Speeches

Madam President, the European Union and the Council of Europe have long-standing and constructive relations towards the protection of human rights, fundamental freedoms and democracy. This strategic partnership needs to be further strengthened and deliver real results on issues within our competence. At the same time, however, it is important that we do not undermine our cooperation by making constant efforts to promote certain topics that are controversial and on which there is no consensus among the Member States. I therefore do not agree with the calls for a swift accession of the European Union to the Istanbul Convention, despite the fact that some Member States strongly disagree with such a procedure. I consider the search for unequivocal agreement on such fundamental issues to be crucial for our mutual cooperation, but also for strengthening citizens' trust in the institutions. Let us focus our collective strength on those areas where we can contribute to the protection of human rights and democracy in common.

Madam President, the Fit for 55 package is a comprehensive piece of legislation that provides a systematic solution to protect the environment. On the other hand, it will inevitably lead to price increases, affecting vulnerable households and small and medium-sized enterprises in particular. I therefore welcome the fact that, as part of this package, we are also setting up a Social Climate Fund, which aims to alleviate energy and transport poverty. I believe that the measures that will be financed by this fund, such as temporary direct income support for vulnerable users or investment in buildings, will have great potential to mitigate the negative impacts of policies on achieving climate objectives. At the same time, it is crucial that Member States implement the Fund responsibly and that their national projects are based on the principles of transparency, efficiency and the lowest possible administrative barriers.

Mr President, Commissioner, one of the objectives of 2022 as the European Year of Youth was to highlight the role of young people for the future of the European Union and to help them overcome the negative effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. During the pandemic, many young people became socially isolated, lost educational or career opportunities. A lot of people are worried about the future. All this, amplified by the significantly longer time spent on social networks, caused a deterioration in their mental health. Even today, surveys show that we are experiencing a mental health crisis among young people, too many of whom suffer from depressive feelings or anxiety. I would therefore like to ask you how the Commission intends to continue the legacy of the European Year of Youth in promoting and protecting the mental health of young people. Is the Commission planning further steps to protect young people from the negative impact of social networks?

Mr President, dear colleagues, the economic coercion by the totalitarian regime of the Chinese Communist Party experienced by Lithuania last year has highlighted some hard lessons. First, growing assertiveness and aggression of non-democratic regimes through economic, political and other means. Second, the lack of ability of the EU to jointly defend one of our Member States and the core principles of the single market. That’s why I welcome this week’s political decision on the new anti-coercion instrument. The instrument addresses an important gap in our capabilities to defend our Single Market against economic coercion. It strikes a crucial balance between avoiding slide into protectionism while defending our interests and security in the face of the CCP’s malign influence and attempts to undermine our democracies.

Madam President, competitiveness is crucial for our security as well as for the livelihoods of our citizens. I am therefore concerned about the lack of concrete steps in the Council conclusions. In addition, yesterday's decision to ban internal combustion engines in this context also seems to me to be a goal in my own goal. Of course, environmental protection measures are the right way to go. However, they must not be accepted blindly. They must take into account the broader context, including geopolitical developments and the overall economic situation. Let's take the example of Slovakia and its secondary dependence on China through the automotive industry. We need to work with our industry to protect the environment while strengthening competitiveness. However, decisions like yesterday that help Chinese companies dominate the market threaten the very existence of our industry and economic security.

Mr President, the cases mentioned from Croatia warn us that the practice of cross-border adoptions may not always be carried out in good faith. Instead of finding a home, a child without a family can become a victim of exploiting their vulnerability or of crimes, including trafficking in human beings. However, I would like to draw your attention to another problematic aspect. Cross-border adoptions can also serve to conceal the practice of so-called surrogacy. This practice, which is contrary to human rights, de facto allows children to be ordered and acquired as goods. In addition to violating children's rights, it also undermines the rights of women, who often come from poor countries or disadvantaged backgrounds. The abuse of their situation monitors motherhood. These are all threats that must be taken into account and certainly not underestimated when it comes to cross-border adoptions.

Madam President, I strongly condemn any violence. It is our duty to seek effective solutions to violence against women, to train, for example, the police and those who are the first contact for such women, and to properly implement our legislation, which, according to experts, is good in Slovakia, but not correctly and consistently implemented. However, the ‘Istanbul Convention’ and the entire debate around it do not help at all with the objective of eliminating violence against women and domestic violence. There is no support for the Convention among Member States, and instead of talking about rapid assistance for victims, we are dealing with how to force Member States to swiftly adopt the Convention. However, it should be remembered that the reason why the Slovak Republic has not ratified this document is the ideologization of the whole issue and gross interference in the moral and cultural-ethical spheres and legislation. I totally disagree with this practice, which literally mocks those who face violence on a daily basis.

Madam President, I welcome today’s support for the resolution concerning the health of Georgia's ex-president, Mikheil Saakashvili. Once again, the message of this House to the Georgian authorities is clear: allow Mikheil Saakashvili to undergo medical treatment abroad without delay, in accordance with Article 283 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Georgia. Also, let me thank colleagues for supporting our calls to sanction Bidzina Ivanishvili for his role in the deterioration of this political process in Georgia. The oligarch bears primary responsibility for the situation, and the EU should act accordingly.

Madam President, just as the autocrats in the Kremlin continue to wage their war of aggression against the people of Ukraine, they also continue in the persecution and oppression of the opposition, human rights defenders, and pro-democratic forces in Russia. Alexey Navalny, the brave Vladimir Kara-Murza and other political prisoners continue to face draconian conditions. I welcome that this house continues to be unwavering in its united stance in support of all political prisoners in Russia. However, it is also crucial to support those Russian human rights defenders and pro-democratic forces seeking shelter in our countries. This is why I find bewildering the recent decision by the Georgian authorities to deny re-entry to Anna Rivina, the founder and director of Nasiliu.Net, an organisation providing services and shelter to victims of domestic violence. We must continue to support those who, like us, want to breathe freedom and want Russia free of oppression.

Madam President, critical raw materials are essential for the deployment of the technologies that enable green and digital transitions and for building the economy of the future. This is why the upcoming CRM Act must not only be ambitious, but also in line with our industrial strategy and broader supply chain diversification. Today, the totalitarian regime of the Chinese Communist Party controls roughly 60 % of the world's production of rare earth minerals and materials. Those resources include lithium, cobalt and other elements crucial for making electric vehicles, batteries or semiconductors. I am glad that the Union finally woke up to the need to diversify our supply chains. We need to use global gateway and other opportunities to invest and work with our allies to access critical raw materials. But we need to also ensure that this diversification does not lead to new dependencies and human rights breaches.

Mr President, I welcome today's vote on the REPowerEU legislative package, which is key to tackling the current energy crisis by supporting infrastructure projects or improving the energy efficiency of buildings. I appreciate that part of the package is one of Slovakia's demands, which was promoted by the KDH from the beginning, and it is the use of unspent cohesion funds to support vulnerable households as well as companies most affected by the energy crisis. Slovakia will be able to transfer up to 10% of the unspent cohesion funds, which should mean around one and a half billion euros, and another one billion euros should be able to be used from the new available cohesion funds to support the REPowerEU objectives. It is crucial that the Slovak government uses these funds strategically and cooperates with the regions to help those most affected by the energy crisis.

Mr President, dear colleagues, your vote today is not about whether you think platform workers should be employees or not. What we are voting on today is whether the European Parliament should effectively use its democratic procedures to debate this crucial piece of legislation. You are also not being asked to delay the legislation, because in fact the Council is not yet ready to start a trilogue. Therefore, the European Parliament should take the time to consider and debate this crucial piece of legislation, which will fundamentally affect 28 million platform workers in Europe. Many of us have requested, from the beginning, that this text has to ensure legal certainty. Instead, the proposed text is being interpreted differently by various stakeholders. That alone is a sign that it needs the further consideration of this House. I accept that not everyone in this House agrees on how to best regulate this sector, but we should be able to agree that when we write the legislation we ensure that it is legally sound and that it is implementable. Colleagues, I ask you today to allow this House to have a meaningful vote on the subject. Today, we each have the opportunity to improve the text and to achieve the goal of this directive, which is the improvement of the working conditions of platform workers, including social protection. For this reason, I call on you to vote against the committee’s decision to enter into interinstitutional negotiations.

Madam President, dear colleagues, the very life of the former President of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, is at risk. Games, tricks and delays must stop. This shameful behaviour by the Georgian authorities is in direct contradiction to the government’s stated European aspiration and the very values and principles it entails. As Members of this House have done on many occasions in the past weeks and months, I once again plead with the Georgian authorities: allow Mikheil Saakashvili to undergo medical treatment abroad without any delay, in accordance with Article 283 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Georgia. Ex—President Saakashvili must not be allowed to die in prison. Georgian authorities bear full responsibility for his health and wellbeing, and will be held accountable should anything happen to him.

Mr President, in August 2020, we were shocked to watch footage from a cell at Charleroi airport, in which Belgian police officers brutally intervene against Slovak Jozef Chovanec, who subsequently died. As a follow-up, this Parliament also called in a letter for a swift investigation of the case and a fair accountability. The same shock was also caused by a recent decision of the Belgian prosecutor's office, according to which there is no criminal liability for police officers intervening against Jozef Chovanec. And I wonder how it is possible that, at the heart of the European Union, where we are anxiously monitoring even signs of breaches of the rule of law, a decision is taken that appears to be in stark contradiction with fair treatment and the right to a fair trial? I therefore call for immediate attention to this case and coordinated action to ensure a proper and fair investigation.

Mr President, from Africa to the Western Balkans we see the costs and corrosive impact of Chinese investments. They undermine securities, countries, finances, human rights and the rule of law. I welcome the recent EFSD+ opinion to release over EUR 6 billion to support 40 investment programmes. Yet this is nowhere near sufficient. Between 2014 and 2018, the PRC gave out more than USD 400 billion in foreign loans alone. Colleagues, the democratic world is facing serious security threats from this totalitarian regime, and we need to act accordingly. First, we must move faster to deliver the necessary investments and ensure that our deeds are matched with efficient strategic communication. Second, we must intensify our coordination with democratic allies, including the US – which is a response to the debate before. To conclude, generating sufficient investment for infrastructure programmes is as much a question of defending our values as well as strengthening our interests and security globally.

Mr President. As a member of the Committee on Social Affairs and Employment, I have been advocating for workers’ rights, including their rights to information and consultation, since the beginning of my mandate. As the resolution rightly pointed out, the success and positive impact of European Works Councils is based on trust and constructive dialogue between the board and the management of the company. Therefore, it is these aspects that we should strengthen and not look at societies a priori as if their aim were to violate the principles of democracy in the workplace. I therefore do not agree with the proposed introduction of the right to apply for interim relief to temporarily suspend the implementation of company management decisions, which may, in certain circumstances, lead to overuse and thus paralysis of the whole of society. I also think that the issue of so-called gender quotas for works councils is superfluous in the context of the revision of the directive. Again, I would like to reiterate my argument that I, as a woman, am undervalued by this approach. Quotas are counterproductive. Moreover, I think that they may result in additional discrimination against mothers' women vis-à-vis other women. Last but not least, I also disagree with the draconian sanctions that this text proposes, such as the exclusion of a company from subsidies, public contracts or European funds. This is due to the cumulative effect of the company’s obligation to pay all administrative and judicial costs, regardless of who was successful in the proceedings, which will represent an additional financial burden. I am of the opinion that companies have no difficulty in meeting their obligations under a well-designed system, but disproportionate sanctions for this good set-up will not really help. However, I fully support the revision of the Directive on the establishment of a European Works Council and believe that it can help protect workers' rights with a good and balanced approach.

Madam President. Protecting the dignity and rights of every person in the world is one of my top priorities and I devote myself to it every day. It forms the basis of my political work. Unfortunately, I could not support the annual report on human rights and democracy in the world. It calls for the right to abortion to be included in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, which I find unacceptable. This move puts the very principle of human rights in complete contradiction with its very essence, as it threatens the protection of human life and the fundamental human right, which is the right to life. Such an erosion of the universally applicable human rights system threatens the main instrument on the basis of which we protect human rights.

Madam President, during today’s vote, I supported the annual report on the common foreign and security policy. However, I believe that because we are today facing serious geopolitical threats, we can no longer afford to be spending time discussing empty concepts or engage in unnecessary turf battles between the EU and NATO. Instead, we must put all efforts into concrete action, and to do this in lockstep with our transatlantic allies, and ensure that EU and NATO work together to address the pressing challenges in accordance with their respective competences.

Mr President, dear colleagues, for over a month now, an Aliyev regime-sponsored group who pretend to be environmental activists are blocking the corridor between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh. As a result, the humanitarian situation is becoming dire. Basic food and medicine are running out and even fuel is in short supply. Many lives are in danger. The strategy of the dictatorship in Baku is clear. However, also we bear responsibility for this situation. For years we have neglected the Caucasus region. Because of our energy deals, we have even shut our eyes to the human rights situation in Azerbaijan and Aliyev’s aggression against Armenia. In this time, we need to invest in serious diplomatic effort to help solve this decades—long conflict, work with our partners to establish an international peacekeeping mission and provide immediate humanitarian aid.

Madam President, dear colleagues, the destruction of homes and cities; thousands killed; mass executions; rape or forced deportations. The Russian war of aggression against Ukraine brings untold suffering every day. This evil is an attack on all basic moral and legal principles. As such, the leadership of the Russian Federation must one day face justice for crimes of aggression and crimes against peace. Justice must prevail, not least to bring a measure of justice to the victims, even if it cannot resurrect the lost loved ones. As Justice Robert Jackson said at the opening of the Nuremberg Trials in 1945: ‘We must never forget that the record on which we judge these defendants today is the record on which history will judge us tomorrow’.

Madam President, from Putin’s terror and aggression against the people of Ukraine, Lukashenko’s oppressive regime in Belarus, credible evidence of a genocide against Uyghurs by the CCP, to the dramatic increase of persecution based on religion and belief, the human rights situation around the world remains dire. At a time when non-democratic and totalitarian regimes continue to subvert our democracies, they also seek to destroy the human dignity of their own citizens. That’s why today, more than ever, we must take democracy on the offensive and support freedom—loving people around the world. At a time when we need to work with our democracies together and allies to strengthen the resilience of multinational institutions against the malign influence and non-democratic regimes. To do this, we must finally leave behind ideological battles in areas beyond our competences and increase work together to support those whose freedom is in peril.

Mr President, High Representative, dear colleagues, from the Russian aggression against Ukraine and the coercive behaviour of the totalitarian Chinese Communist Party to the Iranian nuclear threat, we are facing a multitude of serious global security challenges. We can no longer afford to be discussing empty concepts or engaging in an unnecessary battle between the EU institutions and NATO. Instead, we must put all efforts into concrete actions to rebuild the European security architecture, to support Ukraine with the necessary weapons to defend itself, to deliver on our defence spending commitments, and to protect our citizens and companies against cyber-attacks, disinformation and economic coercion. This is why I welcome the EU-NATO Joint Declaration. NATO is and must remain the cornerstone of our security, and the EU and NATO must work together to address the pressing challenges, in keeping with their respective competences.

Madam President, I welcome today’s vote on the two-state solution for Israel and Palestine. We must continue to work with our allies, especially the United States, to continue supporting durable peace between Israel and the Palestinians, but also across the regions through the Abraham Accords. However, let me also stress the importance of education in building durable peace based on respect and tolerance. Hatred, incitement to violence and antisemitism are in conflict with European values and are a key impediment to the resolution of the conflict. That’s why I would like to stress that all schoolbooks and school materials supported by the Union funds, including those used by UNRWA, must be in line with the UNESCO standards of peace, tolerance, coexistence and non-violence. EU funding must be suspended if clear and substantiated evidence of misuse is presented.

Madam President, I welcomed the report on the long-term challenges for rural areas in the European Union, as up to 30% of the European population lives in these areas and we need to address the living conditions and well-being of these people. Rural areas face reduced access to basic infrastructure, education and jobs, as well as an ageing population, and the outflow of people to cities. It is these aspects that I have been raising for a long time and calling for the creation of sufficient connectivity for rural and more remote regions, including high-speed internet and digital tools, so that the inhabitants of these areas do not have to move to work, have the opportunity to work remotely and so that depopulation is prevented. I also consider it necessary to support farmers, which is not only important for rural areas, but also for our food security.

Madam President, this report has given us a comprehensive view of the problems faced by persons with disabilities in the European Union. These are not only environmental barriers, but also barriers to the labour market, education and healthcare. And although we are bound by the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, changes are very slow. I welcome the fact that the report called for the European Disability Card to be adopted as soon as possible. This card will facilitate mobility within the European Union and thus give these persons access to travel, sport or leisure activities. At the same time, its key aspect is the recognition of disability status across all Member States. Indeed, many disabilities are not visible at first sight and automatic recognition of status will make the situation easier for many. I therefore call for the card to be accepted as soon as possible and as widely as possible.