Activities of Anna Júlia DONÁTH related to 2023/2122(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Transparency and accountability of non-governmental organisations funded from the EU budget (debate)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on transparency and accountability of non-governmental organisations funded from the EU budget
Amendments (33)
Amendment 2 #
Draft opinion
Recital A (new)
Recital A (new)
A. Whereas non-governmental organisations (NGOs), which hereby refers to grassroots and community organisations, trade unions, activist groups, human rights defenders and all non-profit making civil society organisations (CSOs) independent of public institutions and commercial interests, are the backbone of civil space, the legal and political framework in which people and groups can meaningfully participate in the political, economic, social and cultural life of their societies, exercising the right to express views, the right to information, and the right to assemble, associate and engage in dialogue with one another and with authorities;
Amendment 3 #
Draft opinion
Recital B (new)
Recital B (new)
B. Whereas NGOs play a central role in democracy by exercising public oversight over political power as an essential component of a rule of law ecosystem of healthy democracies, articulating and relaying to policy makers the aspirations and interests present in society, engaging in advocacy and litigations, contributing to informed policy-making with their expertise and knowledge of what goes on at the ground and fostering active and responsible citizenship, thus promoting active public participation in the democratic process and governance, increasing transparency at Union and Member State level, and fostering public debate and pluralism in society;
Amendment 6 #
Draft opinion
Recital C (new)
Recital C (new)
C. Whereas NGOs are particularly active in bringing societal benefits with respect to citizen welfare, education, health, the fight against climate change, fight against social exclusion and discrimination, including the protection of women, LGBTIQ+ persons, persons with disabilities, minorities, migrants and refugees;
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion
Recital D (new)
Recital D (new)
D. Whereas in certain Member States it is becoming more and more common that public authorities are outsourcing to NGOs public service missions in domains such as housing, health, education and asylum, which goes beyond a balanced cooperation of public authorities with NGOs that have a good experience working with and for the persons concerned and is not supported by sufficient additional resources;
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion
Recital E (new)
Recital E (new)
E. Whereas the spread of the COVID- 19 pandemic has seen an unprecedented engagement of NGOs in providing solutions to the pandemic and providing support to people in vulnerable situations;
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion
Recital F (new)
Recital F (new)
F. Whereas Russia’s invasion and war of aggression against Ukraine has also seen an extensive support and cooperation from NGOs towards the victims of war;
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Recital G (new)
Recital G (new)
G. Whereas, to this end, it is crucial that NGOs benefit from an environment that allows them to thrive throughout the Union;
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion
Recital H (new)
Recital H (new)
H. Whereas several state and civil actors have been raising the alarm of third country influence on EU institutions, policies and policy makers and calling for effective legislation on a number of areas to counter this threat for more than a decade;
Amendment 15 #
Draft opinion
Recital I (new)
Recital I (new)
I. Whereas in recent years the disclosed covert interference in referendums and elections, cyber-attacks on candidates, parties, journalists, activists and the fabrication of false narratives, combined with the increased use of social media to sow distrust and nurture discontent, led to initiatives aiming at reaching complete transparency of interest representatives and their financial capabilities at an EU level and in Member States, which also targets NGOs, including the current Transparency Register;
Amendment 16 #
Draft opinion
Recital J (new)
Recital J (new)
J. Whereas the deplorable events related to the corruption cases referred to as “Qatargate” and "Moroccogate” exacerbated a general public outcry against NGOs due to the involvement of certain NGOs in the scandals;
Amendment 17 #
Draft opinion
Recital K (new)
Recital K (new)
K. Whereas, some governments tend to use these accusations and general distrust as a good pretext for restrictions against NGOs, and, as a result, restrictions of civic space have been reported by NGOs throughout the Union, related to the regulatory environment under which they operate and to (changes in) legislation that affect their work, finances and funding, and their right to participation with increasing difficulties in accessing decision-makers and contributing to policymaking and legislation;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion
Recital L (new)
Recital L (new)
L. Whereas these restrictions usually target partly or wholly foreign funded NGOs, treating under the same umbrella those receiving funding from the United States, the United Kingdom or Switzerland and those receiving funding from Russia or China, causing them to face an unsafe environment with increasingly worrying attacks and harassment, including legislation and negative discourse aimed at delegitimising and stigmatising NGOs, especially in Member States with ongoing Rule of Law issues, where foreign funded NGOs are often the only ones with sufficient financial independence to be a critical voice;
Amendment 19 #
Draft opinion
Recital M (new)
Recital M (new)
M. Whereas at the international level restrictive legislation and negative discourse may bring about the risk of reciprocity, thus preventing the EU from criticising attempts by third countries to clamp down on pro-democracy organisations and activists, since NGOs in third countries receiving EU funds would be specifically targeted by third country governments, which is particularly worrisome taken into account the activities which these NGOs carry out in these third countries where democracy and rule of law is flawed;
Amendment 23 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Emphasises the crucial role played by grassNGOs in promotsing and community organisations, trade unions, activist groups, human rights defenders and non- governmental organisations (NGOs) in promoting and upholding democracy, equality, the rule of law and fundamental rights and in ensuring accountability for state and private acupholding democracy, equality, the rule of law and fundamental rights, in ensuring accountability for state and private actions as well as in developing social economy by providing societal benefits for the most vulnerable groups, including women, LGBTIQ+ persons, persons with disabilities, minorities, migrants and refugees, thus strengthening the single market and the wellbeing of the populations;
Amendment 36 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Stresses that civil society is a broader category than that of NGOs; notes that while NGOs are, on the one hand, a favoured institutional form of the neoliberal state and therefore rarely truly oppositional, on the other hand many resist instrumentalisation and expose the excesses of state and private interests; stresses, therefore, that they must be protected, including through the provision of adequate funding, including foreign funding; notes that it is short-sighted to treat NGOs as a singular bloc with a singular policy outlook and considers it regretful that the Commission still has not put forward a legislative package creating a definition of common standards for NGOs which would enable coherent judicial review at Union level and lay down the foundations for potential future case law strengthening Union-wide standards and protecting fundamental rights which are an essential part of Union law;
Amendment 51 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Remains deeply concerned by threats to and attacks on NGOs in Member StatHighlights that it is short-sighted to treat NGOs as a singular bloc with a singular policy outlook, given that civil society spans from low-key community activities, such as sports clubs, church groups, to large NGOs that provide key services to high-profile advocacy and litigation organizations that speak out on certain issues;
Amendment 70 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Calls on the Member States and the EU to improve the legal environment for civil society by ensuring that any measure restricting the right of associations to seek, secure and use resourcesCommission and the Member States that NGOs must be protected, including through the provision of adequate funding, including EU and foreign resources, must pursue one of the legitimate aims under Article 11(2) of the European Convention on Human Rightsfunding; by facilitating NGOs’ access to such funding;
Amendment 84 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Recalls that transparency and accountability measures must only serve the purpose of ensuring legitimate public scrutiny; stresStresses the necessity of approaching with caution the different transparency requirements that should be placed on NGOs to which grants are awarded directly by the Commission or European Union executive agencies under direct management, as well as on thoses that reporting requirements for NGOs must remain strictly necessary and proportionate to the specific aims pursuedo which grants are awarded under indirect management by intermediate bodies such as Member State agencies and United Nations (UN) agencies receiving EU grants transferred to them by the Commission;
Amendment 99 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. BelievStresses that current EU instruments are likely suintroducing uniform legislation aiming at making more difficienult for achievNGOs in general to receive funding pfroportionate transparency goals concerning NGO fundingm the EU in the hope that it will increase transparency and accountability, contribute to minimizing third-country influence and protecting sovereignty not only goes against established international conventions and commitments, but such generalised measures will not reach their goals either;
Amendment 118 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Warns emphatically against the weaponisation of the concept of ‘foreign interference’ and emphasises that this can be and is being used by governments to repress civil society and NGOs.Underlines that transparency and accountability are two of the guiding budgetary principles of the European Union, enshrined notably in the Financial Regulation, and transparency and accountability measures must only serve the purpose of ensuring legitimate public scrutiny; stresses that reporting requirements for NGOs must remain strictly necessary and proportionate to the specific aims pursued and the size of the organisation;
Amendment 125 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7 a. Stresses that transparency and accountability requirements apply to all European Union institutions and Member States, including public authorities, private and corporate entities, in addition to NGOs, therefore these requirements should be adequately enforced throughout the EU with disproportionately and adversely affecting NGOs as scapegoats;
Amendment 128 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 b (new)
Paragraph 7 b (new)
7 b. Remains deeply concerned by threats to and attacks on NGOs in certain Member States and at the EU level; recalls that the rules on transparency of funding in general, identically to the rules in the field of taxation and the fight against money laundering, must not be abused to obstruct activities of NGOs and create a chilling effect affecting their members and donors;
Amendment 129 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 c (new)
Paragraph 7 c (new)
7 c. Warns emphatically against the weaponisation of the concept of ‘foreign interference’ and emphasises that this can be and is being used by governments to repress civil society and NGOs;
Amendment 130 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 d (new)
Paragraph 7 d (new)
7 d. Deplores the recent oversimplification by which those NGOs have been deliberately portrayed in a negative light and targeted for further restrictions which receive substantial co- funding from the EU budget and are predominantly financed by non-European States, networks or foundations and which deliver research that regularly negatively impacts European industry and transport providers, as such negative campaign may be attributed to the lobby promoting the interests of European industry giants disregarding green policy and environmental concerns;
Amendment 131 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 e (new)
Paragraph 7 e (new)
7 e. Believes that current EU instruments involving the European Parliament, the Commission and the NGO sector with added independent third- party verification of compliance are likely sufficient with minor adjustments for achieving proportionate transparency goals concerning NGO funding, and introducing new burdensome transparency and accountability rules against NGOs under the pretext of the public outrage against corruption and foreign interference should be avoided;
Amendment 132 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 f (new)
Paragraph 7 f (new)
7 f. Shares the view that the contracted EU funds be tracked up to the final beneficiaries in a systematic, standardised and harmonised manner across information and transparency platforms at EU level with a view to preventing and fighting against fraud and ensuring that EU funds are not used against democratic principles and values of the EU;
Amendment 133 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 g (new)
Paragraph 7 g (new)
7 g. Appreciates that the Commission ensures that all applicants or beneficiaries of EU funding, including NGOs, are required to publish annually the number, amounts and nature of lobbying contacts they have, and welcomes that a growing number of EU-funded NGOs publish online their pursued interests and financial data in compliance with the applicable regulations adding that a more proactive approach from NGOs to public transparency would be expected that goes beyond the minimal existing requirements for EU grant funding;
Amendment 134 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 h (new)
Paragraph 7 h (new)
7 h. Welcomes that the Commission provides effective enforcement of the existing transparency and accountability rules, and calls on Member States and the EU to improve the legal environment for civil society by ensuring that any measure restricting the right of associations to seek, secure and use resources, including foreign resources, must pursue one of the legitimate aims under Article 11(2) of the European Convention on Human Rights, as well as appropriate legal remedies must be provided for the NGOs in case of any restrictions;
Amendment 135 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 i (new)
Paragraph 7 i (new)
7 i. Welcomes that the Commission provides adjustments to the Financial Regulation by including in the Financial Transparency System the details of EU grants awarded to NGOs under indirect management, reducing the time between the award of grants and publication in it and requiring systematic publication by EU-funded NGOs of details of funding received from the EU and other sources over a five-year period;
Amendment 136 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 j (new)
Paragraph 7 j (new)
7 j. Calls on the Commission to continue its work on streamlining databases and ensuring that the Financial Transparency System becomes more user- friendly; stresses that all types or subtypes of beneficiaries, including for profit corporate entities or consultancies, should be searchable as a category in the register, not only NGOs;
Amendment 137 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 k (new)
Paragraph 7 k (new)
7 k. Recalls that circumvention of transparency and accountability requirements cannot be prevented or remedied by creating new, burdensome rules on transparency and accountability, such as setting up a single, interoperable IT system for data mining and risk scoring including recipients’ data and beneficial owners’ data, income, amount spent on lobbying, or conducting comprehensive financial pre-screening of NGOs before they are listed in the Transparency Register, or developing a centralised certification system for NGOs wishing to apply for EU funding, which create further legal and administrative obstacles and may hinder smaller NGOs from receiving EU or foreign funds;
Amendment 138 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 l (new)
Paragraph 7 l (new)
7 l. Stresses that top-down national regulation involves the risk of politically driven control of NGOs, therefore a careful approach should be applied in considering an introduction of the obligation for NGOs to disclose their sources of funding and their internal structures in national lobby registries;
Amendment 139 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 m (new)
Paragraph 7 m (new)
7 m. Appreciates that the Commission enhances the access status for the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) in order to obtain information on the financial misconduct of individual NGOs, investigate them and impose appropriate sanctions in the event of fraud, corruption and other irregularities related to EU funds in compliance with the applicable regulations;