The Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament welcome the positive vote in the Parliament’s plenary session on the annual report on human rights and democracy in the world 2013. The Group encourages the EU delegations in New York and Geneva to increase the coherence of EU policy through timely and substantive consultation in order to present the EU’s position with one voice.
Gianni Pittella MEP, president of the Socialists and Democrats Group in the European Parliament, said:
"Human rights are part of the European Union's ethical and legal basis — in terms of respecting, promoting and safeguarding the universality of human rights — and for our Group this is a major political commitment on foreign policy.
"Defending the international interests of the EU and its member states cannot be dissociated from the defence of human rights in the world. The promotion of human rights must be a cornerstone of EU relations with other countries. There are no cultural exceptions for human rights. They must be universally and wholly protected.”
The report for this year is particularly important as it coincides with the conclusion of the human rights cycle initiated in 2012 by the European External Action Service.
S&D MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri, the Parliament’s lead negotiator on the issue, chose to use a thematic approach instead of the usual geographical one in order to keep the focus on the key human rights issues. He stressed:
"I consider it to be a great success that in the report there are clear indications on important issues such as: the legal definition in international law of the term ‘climate refugee’; the development of clear operational guidelines in order to mainstream and promote human rights both towards the European Union's focal point and in the European Parliament's inter-parliamentary delegations when visiting third countries; the improvement of EU actions in support of human rights defenders.
"Human rights should never be considered as a privilege just for a minority or a subject subordinate to economy or to the stability of authoritarian regimes."
Richard Howitt MEP, the S&D Group's foreign affairs co-ordinator, said:
"The implementation of the UN's Guiding principles on business and human rights must be a key priority in the renewed action plan on human rights, including better access to justice for victims of corporate human-rights abuses worldwide.
"EU member states must finish the process of drawing up action plans, the French proposal for supply-chain responsibility should be applied across Europe as a whole and the EU must champion the proposed UN sustainable-development goal to match our own agreement on mandatory non-financial reporting by business."
