What Maria spoke about.

17 Jun

2026

DE Speech

Political prisoners in Nicaragua – the cases of Carlos Brenes, Salvadora del Socorro Martínez Aburto and Brooklyn Rivera

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Mr President! No mention of me; A letter from Thelma, the daughter of Carlos: I write these words to my father without knowing if he will ever hear them. Dad, wherever you are, I want you to know we haven't forgotten you. You're not alone. They can hide you behind prison walls, but they can't remove you from our lives, and they can't destroy your life's work. The government wants our silence. But …

30 Apr

2026

DE Speech

How to secure a sustainable future for the EU livestock sector in light of the need to ensure food security, farmers’ resilience and the challenges posed by animal diseases? (debate)

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Mr President, ladies and gentlemen. Securing the sustainable future in livestock farming, in the livestock sector, is important to all of us. I say this quite clearly: Yes, yes. And I think the majority of society out there also says quite clearly: Yes, yes. But what do we say yes to? I say yes to meat and milk as food. But I also say yes to the fact that more plant-based foods are important. I sa…

27 Apr

2026

DE Speech

Importance of consent-based rape legislation in the EU (debate)

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Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, We stand here today because we are fighting to ensure that there is and should be the only truly fair legal principle when it comes to sexual contacts, the only fair principle, namely genuine consent, namely: ‘Yes only means yes’. I would like to address specifically the husbands and permanent partners of women. It must be clear to them that we are fighting for …

9 Mar

2026

DE Answer

Gender pay and pension gap in the EU: state of play, challenges and the way forward, and developing guidelines for the better evaluation and fairer remuneration of work in female-dominated sectors (debate)

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9 Mar

2026

DE Speech

Gender pay and pension gap in the EU: state of play, challenges and the way forward, and developing guidelines for the better evaluation and fairer remuneration of work in female-dominated sectors (debate)

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12 Feb

2026

DE Speech

Recommendation to the Council on EU priorities for the 70th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (debate)

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16 Dec

2025

DE Speech

European Citizens’ Initiative ‘My voice, my choice: for safe and accessible abortion’ (debate)

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7 Oct

2025

DE Speech

Common agricultural policy (joint debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, What Europe is always proud of is that we have a great consumer protection programme, that we really stand for consumer protection. Consumer protection always means that what's in it is what's on it. And now we come to the vote tomorrow: It says ‘simplification’, but that's not really in it. If one or the other of the amendmen…

19 Jun

2025

DE Speech

Protecting bees: advancing the EU's New Deal for Pollinators (debate)

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Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen! Yes, the Commission is currently on the road with a 'bee-protection' banner; this bee-protection banner should be at the top. However, it is important to say that the Commission's recent proposals on European agricultural policy are in stark contrast. Bee policy is not made in your committee or in your Commission, but bee p…

7 May

2025

DE Speech

Democratic legitimacy and the Commission’s continued authorisation of genetically modified organisms despite Parliament’s objections (debate)

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Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, It is clear: The majority of people in Europe do not want GMOs in our fields. No GMOs in our fields! Votes have proved this time and again in the individual Member States, it is clear. I would like to say one thing to my previous speaker, Mr Buda: Mr Buda, it is shameful how, on the one hand, you stand behind EFSA in this case and make it clear: We are doing …

11 Mar

2025

DE Speech

Roadmap for Women`s Rights (debate)

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Madam President, Commissioner! First of all, I would like to apologise to the viewers who may be sitting on the TV, sitting on the PC – apologies for some of the speeches that have been delivered here in the house. This part of Parliament is constructive. This part of Parliament works in a friendly way with each other, even if we do not always agree. But there is also a part here in the house – th…

17 Dec

2024

DE Speech

Situation of female politicians in EU candidate and neighbouring countries facing harassment and cyber violence (debate)

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Mr President! Dear colleagues, dear colleagues! There has always been. It used to have a different face – it used to be the so-called witch burnings. A woman was picked out of the mass of women, she was mostly exposed, pulled naked on a cart, dragged through the city, to the pyre and burned under greed by many people. Those were the pyres before. Today, there are pyres on the Internet. A woman is …

25 Nov

2024

DE Speech

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (debate)

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Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, Today, 25 November, the day against violence against women, I would like to address the men – the real men. The real men are the men we reach out to. The real men are the men who never beat. The real men are the men who want equal women to take over family work. The real men are happy when women are successful in the profession. The real men defend women and pro…

18 Sep

2024

DE Speech

The deteriorating situation of women in Afghanistan due to the recent adoption of the law on the “Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice”

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Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen! The situation of women in Afghanistan is devastating. It's about one thing: It's about breastfeeding women. It's about taking away their language. It's all about making women invisible. When we look at what is happening in Afghanistan, we realize that such tendencies also exist in our country. Because there are also tendencies with us that …

16 Sep

2024

DE Speech

Outcome of the Strategic Dialogue on the Future of EU Agriculture (debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen! The strategic dialogue in agriculture was a good dialogue, a dialogue that involved many groups and groups, a dialogue that hopefully brings us forward, because the real advantage of this dialogue is the consensus that seems to be underpinned: the signatures of the various groups and groups that promise to abide by them. What is not new is the cont…

22 Apr

2024

DE Speech

Amending Directive 2011/36/EU on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings and protecting its victims (debate)

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Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, When it comes to prevention of trafficking in human beings, it is important to state precisely: What is the purpose of human trafficking? Because only if I really have the purpose in mind can I take preventive action. And I would like to explicitly contradict my previous speaker: It is right and good, and I would like to thank you for cl…

7 Feb

2024

DE Speech

Empowering farmers and rural communities - a dialogue towards sustainable and fairly rewarded EU agriculture (debate)

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Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, Agriculture policy has long ceased to be a niche policy, but a social policy. I voted for the Green Deal, and I would do it again because it's the right way to go. I understand farmers who are annoying. I also understand that farmers require impact assessments, impact assessments on laws: What happens when pesticides are reduced? What do…

23 Nov

2023

DE Speech

International day for the elimination of violence against women (debate)

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Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, I have a déjà vu experience: As a German Member of Parliament, I experience something the second, the third, maybe even the fifth time: a situation in which Germany is blocking something in the Council, even though it has long since been transposed into law in Germany. You may remember the Women on Boards policy with me. The Women on Boards Directive had long be…

21 Nov

2023

DE Speech

Sustainable use of plant protection products (debate)

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Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, I think facts should be the basis for democratic decision-making processes. We know, and these are the facts, that intensive use of pesticides is one of the main drivers of species extinction and biodiversity decline in Europe. In the last 30 years, there has been a decline of more than 75% in total biomass and flying insects in the prot…

19 Oct

2023

DE Speech

European protein strategy (debate)

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Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, Commissioner! There is a paper on the table and I would like to thank the rapporteur. Yes, it is a paper with good approaches. But there are things that are missing. There are things that are very good. There are things that are too much. Let me say this clearly, and especially to you, Commissioner, because you should incorporate this into your strategy and y…

19 Oct

2023

DE Speech

European Citizens' Initiative 'Fur Free Europe' (debate)

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Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, Commissioner! It is quite clear that the voice of the people has spoken here. The European Citizens' Initiative has taken a clear stand and has supported us. Parliament has received a great deal of outside support when it comes to banning fur farms. Fur coats: You have to imagine that for a fur coat made of mink, 60 mink must die, 60 ani…

13 Sep

2023

DE Speech

Regulation of prostitution in the EU: its cross-border implications and impact on gender equality and women’s rights (debate)

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Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, Thank you again for the exchange. The vote will take place tomorrow at noon. Tomorrow at noon Europe takes a stand, Europe takes a stand. We have seen, from several examples, that the path of liberalization is an erroneous path in the matter of prostitution. It is a mistake because it makes women a commodity and above all because violence is immense. There are c…

13 Sep

2023

DE Speech

Regulation of prostitution in the EU: its cross-border implications and impact on gender equality and women’s rights (debate)

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Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, Europeans! The own-initiative report here in a house is always based on any party taking a ‘political family’ initiative. As S&D, we took the initiative and a year ago we had the topic ‘Regulation of prostitution in the EU: cross-border impact”, and most importantly the consequences for equality. We have proposed the subject. The subject ha…

11 Jul

2023

DE Speech

Nature restoration (debate)

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Mr President, ladies and gentlemen. I would like to speak here as a member of the Committee on Agriculture. One thing is clear: the two demonstrations we saw outside Parliament today do not reflect the issue. These two demonstrations should make us believe that there is a situation of farmers against non-farmers. But that is not the case. It's not about farmers versus non-farmers, it's about one t…

9 May

2023

DE Speech

Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence – EU accession: institutions and public administration of the Union - Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence - EU accession: judicial cooperation in criminal matters, asylum and non-refoulement (debate)

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Dear Madam President, It honors you, because we all make mistakes, only mistakes have to be corrected and everything is good. First of all, I want to say thank you. I would like to thank all the Democrats in this House who have fought for many years for the Istanbul Convention to be signed by the EU itself as it is now. And I would also like to thank our Commissioner Helena Dalli very much. We wou…