What Samira spoke about.

Mr President, over six months — we have come a long way — and I still do not see any significant positive developments. I still do not see that the violence has stopped and I still do not see that children and innocent people are not victims of this terrible war. On the contrary, I see the opposite. Several reports have come out, different analyses have been made and yet there are no positive resu

Madam President, I think it became very clear from this debate that we all share that we need to stand for human rights and that we need to protect human lives here, because this is really what the Forced Labour Ban Regulation is about. It’s about protecting human rights, but it’s also about promoting our own values and standards. And this cannot be only empty talks. So yes, this is an instrument

Madam President, the forced labour ban regulation resembles a grand marathon with many challenges along the way that made the journey both demanding and fulfilling. This regulation will be groundbreaking and unique. It is broad, inclusive and tackles many issues. The forced labour ban will put a halt to the entry of products and services produced under dire, inhumane and undignified circumstances.

Mr President, dear colleagues, thank you for your opinions and comments. Look, this agreement, you have provisions in it, and these provisions are binding and enforceable with an enforcement mechanism. The political and cooperation pillar includes an entire chapter on cooperation on sustainable development, which contains comprehensive articles on sustainable development, particularly on the envir

Mr President, it’s a great honour to finally have a trade agreement hopefully being passed through Parliament again today. This agreement is ground—breaking, with the first EU gender and trade chapter and a trade and sustainability chapter. This is the most ambitious Trade and Sustainable Development chapter negotiated so far by the EU, with ambitious and binding commitments on environmental and l

Mr President, at the upcoming 68th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women, in New York, we continue our tireless pursuit of women’s rights and empowerment. Our report sends a clear message: women and young girls are integral to the rapid advancements shaping our future world. And even as these changes sometimes carry biases against us – examples are found in tech, health and the labou

Madam President, we live in a world where we cannot escape digital communication and information, a world where social media is part of our daily lives. And this is why things get complicated: the spread of hate on the internet is a threat that is ever so real and is directly connected to hate speech and hate crime in the physical world. The deliberate dissemination of misinformation and hateful c

Mr President, South Africa’s case at the International Court of Justice teaches us humanity amidst times where we need it the most, and more African countries these days followed, teaching us what humanity is. Together with the majority of the world, they concluded that we are witnessing one of the greatest atrocities of this century, and they are right. This war has tormented generations, childre

Mr President, it is clear: We must not abandon our young people. They have to deal with the consequences of the climate crisis, the housing crisis, but also a crisis of political leadership. Let's face it, old politics prefer to point to scapegoats instead of putting their hand in their own bosom. It is therefore also very important that political leadership in Europe is now shown to ensure that E

Mr President, the reality of Gaza is that it’s only a strip roughly twice the size of Brussels, one that has been hermetically closed and isolated for almost two decades by sea, land and air. A strip that has seen 67 days of the heaviest forms of violence, trapping and displacing most of its 2.3 million civilians. A strip that is now referred to as the graveyard for children, a strip in which jour

Mr President, the European project has not yet been completed. We are faced with the challenge of bringing European politics closer to the electorate. The electorate is the boss. This means that we need to change, reform European decision-making and European politics. Bringing politics close to the people, bringing European politics to the streets, so that people feel represented. That is why we n

Mr President, online platforms have to take their responsibility and they have to do it now, because this information is a serious threat to our rule of law and democracy. It is manipulating the public opinion on this extremely volatile conflict. We are seeing the spread of misinformation and hateful messages on the devastating situation in Israel and Gaza across the internet, and we cannot let on

Mr President, so everywhere in Europe, we see a rise in verbal and physical attacks against the LGBTQI+ community. I think the latest example we have is the removal of same-sex mothers from their children’s birth certificates in Italy. Colleagues, we have a big problem here. We have an existential problem here. The fundamental rights of Europeans are being seriously undermined by populist parties

Madam President, the current challenges that we are facing now in the world make clear that we need new, modern, green and inclusive trade agreements with third countries. And we can definitely not wait anymore, it’s so important for our strategic autonomy in the world and the strategic position in general that we need to have in the world. When it comes to our green and just transition, we need a

Mr President, a year since the brutal murder of Jina Mahsa Amini by the Iranian rogue regime – that is what you can call it. Since her murder, tens of thousands of activists – mostly women, often young – have been imprisoned by this terrible regime. No respect for human rights at all. In the past month, at least 12 activists have been detained. And for what? Because they stand up for themselves, f

Madam President, in this House we are very fierce when it comes to upholding democratic values. In our urgency resolutions, our reports and our debates, we condemn those who undermine democratic principles and the rule of law. We demand the strengthening of democratic values and institutions from our partners in the world and our allies, and we enshrine these values in our treaties and even in our

Madam Commissioner, we have the Economic Partnership Agreement with Kenya, the first-ever Sustainable Investment Facilitation Agreement with Angola, we have the cooperation under the Global Gateway Initiative, and I could go on. So things are moving in the right direction and that is very positive news for the EU—Africa relations, especially from a trade perspective. However, not everything is as

Mr President, after 456 days of illegal imprisonment, I am very happy with the news that Olivier Vandecasteele, together with two Austrians in one day and have been freed from their Iranian cells. Unfortunately, their cases are not the only ones. There are dozens of European citizens from many Member States detained by Iran and other regimes, and since 2010, over 66 people with an EU or double nat

Mr President, it is of course very good that we in the European Union can now propose new legislation, to ourselves, to the rest of the world. We are showing a very good example here. But let's also realize that artificial intelligence is about human rights. We will have to guard the human measure at all times. When it comes to people's social and economic rights, we have seen that artificial inte

Mr President, I hope that the European Parliament will assume its responsibilities tomorrow. It is a pity to see that in recent days a number of colleagues, especially here on the right, have been building coalitions to, for example, make amendments that go completely against the essence of this new and important legislation. I thank the rapporteur. Very good work. It is no secret that the Committ

Madam President, Commissioner, I’m glad that we’re having this important discussion today on the day of Europe. It makes me think of the city Eindhoven in my own Member State, where the key technological players need to train thousands of workers so that our European champions can keep innovating. The great transitions of our times, such as the digital and green transition, need us to keep innovat

Perhaps the world is a little bit unfair, right? So the facts are here: the Istanbul Convention has already done an amazing job. It has made local authorities, national authorities, very much aware of the approach that they need to take and that they need to organise to make sure that women and girls are protected from violence. So the facts are there. And I’m not going to have a discussion with y

Mr President, at last: the European Union accedes to the Istanbul Convention. The strongest legal framework, which can now help girls and women and protect them from violence. And I really mean all women. It is very much needed because a number of movements and organisations in Europe are trying to reverse what we have worked so hard for. These are destructive, fascist anti-gender movements that d

As the Co-President of the Anti-Racism and Diversity Intergroup, I first of all would like to put forward a request, dear Chair, because what I am observing here now in a couple of interventions is that the violence against women is now linked with migration and people with a migrant background and Islam. I do think this falls into the category of hate speech, and I think at least this kind of spe

Mr President, here we are again to discuss the horrible situation of women and girls in Afghanistan – and it’s endless. What the Taliban has done is introduce gender apartheid. That’s what it is. Under this regime, women and girls will never be safe and secure. We can absolutely not allow, the international community cannot allow, to recognise the Taliban and its regime, because we cannot bow down