What Miriam spoke about.

12

Mar

2025

EN Speech

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Democracy and human rights in Thailand, notably the lese-majesty law and the deportation of Uyghur refugees

Mr President, colleagues, Commissioner, just in the recent years, the Chinese Communist Party has built an Orwellian state that has introduced mass surveillance, forced labour and placed over a million Uyghurs in a concentration camp. This is the reason why many Uyghurs escape the brutal regime while placing their trust in the hands of the international community. Thailand has completely failed th…

12

Mar

2025

SK Speech

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Accelerating the phase-out of Russian gas and other Russian energy commodities in the EU (debate)

Mr President, despite ongoing discussions on how to promote our economic security and resilience, we still do not have a clear vision of how to deal with our dependence on totalitarian regimes. Already in 2014, following the Russian annexation of Crimea, we agreed to diversify our energy sources. We saw this as a step to protect our economic and security interests. Unfortunately, Europe did the ex…

12

Mar

2025

EN Answer

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Adoption of the proposal for a Parenthood Regulation (debate)

Sorry, I think we are in the European Parliament and not in a biology class. I am talking about ideology interfering in the competences of the Member States – an ideology which believes that it is above the law. The international treaties, the EU treaties, set very clearly what is the competence of the Member States and what is not. And the only thing I am asking is that we look for solutions for …

12

Mar

2025

EN Answer

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Adoption of the proposal for a Parenthood Regulation (debate)

First of all, regarding surrogacy, even this Parliament has recognised it partially as human trafficking, an inhuman and criminal act. Secondly, many Member States ban surrogacy. And my answer to your question is that I called on the Member States to look into the solutions of the individual children and problems of access to their passports or free movement or their ability to stay in a country. …

12

Mar

2025

SK Speech

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Adoption of the proposal for a Parenthood Regulation (debate)

Mr President, unfortunately, the regulation on the recognition of parenthood has been very controversial from the outset. We have brought this to the attention of the European Parliament and it has been blocked by some Member States in the Council for this very reason. I have been asking for a long time: Do we want to find a real solution to the problems, or is it about who asserts their ideologic…

12

Feb

2025

EN Speech

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Continuing detention and risk of the death penalty for individuals in Nigeria charged with blasphemy, notably the case of Yahaya Sharif-Aminu

Mr President, Commissioner, colleagues, for years I have been actively addressing the case of Yahaya Sharif-Aminu and others persecuted for their beliefs in Nigeria, particularly Christians. While our work in this House already helped to return freedom to Rhoda Jatau and Mubarak Bala, it is imperative that we reiterate our support to Yahaya and advocate not only for his release, but also for the e…

12

Feb

2025

SK Speech

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Honouring the memory of Ján Kuciak and Martina Kušnírová: advancing media freedom, strengthening the rule of law, and protecting journalists across the EU (debate)

Seven years ago we learned with horror about the brutal murder of journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée Martina Kušnírová. I never thought that such a thing could happen in a free and democratic country. It is extremely important not to forget this tragedy, which triggered other events in Slovakia and activated many citizens. Today we celebrate our seventh anniversary, which forces us to look agai…

22

Jan

2025

EN Speech

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Case of Boualem Sansal in Algeria

Madam President, freedom of religion and belief is a cornerstone of human dignity and a fundamental right that must be upheld universally. Since 2017, the government of Algeria has systematically persecuted Christian and Ahmadiyya Muslim minorities. Hundreds of individuals were arrested for their religious beliefs and activities. Many places of worship have been forcibly closed. To illustrate the …

21

Jan

2025

SK Speech

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Need for actions to address the continued oppression and fake elections in Belarus (debate)

Mr President, in the 30 years of Lukashenka's rule, thousands and thousands of people have been illegally sentenced, imprisoned, tortured and even disappeared. Unfortunately, many of my friends, including the leader of the Belarusian Christian Democrats, Paul Severinca, are also in prison just because they want freedom. Lukashenko is involved in the crimes of the Putin regime, seeks to weaken the …

21

Jan

2025

SK Speech

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Geopolitical and economic implications for the transatlantic relations under the new Trump administration (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, in the current difficult global context, the advent of Donald Trump gives us new opportunities for fundamental solutions to protect our economic and security interests. The United States was, and will remain, our closest ally. We have long neglected transatlantic relations, although the reality has clearly shown us that it is crucial to break away from unreliable third …

17

Dec

2024

SK Speech

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Misinformation and disinformation on social media platforms, such as TikTok, and related risks to the integrity of elections in Europe (debate)

Mr President, the threats posed by TikTok are certainly not new. For a long time, I have also drawn attention to them and called on the European institutions and the Member States to intervene. Many states have banned TikTok. Many institutions have blocked it on their devices, and the European Union still relies on TikTok perhaps once, one day, to comply with our law. How long will we watch the Ch…

27

Nov

2024

EN Speech

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Hong Kong, notably the cases of Jimmy Lai and the 45 activists recently convicted under the national security law

Madam President, dear colleagues, I want to thank all of you across the parties to support the people of Hong Kong and all those oppressed by the Chinese Communist Party. I am sorry that once again, this evening, we must discuss the worsening oppression in the city. Jimmy Lai, and the 45 pro-democracy activists, do not belong in jail. They represent the best of Hong Kong: its spirit and its love o…

13

Nov

2024

SK Speech

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Signature of acts adopted in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure (Rule 81)

Madam President, on 17 November we commemorate the struggle for freedom and democracy and the fall of the totalitarian communist regime in what was then Czechoslovakia. It was the desire for freedom, fidelity to the truth and courage of many that brought people of all generations to the streets in November 1989. I sincerely wish all of us in Slovakia, in Europe and throughout the world the perseve…

22

Oct

2024

EN Speech

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People’s Republic of China’s misinterpretation of the UN resolution 2758 and its continuous military provocations around Taiwan (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, dear colleagues, we are not here this evening to provoke or to be alarmist. We are here because we are facing a serious geopolitical situation. We observe the PRC's distortion of UN resolution 2758, its dangerous military exercises around Taiwan and threats against neighbours. We see its actions to weaken our democratic institutions, divide societies and undermine ec…

22

Oct

2024

EN Speech

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Situation in Azerbaijan, violation of human rights and international law and relations with Armenia (debate)

Mr President, dear colleagues, the regime of Ilham Aliyev is using the upcoming COP conference to hide its aggressive posture against Armenia, oppression at home and evasion of the sanctions targeting the Kremlin. But we will not be fooled. That is why I call for the imposition of sanctions against those regime officials, responsible for human rights abuses, including the continued imprisonment of…

10

Oct

2024

SK Speech

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The rise of religious intolerance in Europe (continuation of debate)

Madam President, we are all concerned about increasing religious intolerance across Europe. According to the OSCE, more than 792 hate crimes against Christians were committed in 2022. In 2023, we witnessed an alarming increase, with more than 1,000 incidents in France alone. In the last month alone, there have been nine other arson attacks on churches in Europe. We also note with concern the incre…

9

Oct

2024

EN Speech

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The cases of unjustly imprisoned Uyghurs in China, notably Ilham Tohti and Gulshan Abbas

Madam President, dear colleagues, Commissioner, during these days, the People's Republic of China is commemorating 75 years since its establishment. But despite all the regime propaganda, its track record is clear: 75 years of terror, oppression and suffering similar as we observed in the Soviet Union. Dear colleagues, this House as a first EU institution recognised our naivety towards this regime…

8

Oct

2024

SK Speech

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The crisis facing the EU’s automotive industry, potential plant closures and the need to enhance competitiveness and maintain jobs in Europe (debate)

Mr President, the situation of the car industry in Europe is more than worrying. The impact on people's livelihoods and on our economic security is even more frightening. The automotive industry is the driving force behind the Slovak economy. Up to a quarter of a million people work in the automotive industry and this sector. I consider the ban on cars with an internal combustion engine to be a bi…

18

Sep

2024

EN Speech

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The severe situation of political prisoners in Belarus

Madam President, dear colleagues, torture, forced labour, denial of medicine and solitary confinement are just some of the gross human rights abuses being perpetrated against political prisoners in Belarus by Lukashenka and his illegitimate regime. Their crime? A patriotic desire of people for a sovereign, democratic and prosperous Belarus. Patriots like my good friend, the Co-Chair of the Belarus…

18

Sep

2024

SK Speech

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The devastating floods in Central and Eastern Europe, the loss of lives and the EU’s preparedness to act on such disasters exacerbated by climate change (debate)

Madam President, (Beginning of an off-microphone performance) ... natural floods, but all the mayors and paramedics who are trying to help these people. Unfortunately, such extreme weather events are increasingly becoming part of our daily lives. We therefore need to reassess whether the existing tools to strengthen our resilience and preparedness are sufficient and, if necessary, rethink and set …

24

Apr

2024

EN Speech

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The new security law in Hong Kong and the cases of Andy Li and Joseph John

Mr President, Commissioner, dear colleagues, Article 23 is the final nail into the coffin for fundamental human rights and free society in Hong Kong. Beijing, together with its lackeys in the Hong Kong administration, have destroyed the city’s freedoms. They broke international agreements and they have either locked up or forced to flee the brightest of the city’s citizens. What has happened in Ho…

24

Apr

2024

EN Speech

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Azerbaijan, notably the repression of civil society and the cases of Dr Gubad Ibadoghlu and Ilhamiz Guliyev

Mr President, while the Commission and the Council continue to pretend that Azerbaijan is the EU’s strategic partner, the regime in Baku continues to oppress its own people, threaten its neighbours and thwart efforts towards regional peace. Today there are 300 political prisoners in Azerbaijan. I welcome the release of Dr Gubad Ibadoghlu, but the regime must not be allowed to pull the wool over ou…

23

Apr

2024

EN Speech

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Attempts to reintroduce a foreign agent law in Georgia and its restrictions on civil society (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, dear colleagues, the governing Georgian Dream party has once again reintroduced the act on agents of foreign influence. The plain fact is that this law, currently in the Georgian Parliament, is the same text withdrawn because it violated Commission recommendations on Georgia’s candidate status. It is the same text modelled on that one of Putin’s Russia. Rather than s…

22

Apr

2024

EN Speech

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Prohibiting products made with forced labour on the Union market (debate)

Madam President, according to the ILO, on any given day in 2021, there were 27.6 million people used as forced labour. In the Chinese province of Xinjiang, around 1.5 million people have been sent to concentration camps. Millions believed to be used as forced labour in making different products that end up on our markets, from cotton to solar panels. For too long, we ignore these facts, thus becom…

11

Apr

2024

SK Speech

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Attempts to dismantle Rule of Law and media freedom in Slovakia (debate)

Madam President, it is absolutely crucial that, when assessing the rule of law in the Slovak Republic, the EU institutions strictly adhere to the principle of subsidiarity and do not interfere with the exclusive competences of the Member States. It is here that we have recently adopted a regulation to strengthen the protection of media freedom. Protecting media freedom means protecting democracy a…