20 Amendments of Mónica Silvana GONZÁLEZ related to 2020/2134(INI)
Amendment 1 #
Draft opinion
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. Whereas in recent years, environmental defenders have been subjected to ever increasing incidences of killings, kidnappings, torture, gender- based violence, threats, harassment, intimidation, smear campaigns, criminalisation, judicial harassment, forced eviction and displacement;
Amendment 2 #
Draft opinion
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
Ab. Whereas criminalisation of environmental defenders is routine in many countries and strategic lawsuits against public administration direct resources, energy and focus away from defenders´ work towards overcoming lengthy and often unfounded court proceedings;
Amendment 3 #
Draft opinion
Recital A c (new)
Recital A c (new)
Ac. Whereas over the last three years it has been recorded killings of 578 environmental, land and indigenous people´s rights defenders, stressing the Philippines consistently being top of the list where is most dangerous being an environmental rights defender; notes that in many of the cases conflicts and violations takes place within a context of economic inequality and social exclusion;
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion
Recital A d (new)
Recital A d (new)
Ad. Whereas the economic crisis that is expected to result from the pandemic may push states to divert away from the environment protection in order to stimulate short term economic growth; which will result in increased violence to force communities off their land to allow for its exploitation;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. IExpresses its deeply concerned abou at the increaseding criminalisation and persecution of environmental activists in developing countries by governments and multinational companies that are investing in the exploitation of natural, non- renewable resources, thus contributing to deforestation, loss of biodiversity and human rights violations, mostly affecting indigenous peoples; condemns any attempts to deregulate environmental and human rights protections in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and other crises; also expresses its concern at the situation of environmental defenders and whistle- blowers throughout the world; recalls that everyone should have access to the enjoyment of human rights, environmental protection and sustainable development, and that no one should be penalised, persecuted or harassed for protecting the environment; calls on the Commission to support environmental defenders across the world;
Amendment 37 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Believes that in the next few years climate change will create more environmental migrants from developing countries, and that in order to better protect their human rights, environmental refugee sand developed countries; welcomes the landmark decision of the UN Human Rights Committee in the case of Teitiota v. New Zealand recognising that people fleeing climate-related and natural disasters have a valid claim for international protection under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; urges the Commission and the Member States to take stock of this ruling and take all the necessary measures to ensure full protection of environmentally displaced persons under EU law, and to provide appropriate asylum for climate refugees; calls on the Member Statues needs international recognito consider the risk of violations of the right to life due to climate change as part of their return decisions, notably triggering non- refoulement obligations;
Amendment 40 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Believes that in the next few years climate change will create more environmental migrants from developing countries, and that in order to better protect their human rights, environmental refugee status needs international recognitionand developed countries; welcomes the landmark decision of the UN Human Rights Committee in the case of Teitiota v. New Zealand recognising that people fleeing climate-related and natural disasters have a valid claim for international protection under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; urges the Commission and the Member States to take stock of this ruling and take all the necessary measures to ensure full protection of environmentally displaced persons under EU law, and to provide appropriate asylum for climate refugees;
Amendment 44 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Encourages Member States to incorporate, among other, the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement into domestic law, and to develop regional instruments to protect environmentally displaced persons, taking inspiration from the African Union Kampala Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa; proposes that a climate passport be issued to persons coming from a country, or part of it, that will become uninhabitable due to climate change as a way to offer them protection from vulnerability and statelessness; calls on the Commission and Member States to put forward such proposals in international forums, in parallel to other EU initiatives;
Amendment 45 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Calls on the Commission and Member States to increase support to developing countries to achieve durable solutions for environmentally displaced persons, including indigenous peoples, pastoralists and other rural populations whose traditional livelihoods have been destroyed by the adverse impacts of climate change, and to find new livelihoods which are better adapted to a changing climate;
Amendment 51 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Deems that the introduction of binding and harmonised EU legislation on business due diligence can help improve the defence of human rights and compliance with environmental standards in the fight against impunity and climate change in developing countries and contribute to the implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Agreement and the objectives of the EU Green Deal; stresses that the future legislation should take into account the specific needs and rights of women and vulnerable groups such as children and indigenous people; deems that the future legislation should be subjected to a meaningful and inclusive consultation process on the ground with the relevant stakeholders and affected communities and deems that such a process should be carried out in close cooperation with the EU Delegations; calls on the Commission to continue working towards the approval of the UN binding treaty for transnational corporations on human rights;
Amendment 55 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Recalls that the negative consequences of climate change undermine a country’s development prospects, compounding already existing inequalities such as gender disparities; underlines that the impact of climate change is worse for more vulnerable people such as women and girls, and that 80 % of people displaced by climate change are women; welcomes the commitments made by Vice-President Timmermans to redress gender inequalities that are exacerbated by climate change; urges the Commission to mainstream gender equality and climate justice in the elaboration and implementation of all policies that have an impact on the situation of women and girls, and to promote the participation of indigenous women, women’s rights defenders and all marginalised gender communities within the UNFCCC framework;
Amendment 60 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Calls on the Commission to check carefully that the infrastructure and energy projects financed through the various development cooperation and external policy instruments, including through the European Investment Bank, do not jeopardise human rights, the Sustainable Development Goals, the objectives of the Paris agreement to combat climate change or the European Green Deal; also calls in this regard to carefully evaluate if the proposed projects have been consulted with indigenous communities and local population and have included their experience and knowledge of local ecology, human rights and development needs;
Amendment 62 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Invites the Commission to do more to protect and empower human rights defenders, indigenous peoples, environmental activists and organisations engaged in the fight against climate change in developing countries.worldwide, and pay a specific attention to the differentiated needs of protection of women human rights defenders, acknowledging their role as powerful agents of change in particular for climate action; calls for EU development programmes to promote the meaningful participation and empowerment of women and their organisations at all levels and at all stages of climate policy design, planning, financing, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, as their inclusions is crucial to improve climate mitigation, and calls for fair allocation of resources to tackle the obstacles that affect them disproportionately, to advance gender-just climate actions and to ensure long-term sustainable climate solutions; stresses in this regards, the need to support capacity building and women’s role as educators and promoters of change and ensure adequate financing for these organisations;
Amendment 66 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Invites the Commission to do more to protect human rights defenders, indigenous peoples, environmental activists and organisations engaged in the fight against climate change in developing countries.worldwide, and pay a specific attention to the differentiated needs of protection of women human rights defenders;
Amendment 68 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Calls on the EU and its member States to develop and adopt, as part of the reform of the Union’s Migration and Asylum Policy, appropriate measures such as mobility schemes, skilling and re- skilling and preferential access for third- country workers coming from countries particularly affected by adverse impacts of climate change, including those working in the fossil fuel industry, extractive sectors and agriculture, as part of the European Green Deal, to enable them to contribute to the low-carbon transition across the global supply chain; the use of humanitarian visa and temporary protection for persons displaced by sudden-onset disasters; and long-term admission of persons coming from a country that is becoming or has become inhabitable due to climate change;
Amendment 72 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Calls on the Commission to ensure an action plan against the increased violence to force communities off their lands in the face of the covid-19 pandemic;
Amendment 76 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 b (new)
Paragraph 6 b (new)
6b. Urges the Commission to provide support for states to introduce protection mechanisms and legislation that would define environmental defenders, recognise their work and guarantee their protection;
Amendment 78 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 c (new)
Paragraph 6 c (new)
6c. Calls on increased political and financial support to environmental rights defenders and systematically condemns reprisals against them;
Amendment 79 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 d (new)
Paragraph 6 d (new)
6d. Calls on EU to facilitate, in accordance with the UN human rights council resolution to facilitate public awareness and participation in environmental decision-making, including with civil society, women, children youth, indigenous people, rural and local communities, not limited to developing countries but globally;
Amendment 80 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 e (new)
Paragraph 6 e (new)
6e. Believes from a development perspective that the EU trade policy review should redefine, promote and reinforce the protection of the environment and human rights; stresses that social, environmental and human rights due diligence duties should be enforced within all new and existing trade mechanisms such as FTAs, Economic Partnership Agreements, Generalised Schemes of Preferences and Investment Agreements;