Activities of Judith SARGENTINI related to 2015/0302M(NLE)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the draft Council decision on the conclusion, on behalf of the Union, of the Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, of the other part
Amendments (9)
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Recognises that this recent reversal in development progress is largely due to the intensification of violence and conflict, and; highlights that 2018 is on track to be the deadliest year for civilians on record; underlines that internal displacement, the arrival of returnees from the surrounding region and European Member States as well as climatic factors, such as an ongoing drought, have all led to a deterioration of the humanitarian situation; notes with concern that reintegration activities, funded from the EU’s development aid, are difficult to execute considering the current humanitarian and security situation of the country;
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2 a. Underlines that according to UN OCHA, 5.5 million people are in need of humanitarian aid in Afghanistan, including people being internally displaced due to conflict or drought, while the Humanitarian Response Plan is only 33.5% funded;
Amendment 14 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2 b. Highlights that due to a crackdown on Afghans in Iran, 500.000 undocumented Afghans have returned from Iran since the start of the year;
Amendment 15 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 c (new)
Paragraph 2 c (new)
2 c. Regrets the strong focus in the Agreement on the prevention of irregular migration; furthermore regrets that EU aid has indirectly been made conditional on Afghanistan's cooperation on returns; deplores that returns from the EU Member States are continuing despite a highly unstable security situation, ongoing drought and serious reintegration challenges due to extremely high number of people returning from the region; calls on EU Member States to refrain from returns to Afghanistan;
Amendment 16 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 d (new)
Paragraph 2 d (new)
2 d. Notes that Article 28.4 of the cooperation agreement on partnership and development which states the aim to conclude a readmission agreement, has resulted in the Joint Way Forward; regrets that the Joint Way Forward is an informal agreement rather than a formal readmission agreement; considers it important that any agreements regarding readmission should be formalized to ensure democratic accountability;
Amendment 17 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 d (new)
Paragraph 2 d (new)
2 d. Welcomes the very prominent place reserved in the Agreement for gender equality and related policies and the strong focus on civil society development;
Amendment 19 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Stresses the need to comprehensively address humanitarian, development and security challenges and the nexuses between them; insists that pacifying the country and, normalising the functioning of the state and its institutions and expanding basic social services such as health care and education are indispensable prerequisites for development in Afghanistan;
Amendment 24 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4 a. Stresses the need to continue funding needs-based development aid for Afghanistan and to focus in particular on eradicating poverty, addressing vulnerabilities such as widespread food insecurity and chronic malnutrition and access for all to basic services, such as healthcare and education;
Amendment 27 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5 a. Regrets the support foreseen in the Agreement for agricultural biotechnology in context where GMOs are strongly contested in Europe; welcomes on the other hand the reference to the development of a sustainable and environment-friendly agriculture.