REPORT on human rights and democracy in the world and the European Union’s policy on the matter – annual report 2024

Wording as published by the EP, in English.

1. Amendment 5Rejected

   Recital R a (new)

   Tabled by Sarah Knafo · ESN

   Added: Ra. whereas Boualem Sansal, a French citizen and winner of the Grand Prix de l’Académie française, is arbitrarily imprisoned for his political opinions by the Algerian regime;

2. Amendment 7Rejected

   Paragraph 1 a (new)

   Tabled by Sarah Knafo · ESN

   Added: 1a. Calls for the EU and its Member States to lead by example, in line with its values, in particular by refraining from the anti-democratic practices referred to in recital L, such as censorship, silencing, harassment of journalists and the use of SLAPPs;

3. Amendment 11Rejected

   Paragraph 23 a (new)

   Tabled by Tomasz Froelich · ESN

   Added: 23a. Notes that the UN has not succeeded to the extent hoped for in promoting international cooperation and maintaining international security and global peace, because most UN member states refuse to engage in international cooperation; notes that in 2022 the EU Member States contributed around EUR 14.1 billion to the UN system, while the EU alone contributes around EUR 3 billion each year; notes that the EU and its Member States jointly account for the single largest contribution; notes that the UN member states are increasingly calling into question the added value of UN peacekeeping operations; is concerned about the politicisation of UN human rights mechanisms and committees such as the UN Human Rights Committee, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women; calls, therefore, for a fundamental debate on the way taxes paid by EU citizens are spent by the UN and on whether the EU should continue to fund the UN to this extent;

4. Amendment 12Rejected

   Paragraph 29 a (new)

   Tabled by Tomasz Froelich · ESN

   Added: 29a. Is deeply concerned about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC); notes that an estimated 7 million Congolese people are now displaced within the country, and that child military recruitment, abductions, killings and sexual violence are rising; is deeply concerned about the dire humanitarian situation in Sudan, which has been plunged into the world’s largest internal displacement crisis, with over 11 million people displaced; notes that in Sudan acute food insecurity is affecting over 25 million people and that violence has targeted, in particular, women and girls, non-Muslim Africans in Darfur and the Nuba people; is appalled by the lack of political and media attention and interest across the EU for these ‘forgotten conflicts’ and criticises the selective outrage; emphasises that the EU’s stance in the conflict between the DRC and Rwanda is hypocritical, undermining the credibility of the EU’s human rights policy;

5. Amendment 13Rejected

   Paragraph 32

   Tabled by Sarah Knafo · ESN

   … States to use all possible means to urge countries to release political Removed: prisoners; Added: prisoners, starting with nationals of the Member States, such as Boualem Sansal, detained as a political prisoner by the Algerian regime; highlights the importance of shared responsibility between Member States and EU delegations …

6. Amendment 14Rejected

   Paragraph 40 a (new)

   Tabled by Tomasz Froelich, Christine Anderson · ESN

   Added: 40a. Is appalled by the complete lack of public and media attention across the EU for the child sexual exploitation scandal in the United Kingdom; recalls that, over a decade ago, many thousands of young girls in England were raped, sexually exploited and trafficked by gangs of mostly Pakistani men and that this large-scale child sexual exploitation was facilitated by grave systemic failures within law enforcement, social services and local government; emphasises that this child sexual exploitation scandal illustrates the danger that uncontrolled mass immigration poses for women and girls; encourages the Member States to launch a comprehensive debate on the link between mass migration and the rise in sex crimes and criminal networks, to follow a ‘zero tolerance approach’ and to prioritise the expulsion of foreign nationals convicted of sexual offences against children;

7. Amendment 16Rejected

   Paragraph 45 a (new)

   Tabled by Tomasz Froelich · ESN

   Added: 45a. Notes with concern that the EU’s external borders are under constant and growing pressure; stresses that the current challenges in the area of migration and asylum have become unmanageable because of the sharp rise in illegal migration; stresses that the inefficiency of the EU’s return system encourages illegal migration and that the refusal of many migrants’ countries of origin to cooperate is one of the most important reasons for the low return rate of illegal migrants; notes the lack of a strong and consistent policy of repatriation of migrants at the level of the Member States; pleads for the promotion of regional protection and the externalisation of asylum policy; argues in favour of more effective return systems; welcomes the new strategy for Sweden’s global development cooperation on migration, returns and voluntary repatriation for 2024-2028; calls for the EU and its Member States to follow Sweden’s example and make development assistance conditional, ensuring that recipient countries cooperate regarding readmission of their nationals, including by removing impediments to enforcement such as the non-issuing of travel documents; condemns the instrumentalisation of migration at EU borders by foreign actors, which constitutes hybrid attacks against the Member States and notes that migration is becoming a systemic geopolitical challenge; stresses that the EU should step up its efforts to acknowledge and develop ways to address the root causes of illegal migration and forced displacement, building the resilience of migrants’ communities of origin and helping them offer their members the possibility of enjoying a decent life in their home country; notes that the European Court of Auditors has once again found that funding under the EU Emergency Trust Fund is still not concentrating enough on priorities to tackle the root causes of illegal migration; reiterates that close cooperation and engagement with non-EU countries, with full respect for fundamental rights, remain key to preventing the smuggling of migrants; stresses, in this regard, that the dissemination of information and awareness-raising campaigns on the risks of people smuggling and on the migration laws of the destination countries are crucial, in order to prevent those who do not have the grounds for asylum from undertaking unnecessarily risky journeys;

8. Amendment 17Rejected

   Paragraph 50

   Tabled by Tomasz Froelich, Christine Anderson · ESN

   50. Reiterates its condemnation of all forms of racism, intolerance, antisemitism, Removed: Islamophobia, persecution of Christians, xenophobia and discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, … social class, disability, caste, religion, belief, age, sexual orientation or gender identity; Removed: condemns the growing international threat of hate speech and speech that incites violence, including online; reiterates the crucial role of education and dialogue in promoting tolerance, understanding and diversity; calls for the adoption or the strengthening of mechanisms for reporting discriminatory behaviours as well as access to effective legal remedies, to help end the impunity of those who engage in this behaviour; Added: notes with concern that allegations of ‘hate speech’ are increasingly being used across the EU and other regions of the world to criminalise dissenting opinions; is deeply concerned, in this regard, about the impact of the UN’s proposals in connection with its Global Principles for Information Integrity and its Pact for the Future on the freedom of expression;

9. Amendment 18Rejected

   Paragraph 52 a (new)

   Tabled by Tomasz Froelich · ESN

   Added: 52a. Recalls that the only common denominator for Europe is its Christian heritage, and that this heritage led to individual freedom, democratic institutions and the traditional rule of law; notes with concern, therefore, that, according to the Open Doors organisation, more than 380 million Christians worldwide suffer high levels of persecution for their faith; is deeply concerned about the continued violence against Christians across sub-Saharan Africa and in the Middle East;

10. Amendment 19Rejected

    Paragraph 54

    Tabled by Sarah Knafo · ESN

    … about the increasing restrictions on freedom of expression in numerous countries worldwide, Added: including in the EU, particularly for journalists, through censorship, enforced self-censorship, so-called foreign agents laws and …

11. Amendment 20Rejected

    Paragraph 55

    Tabled by Sarah Knafo · ESN

    … extensive use of SLAPPs to silence journalists, activists, trade unionists and HRDs Removed: globally; Added: globally, including in the EU; welcomes, in this context, the directive designed to shield journalists and HRDs …

12. Amendment 21Rejected

    Paragraph 61

    Tabled by Sarah Knafo · ESN

    … these regimes conduct fake elections with the aim of entrenching their power, Added: or annul election results that are unfavourable to them, as they lack real political contestation and pluralism; is alarmed by current … and report to Parliament their initiatives to tackle the challenges posed by Removed: articifical Added: artificial intelligence (AI) in electoral processes;

13. Amendment 33Rejected

    Paragraph 4 a (new)

    Tabled by Isabel Serra Sánchez, Irene Montero, Rima Hassan +8 · The Left

    Added: 4a. Strongly condemns and is deeply concerned by the ongoing genocide being committed by the Israeli authorities in the Gaza Strip; denounces the atrocities, war crimes and serious violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law committed by the Israeli authorities in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon and Syria; condemns, in the strongest possible terms, the Israeli indiscriminate attacks with air strikes and the use of chemical weapons against civilians, the forced expulsion of populations, the use of sexual violence and torture, the attacks on hospitals, schools and basic infrastructure and the denial of humanitarian aid access; underlines that these attacks are war crimes and a violation of the Geneva Conventions; condemns Israel’s policy of collective punishment against the people of Gaza, which is contrary to international humanitarian law and must be stopped; highlights the catastrophic humanitarian situation and calls for the risk of mass starvation, the worsening of health conditions and the outbreak of a health epidemic in Gaza to be addressed; calls for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza;

14. Amendment 34Rejected

    Paragraph 4 b (new)

    Tabled by Isabel Serra Sánchez, Irene Montero, Rima Hassan +6 · The Left

    Added: 4b. Strongly rejects the US and Israeli plans to expel Palestinians from the Gaza Strip and recalls that any deportation or forcible transfer of persons from occupied territory is strictly prohibited; reaffirms the fundamental right to self-determination of the Palestinian people, as recognised by the UN Charter; calls for a reparation process for the Palestinian State; demands the restitution of occupied territories and the return of the Palestinians who have been forced to flee their lands since 1948, to their homes;

15. Amendment 36Rejected

    Paragraph 12 a (new)

    Tabled by Isabel Serra Sánchez, Irene Montero, Rima Hassan +7 · The Left

    Added: 12a. Stresses that the EU-Israel Association Agreement is, according to Article 2 of that agreement, based on the fulfilment of human rights and emphasises these as a guiding principle; notes that Israel stands accused of genocide and calls, therefore, for the immediate termination of the EU-Israel Association Agreement;

16. Amendment 41Rejected

    Paragraph 29 b (new)

    Tabled by Isabel Serra Sánchez, Irene Montero, Rima Hassan +6 · The Left

    Added: 29b. Strongly condemns Israel’s colonial settlement and its continued expansion, which violates international law and fuels Palestinian resentment; notes that, according to national and international NGOs, the system of oppression and domination that the Israeli Government imposes on the Palestinian population in all areas under its control and on Palestinian refugees, constitutes apartheid and is prohibited by international law; recalls the opinion issued by the International Court of Justice on 19 July 2024, which concluded that the State of Israel ‘is under an obligation to immediately cease all new settlement activities and to evacuate all settlers from the Occupied Palestinian Territory’; calls on the EU Member States to demand that Israel fully end the occupation of Palestine, including East Jerusalem, thereby paving the way for peace;

17. Amendment 43Rejected

    Paragraph 29 d (new)

    Tabled by Isabel Serra Sánchez, Irene Montero, Hanna Gedin +4 · The Left

    Added: 29d. Deplores the flagrant human rights violations committed in the occupied territories of Western Sahara, from the violation of freedom of expression and assembly, the torture and ill treatment reported by political prisoners, the unfair trials, the repression during demonstrations (including cases of torture and killings), and the prohibition of free entry to the occupied territories for observers and the international press; stresses that Western Sahara is a separate and distinct territory in relation to any State, including Morocco; urges the EU and the Member States to support the self-determination and decolonisation efforts of Sahrawi people by ensuring an urgent, just and lasting solution to the conflict in Western Sahara, based on the right to self-determination of the Saharawi people and in accordance with the relevant UN Resolutions; urges the EU and its Member States to fully comply with the Court of Justice of the European Union ruling and to suspend the EU-Morocco Association Agreements;

18. Amendment 44Rejected

    Paragraph 30 a (new)

    Tabled by Isabel Serra Sánchez, Irene Montero, Rima Hassan +6 · The Left

    Added: 30a. Calls for the Member States to immediately stop arms exports to Israel in line with Council Common Position 2008/944/CFSP of 8 December 2008 defining common rules governing control of exports of military technology and equipment; warns that states which support Israel with arms shipments can now be sued in the International Court of Justice for aiding and abetting genocide against Palestinians in violation of Article 3(e) of the Genocide Convention, which criminalises complicity;

19. Amendment 46Adopted

    Paragraph 43 a (new)

    Tabled by Isabel Serra Sánchez, Irene Montero, Rima Hassan +7 · The Left

    Added: 43a. Recognises that the promotion and protection of SRHR is essential to achieving gender equality and affirms the right to access comprehensive SRHR services, including modern contraception, free, safe and legal abortion, maternal, prenatal and postnatal healthcare, assisted reproduction and access to education and information on SRHR, including comprehensive sexuality education, without any form of discrimination, coercion or violence; echoes human rights bodies’ recognition that banning abortion may subject women to suffering amounting to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment;

20. Amendment 51Rejected

    Paragraph 3

    Tabled by Pierre-Romain Thionnet, Matthieu Valet, Margarita de la Pisa Carrión +5 · PfE

    3. Stresses that the EU must be fully prepared to Removed: counter Added: confront the rise of Removed: authoritarianism, totalitarianism and populism, Added: authoritarianism and religious extremism, including Islamism, which is spreading across Europe due to mass illegal immigration, as well as the Removed: increasing violations of the principles of universality of Added: growing threats to human rights, democracy and international humanitarian law; Added: recalls and strongly condemns the recent tragic attacks in France, Germany and Austria perpetrated by fraudulent asylum seekers; underscores the EU’s responsibility in enabling these incidents through its failed migration policies;

21. Amendment 52Rejected

    Paragraph 5 a (new)

    Tabled by Pierre-Romain Thionnet, Matthieu Valet, Afroditi Latinopoulou +3 · PfE

    Added: 5a. Rejects the idea of offsetting the suspension of US Agency for International Development (USAID) funding to human rights organisations, as such a commitment would lead to a further increase in budgetary expenditures for the Union and its Member States, in favour of entities, most of which make no tangible contribution;

22. Amendment 54Rejected

    Paragraph 23

    Tabled by Matthieu Valet, Pierre-Romain Thionnet, Silvia Sardone +2 · PfE

    … the new global actors, especially those focusing on democracy and human rights; Removed: reiterates the need for the EU and its Member States to speak with one voice at the UN and in other multilateral forums in order to effectively tackle global challenges to human rights and democracy in multilateral forums and to support the strongest possible language in line with international human rights standards; calls, to this end, for progress in ensuring that the EU has a seat in international organisations, including the UN Security Council, in addition to the existing Member States’ seats; calls for EU delegations to play a stronger role in multilateral forums, for which they should have appropriate resources available; Added: firmly rejects the proposal to grant the EU a permanent seat in all multilateral forums, as this would erode national sovereignty and constrain Member States’ ability to act in their national interests; stresses that conferring quasi-state attributes on the EU poses a direct threat to the sovereignty of Member States and represents another step toward federalisation;

23. Amendment 55Rejected

    Paragraph 41

    Tabled by András László, Matthieu Valet, Pierre-Romain Thionnet +5 · PfE

    … quality education and ensure access to education for all children and young Removed: people; reiterates its calls to address cultural norms and gender biases that prevent girls and women from receiving an education and urges the creation of gender-responsive education systems worldwide; Added: people, including access to education in their mother tongue; deplores any initiatives by non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and media organisations that violate children’s rights to healthy and natural development through the promotion of so-called affirmative care; calls on the EU institutions to defend the healthy and natural development of minors across the world;

24. Amendment 57Rejected

    Paragraph 43 a (new)

    Tabled by András László, Matthieu Valet, Pierre-Romain Thionnet +6 · PfE

    Added: 43a. Calls for the EU to defend girls, women and women’s rights based on the individual’s biological sex;

25. Amendment 58Rejected

    Paragraph 44 a (new)

    Tabled by Silvia Sardone, Roberto Vannacci, Susanna Ceccardi +4 · PfE

    Added: 44a. Reiterates its condemnation of the 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;

26. Amendment 59Rejected

    Paragraph 45 a (new)

    Tabled by Matthieu Valet, Pierre-Romain Thionnet, Margarita de la Pisa Carrión +5 · PfE

    Added: 45a. Emphasises that continued migration from radical Islamic countries, such as Afghanistan, to Europe risks importing fundamentalist Sharia laws, thus undermining women’s rights in Europe; urges Member States to halt the mass influx from these countries, primarily composed of young adult males; calls for the rapid and effective implementation of measures to readmit migrants posing a threat to European security and the enforcement of readmission agreements for illegal migrants;

27. Amendment 60Rejected

    Paragraph 45 b (new)

    Tabled by Matthieu Valet, Pierre-Romain Thionnet, Silvia Sardone +5 · PfE

    Added: 45b. Highlights the duplicity and complicity of certain NGOs in facilitating human smuggling within the European Union; stresses that private entities should not be involved in conducting search and rescue operations, as well as all other activities in support of illegal entry into the Member States, as this constitutes a violation of national laws; reiterates calls to block EU funding to these so-called civil society groups that act as illegal shuttle services for smuggling migrants and demands that these NGOs be held criminally accountable for their involvement in migrant smuggling and human trafficking;

28. Amendment 61Rejected

    Paragraph 45 c (new)

    Tabled by Matthieu Valet, Pierre-Romain Thionnet, Margarita de la Pisa Carrión +5 · PfE

    Added: 45c. Urges the Member States and the EU to apply diplomatic, economic, and political pressure on third countries to promptly readmit their nationals who have committed crimes in the European Union, particularly those under legal and administrative expulsion orders; emphasises that cooperation agreements, trade relations, visa policies, and financial assistance to third countries should be contingent upon compliance with readmission obligations and calls for enhanced cooperation among Member States in this regard;

29. Amendment 62Rejected

    Paragraph 52 a (new)

    Tabled by Matthieu Valet, Pierre-Romain Thionnet, Margarita de la Pisa Carrión +5 · PfE

    Added: 52a. Expresses grave concern that Christians remain the most persecuted religious group in the world, primarily due to Islamist persecution; condemns, in the strongest terms, all attacks against Christian communities around the world; recalls that the EU shares a Christian heritage and is therefore obliged to confront these assaults; deplores the lack of a specific strategy from the Commission to combat ‘Christianophobia’; notes, however, that the Commission has appointed a coordinator to address Islamophobia;

30. Amendment 64Rejected

    Paragraph 52 c (new)

    Tabled by Silvia Sardone, Roberto Vannacci, Susanna Ceccardi +5 · PfE

    Added: 52c. Notes with concern and condemns the rise of antisemitism in the world;

31. Amendment 65Rejected

    Paragraph 58 a (new)

    Tabled by Silvia Sardone, Roberto Vannacci, Susanna Ceccardi +6 · PfE

    Added: 58a. Notes with concern that so-called ‘wokeism’ and the resulting cancel culture widens societal divisions, discourages open and frank discourse, leads to a reductionist view of history, promotes censorship, historical revisionism, and inevitably curtails freedom of expression;

32. Amendment 67Rejected

    Recital J a (new)

    Tabled by Arkadiusz Mularczyk, Mariusz Kamiński, Adam Bielan +2 · ECR

    Added: Ja. whereas international humanitarian law, including the Geneva Conventions, mandates the humane treatment of prisoners of war, ensuring their rights to dignity, medical care and communication with their families; whereas numerous reports from international organisations, human rights groups, journalists and Ukrainian authorities provide evidence of executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war by Russian forces; whereas those held are subjected to severe mistreatment, including torture, forced labour, psychological abuse and inhumane detention conditions; whereas Russia’s systematic violations of these legal obligations constitute war crimes under international law;

33. Amendment 70Adopted

    Recital R a (new)

    Tabled by Arkadiusz Mularczyk, Adam Bielan, Mariusz Kamiński +1 · ECR

    Added: Ra. whereas, according to Article 21 TEU, the Union must seek to develop relations and build partnerships with third countries based, among other principles, on democracy, the rule of law, the universality and indivisibility of human rights and fundamental freedoms, respect for human dignity, the principles of equality and solidarity, and respect for the principles of the United Nations Charter and international law; whereas numerous EU partners, despite benefiting for years from various preferences and advantages stemming from agreements with the EU, fail to comply with their obligations, as exemplified by the case of the Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement with Cuba;

34. Amendment 70Rejected

    Recital R a (new)

    Tabled by Arkadiusz Mularczyk, Adam Bielan, Mariusz Kamiński +1 · ECR

    Added: Ra. whereas, according to Article 21 TEU, the Union must seek to develop relations and build partnerships with third countries based, among other principles, on democracy, the rule of law, the universality and indivisibility of human rights and fundamental freedoms, respect for human dignity, the principles of equality and solidarity, and respect for the principles of the United Nations Charter and international law; whereas numerous EU partners, despite benefiting for years from various preferences and advantages stemming from agreements with the EU, fail to comply with their obligations, as exemplified by the case of the Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement with Cuba;

35. Amendment 73Rejected

    Paragraph 8 a (new)

    Tabled by Charlie Weimers, Arkadiusz Mularczyk, Cristian Terheş +1 · ECR

    Added: 8a. Calls on the Commission to cease all funding to Islamist organisations and any entities with ties to Islamism, as well as campaigns that glorify or legitimise the hijab;

36. Amendment 74Rejected

    Paragraph 10 a (new)

    Tabled by Charlie Weimers, Arkadiusz Mularczyk, Cristian Terheş +1 · ECR

    Added: 10a. Calls for the prioritisation of the readmission of illegal migrants in relations with third countries and emphasises the application of conditionality in development aid;

37. Amendment 76Adopted

    Paragraph 19

    Tabled by Arkadiusz Mularczyk, Mariusz Kamiński, Adam Bielan +1 · ECR

    … Commission and the EU delegations pay particular attention to the situation of Removed: the Sakharov Prize laureates and finalists at risk and take resolute action, in … the Member States and Parliament, to ensure their well-being, safety or liberation; Added: pays tribute to the Sakharov Prize laureates and finalists who have lost their lives in the fight for human rights, democracy and freedom, including Oswaldo Payá, who was killed by the communist regime in Havana and whose case has recently been brought to light; calls for such cases to be duly considered when shaping policies towards the relevant regimes;

38. Amendment 76Rejected

    Paragraph 19

    Tabled by Arkadiusz Mularczyk, Mariusz Kamiński, Adam Bielan +1 · ECR

    … Commission and the EU delegations pay particular attention to the situation of Removed: the Sakharov Prize laureates and finalists at risk and take resolute action, in … the Member States and Parliament, to ensure their well-being, safety or liberation; Added: pays tribute to the Sakharov Prize laureates and finalists who have lost their lives in the fight for human rights, democracy and freedom, including Oswaldo Payá, who was killed by the communist regime in Havana and whose case has recently been brought to light; calls for such cases to be duly considered when shaping policies towards the relevant regimes;

39. Amendment 79Rejected

    Paragraph 24

    Tabled by Arkadiusz Mularczyk, Adam Bielan, Mariusz Kamiński +3 · ECR

    … abuse of veto power at the UN Security Council; underlines that the Removed: diminished Added: UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) require greater scrutiny, as the UNHRC has enabled human rights abusers to shield themselves from accountability, rather than fulfilling its mandate to protect fundamental freedoms; stresses the need for a thorough evaluation of whether these bodies are effectively serving their intended purposes; emphasises that the diminishing effectiveness of these bodies Removed: brings with it real costs in terms of conflicts, lives lost and human suffering, and seriously weakens the general ability of countries to deal with Added: has severe consequences, including escalating conflicts, loss of life and widespread human suffering, while also seriously weakening the global community’s ability to address pressing global challenges; calls on the Member States and like minded partners to … united and strong message of support to those organisations when they are Added: unjustly attacked or threatened; believes that the UN, its bodies, and other multilateral …

40. Amendment 80Rejected

    Paragraph 27

    Tabled by Arkadiusz Mularczyk, Mariusz Kamiński, Adam Bielan +2 · ECR

    … combat impunity and promote international accountability; calls on the Member States to Added: actively apply universal jurisdiction in the fight against Removed: impunity; Added: impunity, particularly in cases of systematic human rights violations, state-sponsored terrorism and repression, such as the acts committed by the Lukashenka regime in Minsk; emphasises that universal jurisdiction should serve as a vital legal mechanism to prosecute perpetrators when national or international judicial avenues are obstructed or ineffective; urges enhanced cooperation between national and international judicial bodies to strengthen legal frameworks, facilitate evidence-sharing and ensure that those responsible for grave human rights violations are held accountable, regardless of where the crimes were committed;

41. Amendment 90Rejected

    Paragraph 43 a (new)

    Tabled by Carlo Fidanza, Paolo Inselvini, Bert-Jan Ruissen +6 · ECR

    Added: 43a. Condemns the practice of surrogacy, which undermines the human dignity of women by reducing their bodies and reproductive functions to commodities; highlights its severe impact on women, their rights and their health, and underlines its significant cross-border implications; stresses that surrogacy is a phenomenon that exposes women worldwide to exploitation and human trafficking, particularly targeting those who are financially and socially vulnerable; believes that surrogacy, as a practice that exploits women’s bodies for reproductive purposes, should be banned, including in the case of vulnerable women in developing countries;

42. Amendment 91Rejected

    Paragraph 45

    Tabled by Sebastian Tynkkynen, Cristian Terheş, Charlie Weimers +1 · ECR

    … policy and in the EU’s cooperation with partner countries in this regard; Added: emphasises that Member States have the right to organise the processing of the applications of asylum seekers outside the EU; deplores the increasing xenophobia, racism and discrimination towards migrants, as well as …

43. Amendment 92Rejected

    Paragraph 56 a (new)

    Tabled by Charlie Weimers, Arkadiusz Mularczyk, Sebastian Tynkkynen · ECR

    Added: 56a. Notes that the EU’s imposition of far-reaching digital and tech regulations on businesses in partner countries has negative trade and security consequences; therefore, rejects calls for strict enforcement of the Digital Services Act and instead calls for dialogue with transatlantic partners on safeguarding free speech;