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EU Parl Watch

Changes between two versions

What changed between the plenary report and the adopted text

From · plenary report· 8 Dec 2023

A-9-2023-0424

on human rights and democracy in the world and the European Union’s policy on the matter – annual report 2023

To · adopted text· 28 Feb 2024

TA-9-2024-0106

Human rights and democracy in the world and the European Union’s policy on the matter – annual report 2023

Changes to the text itself, in document order. Cover page, citations and punctuation-only edits are left out; they are under “Every difference”.

The changes · 9

Change 1

Changed:B. whereas the European Union is guided in its external action by the values and principles enshrined in Article 2, Article 3(5) and Article 21(2) of the Treaty on European Union (TEU)TEU and in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, which have inspired the EU’s own creation, development and enlargement; whereas these values include, first and foremost, respect for human dignity, fundamental freedoms, the rule of law and the universality and indivisibility of human rights, the principles of equality, solidarity and non-discrimination and respect for the principles of the United Nations Charter and international law;

Change 2

Added:Q. whereas the 2021 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought was awarded to Alexei Navalny; whereas Navalny had been imprisoned since February 2021 in inhumane conditions; whereas his last place of detention was in Yamalo-Nenets in Western Siberia, where he was murdered on 16 February 2024;

Change 3

Added:12. Is shocked and appalled by the murder of 2021 Sakharov Prize laureate Alexei Navalny, who sacrificed his life to defend democracy and oppose oppression and corruption in Russia;

Added:13. Calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza;

Change 4

Added:15. Highlights the fact that UNRWA plays an irreplaceable role in providing critical aid to ensure the day to day survival of 2,2 million civilians in Gaza, who are facing an unspeakable threat to their lives and most basic rights; rejects the suspension of funding to UNRWA by 18 States, and recalls that if this decision is not reversed, UNRWA will run out of funds in the coming months; calls, therefore, for the EU and its Member States to grant UNRWA support with the proper funding to continue and to improve its life-saving humanitarian work;

5 more changes

Change 5

Added:18. Is seriously concerned about the persistence of protracted occupations and annexations of territories; calls for special attention to be paid to the human rights situation in illegally occupied territories, including in cases of protracted occupation and in the multiple frozen conflicts, and for effective measures to be taken with the aim of preventing grave human rights abuses, including the violation of the right to life, the restriction of freedom of movement, and discrimination;

Change 6

Changed:24.28. Reiterates its concern regarding violations of the right to freedom of thought, conscience, religion and belief. and related hate crimes; stresses that such violations occur across geographical and cultural boundaries; deplores the instrumentalisation of religion or belief identities for political purposes, including the exclusion of religious and belief minorities and religious communities in certain countries; condemns escalations of coercion, discrimination, harassment and violence perpetuated against members of thought, conscience, religious or belief minorities, their properties and places of worship; denounces the recourse to blasphemy, apostasy or other accusations based on religious grounds, including the possibility of the death penalty against the convicted, in relation to religious minorities and legitimate human rights activities, including on the internet and social media, and, more broadly, to restrict civil society space; condemns, in the strongest possible terms, the persecution of Christians all around the world;

Change 7

Added:37. Recalls that between 500 and 700 Palestinian children as young as 12 years old are being detained and prosecuted in the Israeli military court system; notes that some are being held without charge, while others face charges such as stone throwing; strongly condemns this illegal and immoral incarceration by the Israeli State and calls for the release of all Palestinian children from Israeli prisons;

Change 8

Changed:39.44. Reiterates its condemnation of the commercial practice of surrogacy, a global phenomenon that exposes women worldwide to exploitation and human trafficking, while targeting financially and socially vulnerable women in particular; highlights its severe impact on women, women’s rights, and women’s health, and underlines its cross-border implications;

Change 9

Changed:62.67. Calls for the EU, its Member States and the international community to immediately step up their efforts to halt the trend of emerging serious food shortages; underlines that food security has been aggravated by many conflicts occurring around the globe, including the current conflicts in countries that are large global exporters of primary food products, in particular, grain, with tremendous consequences in several areas of the world; strongly condemns the use or the threat of food insecurity as a political instrument of war, as well as the adverse effects of speculation with the price of food; calls in particular for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip in order to allow uninterrupted access to food and water for all its inhabitants;