Crime is tasked with preparing until end of 2023 a draft Committee of Ministers Recommendation on Hate Crime; _________________ 1a Draft text of the Committee of Ministers Recommendation on Combating Hate Speech, accessible at https://rm.coe.int/draft-recommendation- on-combating-hate-speech-public- consultation-v-18/native/1680a2ef25; News announced at https://www.coe.int/en/web/committee- antidiscrimination-diversity-inclusion/- /the-cdadi-finalised-important- deliverables-at-its-fourth-plenary- meeting.
Amendment 127 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Welcomes the fact that the functioning of justice systems, the anti- corruption framework, media pluralism and certain institutional issues related to checks and balances, including civic space to a certain extent, are all part of the Commission’s annual report; regrets, however, that not all rule of law issues were covered in sufficient detail in the 2021 report; calls for the inclusion in the annual report of other important elements of the Venice Commission’s 2016 Rule of Law Checklist; believes that civic space deserves a separate subheading in the report, considering the legislative measures including disproportionate registration and audit requirements which have led to a shrinking space of operation for civil society organisations in various Member States;
Amendment 140 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Notes with satisfaction that the report contains country-specific chapters; considers that a distinct new chapter on the European Union which would assess the situation in relation to separation of powers, accountability and checks and balances would be desirable; commends the Commission’s efforts to engage with national governments and national parliaments, as well as civil society and other national actors; encourages the Commission to devote greater efforts tocontinue deepening the analysis, and invites the Commission to ensure proper resources for that; believes that more time should be devoted to the Commission’s country visits, including on site; welcomes the visits conducted by the Commission to national parliaments in order to present the findings of the report; calls on the Member States to cooperate proactively with the Commission and make public their written submissions;
Amendment 162 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Welcomes the fact that all Member States are scrutinised according to the same indicators and methodology; emphasises that presenting deficiencies or breaches of a different nature or intensity risks trivialising the most serious breaches of the rule of law; urges the Commission to differentiate its reporting by distinguishing between systemic breaches of the rule of law and isolated breaches in a clearer and more comprehensible way;
Amendment 186 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Recalls that in some circumstances, Member States deliberately resorted to measures which question the principle of the rule of law, such as legislation adopted in fast track procedures without public consultations or even, in exceptional cases, constitutional changes as a way to legitimise discriminatory policies that could otherwise not be legislated upon, such as provisions that specifically aim at LGBTIQ persons; recalls the Member States have a responsibility towards citizens in condition of vulnerability and should provide them with safety and protection from discrimination;
Amendment 192 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Considers that the annual report should identify cross-cutting trends at EU level; asks the Commission to identify instances where certain measures or practices that undermine the rule of law in one Member State become blueprints for others, or when the gravity and scope of such deficiencies have the potential to affect the Union as a whole; highlights that the intentional targeting of certain minority groups’ rights in some Member States have created and established a momentum elsewhere, as can be evidenced by backtracking on the rights of women and LGBTIQ persons.
Amendment 217 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Recommends that the Commission indicates next to each of its recommendations the non-exhaustive list of tools which are appropriate tools for the use by EU institutions to use ifin case the shortcomings are not remedied; calls on the Commission to not to hesitate in using those tools, especially when there is no trust in a quick implementation of the recommendations, without waiting for the next annual reporting cycle;
Amendment 230 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12a. Points out that several Member States have long-lasting problems regarding the composition of their councils of the judiciary and appointment of judges, which are too often vulnerable to political interference; insists that Member States must fully comply with EU and international law regarding judicial independence;
Amendment 243 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Underlines its concern at the fact that women and people in vulnerable situations, including persons with disabilities, children, religious minorities, particularly at a time of rising antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatredracism in Europe, Romani people, people of African and Asian descent and other persons belonging to racial, ethnic and linguistic minorities, migrants, asylum seekers, refugees, LGBTI+ persons and elderly people, continue to see their rights not being fully respected across the Union; emphasises the obvious link between deteriorating rule of law standards and violations of fundamental rights and minority rights violations; recommends that more attention is paid to political and media discourses fuelling hatred against minorities and the direct impact it has on adopting discriminatory laws or practices eroding the rule of law for all, including as a result of counter-terrorism and security policies;
Amendment 247 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Underlines its concern at the fact that women and people in vulnerable situations, including persons with disabilities, children, religious minorities, particularly at a time of rising antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatred in Europe, Romani people and other persons belonging to ethnic and linguistic minorities, migrants, asylum seekers, refugees, LGBTI+Q persons and elderly people, continue to see their rights not being fully respected across the Union; emphasises the obvious link between deteriorating rule of law standards and violations of fundamental rights and minority rights; recalls its recommendation from 2020 for future reports to assess the effect that hate crime and hate speech have on discrimination;
Amendment 251 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)
Paragraph 13 a (new)
13a. Notes with concern the numerous reports of significant and systematic violations of fundamental rights of migrants and asylum seekers across the EU and particularly at external borders; deplores that several Member States adopted national legislation which severely limits the rights of asylum seekers and in some cases even poses a threat to upholding the principle of non- refoulement and the right to an effective remedy; regrets that, despite calls from the European Parliament, the Commission did not finalize its assessment of the compatibility of numerous national legislative measures in the field of asylum and migration with EU law; reiterates that the respect of fundamental rights such as the right to asylum and right to effective remedy are an integral part of a fully functioning rule of law;
Amendment 253 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)
Paragraph 13 a (new)
13a. Welcomes the infringement procedures initiated by the Commission against Hungary and Poland as part of the July 2021 infringement package concerning the respect for the human rights of LGBTIQ persons and breaches of EU law, which constitute the first time the Commission has specifically initiated infringements to safeguard their rights;
Amendment 256 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 b (new)
Paragraph 13 b (new)
13b. Expresses its concern about the shrinking civic space in various Member States, manifested through the prosecution and surveillance of media and journalists, human rights defenders and political opponents;
Amendment 257 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 c (new)
Paragraph 13 c (new)
13c. Stresses the importance of public service media to provide fair and free coverage of public affairs, especially in election times; reminds that the Media Pluralism Monitor has identified the media’s political independence to be at high risk in several countries and that this marks a serious threat to the democratic governance of the EU as a whole; regrets that public service media are omitted from the annual report; calls on the Commission to review public service media thoroughly in its future reports;
Amendment 258 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 d (new)
Paragraph 13 d (new)
13d. Points out that strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) not only severely undermine the right of effective access to justice of SLAPP victims, and thereby the rule of law, but also constitute a misuse of Member States’ justice systems and legal frameworks, especially by hampering the ability of Member States to successfully address existing challenges, such as the length of proceedings and the quality of justice systems, as well as caseload administration and case backlogs;
Amendment 259 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 e (new)
Paragraph 13 e (new)
13e. Deplores the fact that, in some Member States, freedom of expression, freedom of the arts and freedom of assembly are severely curtailed and restricted; recalls that many artists, journalists or activists have received and continue to receive heavy fines, long periods of exclusion from the public sector or have even been imprisoned or went to exile due to the existence of unjust national laws that criminalise, silence and restrict freedom of expression and freedom of the arts; calls on the Commission to assess the misuse of justice systems in the annual report;
Amendment 261 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Calls on the Commission to further strengthen the regular, inclusive and structured dialogue with governments and national parliaments, NGOs, national human rights institutions, ombudspersons, equality bodies, professional associations and other stakeholders; welcomes the Commission’s intention to present a legislative proposal on strengthening the role and independence of equality bodies; considers that civil society organisations should be closely involved in all phases of the review cycle; highlights that thematically structured consultations would make the process more efficient and increaseincrease the efficiency of the process and the amount of valuable feedback; stresseswelcomes the fact that the consultation questionnaire shouldnow allows stakeholders to report aspects beyond the scope envisaged by the Commission, and calls on the Commission to adapt the structure of national reports if needed; calls on the Commission to review and improve online tools for stakeholder input and to be flexible regarding available space limits;
Amendment 268 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)
Paragraph 14 a (new)
14a. Recalls that the exercise of fundamental freedoms, including the right to be critical in public, is an element of a free and democratic society; notes that strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) require a legislative European response that ensures the respect for democracy and fundamental rights and, inconsequence, also the rule of law; welcomes the Commission’s commitment to propose a directive against abusive litigation targeting journalists and rights defenders, emphasising that the scope must be comprehensive enough to encompass all those who are rights defenders, including individual activists;
Amendment 273 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Considers that the time limits for consultation with civil society is oftenwas too short in the past and should be suitably adapted and flexible in order to allow for complete and comprehensive input; points out that this has made it more difficult for stakeholders to prepare and plan their contributions and awareness-raising activities, in particular if the consultation coincides with winter holidays; calls on the Commission to allow multilingual submissionswelcomes that the Commission allows multilingual submissions; calls on the Commission to define and publish in advance a timeline for upcoming reports setting dates for the several steps in the process including the consultation period, a calendar of country visits as well as a publication date of the report; notes that consultation can be improvfurther substantiated by ensuring follow- up with civil society actors on the input they provide;
Amendment 285 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Recalls that the Commission must continue to take into account relevant information from pertinent sources and recognised institutions in a systematic manner; recalls that the findings of relevant international bodies, such as those under the auspices of the UN, the OSCE and the Council of Europe, are of crucial importance; believes that EFRIS is a useful source of information in this regard; calls on the Commission to take better account of the data and findings from relevant indexes such as the Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) project, the World Justice Project Rule of Law Index, or the Varieties of Democracy (V-DEM) project;
Amendment 350 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23
Paragraph 23
Amendment 357 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
24. Recalls the importance of the Rule of Law Conditionality Regulation where breaches of the principles of the rule of law affect or seriously risk affecting the sound financial management of the Union budget or the protection of the financial interests of the Union; considers that the annual report is the most appropriate place to have a dedicated section and conduct a relevant analysis; urges the Commission to launch the procedure enshrined in Article 6(1) of that regulation at least in the cases of Poland and Hungary; calls on the Commission to explore the full potential of the Common Provisions Regulation and the Financial Regulation to protect the rule lawdemocracy, fundamental rights and the rule law, thereby ensuring that EU funds are not used for initiatives which are not in compliance with EU values;
Amendment 360 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
24. Recalls the importance of the Rule of Law Conditionality Regulation where breaches of the principles of the rule of law affect or seriously risk affecting the sound financial management of the Union budget or the protection of the financial interests of the Union; considers that the annual report is the most appropriate place to have a dedicated section and conduct a relevant analysis; urges the Commission to launch the procedure enshrined in Article 6(1) of that regulation at least in the cases of Poland and Hungary; calls on the Commission to explore the full potential of the Common Provisions Regulation and the Financial Regulation to protect the rule law while respecting the interests of final beneficiaries which are not government entities;
Amendment 361 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 a (new)
Paragraph 24 a (new)
24a. Is concerned about the Commission’s 2021 Rule of Law report’s findings that, in some countries, the state- sponsored harassment and intimidation of the LGBTIQ organisations affects their ability to access funding; calls on the Commission to assess the issue more closely and to ensure through the necessary means that the non- discrimination principle governing access to EU funds is fully complied with everywhere in the EU; considers that these findings reinforce the long-standing position of the Parliament that the scope of the Rule of Law report should be broadened to include all Article 2 TEU values;
Amendment 365 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 b (new)
Paragraph 24 b (new)
24b. Is concerned by the persistent failure by some Members States to implement CJEU judgements, which contribute to the erosion of the rule of law; calls on the Commission to report on the respective country chapters about the implementation of judgements by Member States in cases of partial or lack of implementation; encourages the Commission to engage with authorities in order to find suitable solutions for complete implementation and to update the information on an annual basis; recalls that the failure by Romania to implement the Coman & Hamilton judgement1a resulted in the plaintiffs having to resort to the ECtHR for redress; _________________ 1a Judgment of the Court (Grand Chamber) of 5 June 2018 (C-673/16), Relu Adrian Coman and Others v Inspectoratul General pentru Imigrări and Ministerul Afacerilor Interne.
Amendment 377 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25 a (new)
Paragraph 25 a (new)
25a. Commits itself to engage into regular consultations with the Member States’ governments and parliaments on findings of the annual report; calls on the Member States to ensure that their representatives at the highest possible level take part in the exchange with the Parliament on the rule of law;