Sous-commission Droits de l'homme (DROI) - Parlement européen

Source : © Union européenne, 2020 - PE

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Source : © Union européenne, 2020 - PE

In the context of the exponential growth of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the President of the European Parliament has announced a number of measures to contain the spread of the epidemic and to safeguard Parliament's core activities. On 2 April, the Conference of Presidents updated the EP's calendar of activities. Core activities are reduced, but maintained to ensure that the institution's legislative, budgetary, scrutiny functions together with urgent matters in the field of human rights and democracy, are continued.

Following these decisions, the next DROI Subcommittee meetings are scheduled to take place on Friday 26 June from 9.00 - 11.00, Friday 3 July from 9.00 - 11.00 and Tuesday 7 July from 9.00 - 11.00. These meetings will be held remotely.

Watch the meeting live
Draft agenda and meeting documents
Press statements issued by the DROI Chair
Follow-up to urgency resolutions (DROI-EEAS) July 2019 to date
Revised calendar of EP activities 2020
Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

The Subcommittee on Human rights, in association with the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, will hold a virtual side event to the Syria Fourth Brussels Conference on: Children of Al-Hol. Why the protection of children's rights matters. The meeting will take place on 26 June 2020 h 9:00-11:00.
The event aims at addressing the situation of thousands of Syrian and foreign children detained in camps in North East Syria and beyond who are in urgent need of protection - more urgently in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic- and to reflect on ways to grant children basic rights, create the sustainable conditions and set out a road map for long-term solutions.
Speakers will include ICRC, Save the children, UNICEF, as well as the prominent Syrian paediatrician Amani Ballour.
While acknowledging all complexities of the matter, the discussion will not only focus on existing challenges, but will also aim at identifying some examples of good practices and putting forward recommendations for action reflecting the EU's commitment to consistently contribute towards the protection of human rights externally, and in particular with regard to the rights of the child, as set out in Article 3(5) of TEU.

Watch live
Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Source : © Union européenne, 2020 - PE

The Chair of the European Parliament’s Subcommittee on Human Rights, Maria Arena, and the Chair of Parliament’s delegation for relations with the Maghreb countries, Andrea Cozzolino, express their deep shock at the discovery of mass graves on Libyan territory recently recaptured from forces under the command of Khalifa Haftar.
Statement in full
Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Source : © Union européenne, 2020 - PE

Statement by MEPs Maria Arena and Hannah Neumann on the release of prominent Bahraini human rights defender Nabeel Rajab from prison. “Nabeel Rajab’s release from prison is very good news for him, his family and his supporters all around the world.
Full statement
Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Les députés de la sous-commission des droits de l’homme ont débattu vendredi avec des experts de la situation des droits de l’homme aux États-Unis après la mort de George Floyd.
Sous-commission "droits de l'homme"

Source : © Union européenne, 2020 - PE

Source : © Union européenne, 2020 - PE

Source : © Union européenne, 2020 - PE

This paper provides insight into the current situation and recent trends in the abolition or reform of discriminatory laws undermining women's rights in countries outside the European Union (EU). The paper aims to provide a nuanced understanding of processes through which legal reforms take place. Among the factors that have proven to facilitate legal reform are the ratification of international human rights treaties, feminist activism, legal and public advocacy by women’s rights and other human rights non-governmental organisations (NGOs), political dialogue, and increased women's representation in decision-making processes. Incremental steps supported by the EU towards the abolition of discriminatory laws across all legal categories, EU engagement with a broad range of stakeholders at both national and local levels, programmes supporting the gathering of gender-disaggregated data across all sectors and the publicising of data to draw attention to gender inequality in law and practice, among others, can all contribute towards successful reform of discriminatory laws. Striking the right balance between funding programmes that mainstream gender and funding dedicated to gender-targeted programmes, together with the increased use of country gender profiles, are essential in order to achieve quality legal reforms.
Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

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Source : © Union européenne, 2020 - PE

Source : © Union européenne, 2020 - PE

MEPs call on the US administration to respect international law and US federal law on protecting asylum seekers, who must not, by any means, be criminalised.

The delegation visited El Paso (Texas, USA), Ciudad Juarez (Chihuahua, Mexico) and Washington D.C. from 24 to 28 February to assess the human rights situation of migrants and refugees at the US-Mexico border. This was a follow up to the European Parliament's urgency resolution adopted on 18 July 2019.
Press release
Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Déclaration conjointe de Maria Arena, présidente de la sous-commission des droits de l'homme, et d'Andrea Cozzolino, président de la délégation pour les relations avec les pays du Maghreb.

"La condamnation de Karim Tabbou en appel hier, et en l'absence de ses avocats, va à l'encontre de son droit à un procès équitable dont il bénéficie en vertu du droit algérien ainsi que des conventions internationales ratifiées par l'Algérie."
Communique
Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Following the death of prominent Saudi human rights defender Abdullah al-Hamid in prison, Subcommittee on Human Rights Chair Maria Arena (S&D, BE) stated:

"I am shocked to hear that one of Saudi Arabia's leading human rights voices has passed away in prison at the age of 69, while serving an 11-year prison sentence. Professor al-Hamid was a pioneer in advocating for Saudi Arabia to recognise the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and for reforms leading towards the establishment of the rule of law, including accountable institutions. He dedicated his whole life to fighting against harmful practices and to protecting all those defending basic rights and freedoms in his country.

Press statement in full
Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

The European Parliament (EP) has repeatedly underlined the need for stronger European requirements for companies to prevent human rights abuses and environmental harm and to provide access to remedies for victims. The debate — both in the EU institutions and in several Member States — has intensified surrounding due diligence obligations for companies throughout the supply chain. In this context, the EP Human Rights Subcommittee (DROI) requested two briefings on specific human rights related issues it should consider while preparing its position. The first briefing in this compilation addresses substantive elements, such as the type and scope of human rights violations to be covered, as well as the type of companies that could be subject to a future EU regulation. The second briefing discusses options for monitoring and enforcement of due diligence obligations, as well as different ways to ensure access to justice for victims of human rights abuses. The briefings offer a concise overview and concrete recommendations, contributing to the ongoing debate and taking into account the research undertaken on behalf of the European Commission.
Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP