What changed

B. whereas rulings of the European Court of Human Rights are an essential part of the human rights architecture in Europe;

F. whereas gender equality is paramount to the development of free and equal societies; whereas the human rights of women, girls and non-binary people are still not guaranteed throughout the world, and the space for civil society organisations, especially women’s rights, indigenous and grassroots organisations, is shrinking in many countries;

P.R. whereas the 2024 World Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) warns of a decline in the intent of states and other political forces to protect press freedom; whereas, according to RSF,the 47RSF’s 2024 Round-up, 54 journalists and media workers have beenwere killed, most of them in conflict zones, and550 573were havebeing beendetained, imprisoned55 sincewere 1being Januaryheld hostage, and 95 were missing in 2024;

U. 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;

4. Condemns the increasing trend of violations and abuses of human rights and democratic principles and values across the world, such as, among others, threats of backsliding on human rights, notably women’s rights, as well as executions, extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests and detentions, torture and ill treatment, gender-based violence, clampdowns on civil society, political opponents, marginalised and vulnerable groups including children and elderly people, migrants, refugees and asylum seekers, and ethnic and religious minorities; condemns, equally, slavery and forced labour, excessive use of violence by public authorities, including violent crackdowns on peaceful protests and other assemblies, systematic and structural discrimination, instrumentalisation of the judiciary, censorship and threats to independent media, including threats in the digital sphere such as online surveillance and internet shutdowns, political attacks against international institutions and the rules-based international order, and increasing use of unlawful methods of war in grave breach of international humanitarian law and human rights law; deplores the weakening of the protection of democratic institutions and processes, and the shrinking space for civil societies around the world; denounces the transnational repression, by illiberal regimes, of citizens and activists who have sought refuge abroad, including on EU soil; condemns the arrest and sentencing by an Algerian court to five years in prison of the Franco-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal; calls for his immediate release and hopes that the Algerian authorities will see the urgent need for this;

15. Reiterates its concern regarding the increasing attacks by authoritarian and illiberal regimes on democratic principles, values and pluralism; stresses that the defence and support of democracy around the world is increasingly becoming of geopolitical and strategic interest; emphasises the importance of Parliament’s efforts in capacity-building for partner parliaments, promoting mediation and encouraging a culture of dialogue and compromise, especially among young political leaders, and empowering women parliamentarians, HRDs and representatives from civil society and independent media; reiterates its call on the Commission to continue and expand its activities in these areas by increasing funding and support for EU bodies, agencies and other grant-based organisations; stresses the critical importance of directly supporting civil society and persons expressing dissenting views, particularly in the current climate of growing global tensions and repression in increasing numbers of countries; reiterates the importance of EU election observation missions and Parliament’s contribution to developing and enhancing their methodology; calls for the development of an EU toolbox to be used in cases of disputed or non-transparent election results in order to prevent political and military crises in the post-election environment; calls for enhanced EU action to counter manipulative and false messages against the EU in election campaigns, in particular in countries that receive significant EU humanitarian and development assistance and in countries that are candidates for EU membership; calls for enhanced collaboration between Parliament’s Democracy Support and Election Coordination Group, the relevant Commission directorates-general and the EEAS; calls on the EU to raise gender equality issues, including sexual and reproductive health and rights, with non-EU countries; calls for human rights dialogues to be given more visibility, ensuring that they are results-oriented and based on a clear set of benchmarks that enable effective monitoring, including through effective ex ante and ex post consultation with civil society and through the publication of joint press statements and the execution of appropriate follow-up actions;

16. Underlines the importance of strengthening the participation of women in democratic systems order to tackle the discrepancy in the representation of women in decision-making; calls for the EU’s external action to facilitate better participation of women in politics, business and civil society;

19.20. Insists that the EEAS, the Commission and the EU delegations pay particular attention to the situation of the Sakharov Prize laureates and finalists at risk and take resolute action, in coordination with the Member States and Parliament, to ensure their well-being, safety or liberation; pays tribute to the Sakharov Prize laureates and finalists who have lost their lives in the fight for human rights, democracy and freedom;

21.22. Underlines that both impunity and corruption enable and aggravate human rights violations and abuses and the erosion of democratic principles; welcomes the anti-corruption actions in EU external policies in the joint communication from the Commission and the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of 3 May 2023 on the fight against corruption (JOIN(2023)0012);(JOIN(2023)0012), which should be followed by the implementation of a strict anti-corruption framework into law, such as through the EU’s Anti-Corruption Directive, and by comprehensively addressing this issue within the EU’s anti-corruption strategy; supports the anti-corruption provisions included in the EU trade agreements with non-EU countries; stresses the important role of civil society and journalists in non-EU countries in the oversight of the fight against impunity and corruption; calls for the EU and its Member States to increase their efforts in justice reforms, the fight against impunity, and the improvement of transparency and of anti-corruption institutions in non-EU countries; encourages the EU and its Member States to coordinate more closely with allies and partners wherever possible in order to counter systemic corruption that enables autocrats to maintain power, deprives societies of key resources and undermines democracy, human rights and the rule of law;

26. Strongly regrets the decision of some countries to withdraw from the UN Human Rights Council;

28. Reiterates the strong support of the EU for the European Court of Human Rights; urges all signatory States to the European Convention on Human Rights to fully abide by rulings of the Court;

30. Expresses its utmost concern over the sanctions against the ICC, its prosecutors, judges and staff, which constitute a serious attack on the international justice system; calls on the Commission to urgently activate the Blocking Statute and on the Member States to increase their diplomatic efforts in order to protect and safeguard the ICC as an indispensable cornerstone of the international justice system;

34. Is seriously concerned by the persistence of the scourge of protracted occupation or annexation of territories; calls for special attention to be paid to the human rights situation in the illegally occupied territories, including in cases of protracted occupation, and for effective measures to be taken with the aim of preventing grave human rights abuses on the ground, including the violation of right to life, restriction of freedom of movement, and discrimination;

36. Urges reliable, like-minded third countries to strengthen their defence, resilience and civil preparedness capabilities, in order to effectively deter aggression and uphold human rights globally;

32.38. Recognises the potential for stronger alignment in approaches to human rights protection and promotion between EU institutions, Member States’ embassies and EU delegations in non-EU countries, particularly in encouraging those countries to comply with their international obligations and to refrain from harassment and persecution of critical voices; emphasises the opportunity for Member States’ embassies to take an increasingly active role in advancing and safeguarding human rights, while also supporting civil society in these countries; calls for the EU and its Member States to use all possible means to assess detention conditions, and observe trials and court procedures, to increase pressure and awareness, and in order to urge countries toand actively work towards the release of political prisoners; highlights the importance of shared responsibility between Member States and EU delegations in these efforts; calls for the EU and its Member States to intensify their collective efforts to promote the respect, protection and fulfilment of human rights and to support democracy worldwide; encourages careful monitoring and assessment of the capacity of EU delegations to ensure that each one has a designated point of contact for cases of human rights violations, and that this mandate is allocated sufficient resources to respond in an effective and timely manner; reiterates, in this context, the importance, for the EU delegations, of existing EU guidelines related to specific areas of human rights;

47. Emphasises the urgent necessity to uphold the rights of pregnant women, ensuring that they receive comprehensive support for their health, safety and dignity that includes guaranteed access to maternal healthcare services, availability of childcare facilities such as nurseries, and the establishment of fair workplace policies that protect their well-being, income and career advancement;

43.50. Stresses that women’s rights and gender equality are indispensable and indivisible human rights, as well as a basis for the rule of law and inclusive resilient democracies; deplores the fact that millions of women and girls continue to experience discrimination and violence, especially in the context of conflicts, post-conflict situations and displacements, and are denied their dignity, autonomy and even life; condemns the impunity with which perpetrators commit violations against women HRDs; is appalled by the use of rape and sexual violence as a weapon of war and stresses the need to shed light on these instances, and for better international cooperation on fighting impunity for these crimes; calls for the EU, its Member States and like-minded partners to step up their efforts to ensure the full enjoyment and protection of women’s and girls’ human rights, and to incorporate a gender mainstreaming approach across all policies, taking into account the differentiated impacts of global challenges such as climate change or conflicts; emphasises that SRHR are fundamental human rights that must be upheld globally and in the Member States and expresses deep concern over global setbacks in gender equality and SRHR; reaffirms that the denial of quality and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services constitutes a form of gender-based violence; stresses the importance of leading by example; calls for the EU to prioritise access to SRHR as part of the promotion of human rights and the achievement of sustainable development goals; condemns in the strongest terms the increasing attacks on SRHR around the world, as well as gender-based violence;violence, including the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war; calls for the EU and its Member States to uphold SRHR as human rights, enshrine the right to legal and safe abortion in the Charter of Fundamental Rights and prioritise access to SRHR in order to advance human rights and sustainable development goals; strongly deplores cases of female genital mutilation, honour killings, child marriages and forced marriages; welcomes the accession of the EU to the Istanbul Convention and strongly encourages the remaining EU Member States to ratify the Istanbul Convention without further delay; calls for the EU and its international partners to strengthen their efforts to ensure that women fully enjoy human rights and are treated equally to men; emphasises the importance of safeguarding the rights of women, ensuring that their health, safety and dignity are protected, particularly in the context of healthcare access and workplace protections; underlines the need to keep opposing and condemning, in the strongest terms, anti-abortion laws that punish women and girls with decades-long jail sentences, even in cases of rape, incest or when the life of the pregnant woman is at risk; stresses the need to pursue efforts to fully eradicate the practice of female genital mutilation; fully supports the role of the EU Ambassador for Gender and Diversity;

51. 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;

46. Reaffirms that no agreement with a non-EU country designated as a transit country should be concluded without Parliament’s scrutiny, and calls on the Commission and the Member States to include robust human rights clauses, monitoring mechanisms and impact assessments therein; reiterates its call on the Commission to integrate ex ante human rights impact assessments into such agreements;

47.54. DeploresCondemns the human rights violations, including discrimination, persecution, violence and killings, stigmatisation, hate crimes, hate speech, conversion therapies, intersex genital mutilation and sexual violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, non-binary, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ+) persons around the world; calls for the EU and its Member States to denounce these injustices and commit to protecting the rights, dignity and safety of LGBTIQ+ individuals; is extremely concerned by the spreading of hatred and anti-LGBTIQ+ narratives and legislation that target LGBTIQ+ persons and HRDs; denounces, in this regard, conversion practices targeting LGBTIQ+ persons aimed at changing, repressing or suppressing the sexual orientation, gender identity and/or gender expression of their victims; calls for the implementation of an EU-wide policy to illegalise practices of this kind; calls for the adoption of policies that protect LGBTIQ+ people and give them the tools to safely report a violation of their rights, in line with the EU Guidelines to Promote and Protect the Enjoyment of all Human Rights by LGBTI Persons; emphasises the increasing concerns and fears within LGBTIQ+ communities and urges the EU to take a firm stance against any legislative or social actions that endanger LGBTIQ+ people; expresses special concern over LGBTIQ+ people living under non-democratic regimes or in conflict situations, and calls for rapid response mechanisms to protect them as well as their defenders; reiterates its calls for the full implementation of the LGBTIQ Equality Strategy 2020-2025 as the EU’s tool for improving the situation of LGBTIQ+ people around the world; calls for the use of the death penalty to be rejected under all circumstances, including any legislation that would impose the death penalty for homosexuality; calls for the EU and its Member States to further engage the countries with such legislation in reconsidering their position on the death penalty; notes further that the imposition of the death penalty on the basis of such legislation is arbitrary killing per se, and a breach of Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;

54.61. Emphasises the critical significance of freedom of expression and access to trustworthy and diverse sources of information for sustaining democracy and a thriving civic space; recalls that democracies can only function when citizens have access to independent and reliable information, making journalists key players in the safeguarding of democracy; is therefore seriously concerned about the increasing restrictions on freedom of expression in numerous countries worldwide, particularly for journalists, through censorship, enforced self-censorship, so-called foreign agents laws and the misuse of counter-terrorism or anti-corruption laws to suppress journalists and civil society groups; is concerned by the use of hate speech against journalists, both online and offline, leading to a deterrent effect; raises concerns, additionally, about the physical security of journalists and media workers and their being targeted in conflict zones; notesdeplores the numberfact ofthat in 2024, 54 journalists killedand inmedia conflictworkers situationswere inkilled 2023,– accordingmost toof thethem Committeein toconflict Protectzones Journalists,– has550 increasedwere alarminglybeing –detained, by55 85were %being –held sincehostage, 2022;and 95 were missing;

56.63. Welcomes the Commission’s plan to finance initiatives that support journalists on legal and practical matters, including beyond the EU, through the European Democracy Action Plan; calls for the EU to strengthen its efforts to aid targeted journalists globally, recalling that independent journalists are on the frontline of the fight against disinformation, which undermines democracies; acknowledges the contribution to achieving this goal of programmes such as the now-defunct Media4Democracy and other EU-funded activities, including those of the European Endowment for Democracy; urgesstrongly regrets the decision to halt funding to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia and Voice of America, which are outlets with a vital role in combating disinformation, promoting democratic values and reporting in places where press freedom is severely curtailed or non-existent; calls for the EU to helpurgently makestep reliablein newsand sourcesprovide availablethe funding needed in order to moreensure peoplethat livingreliable news sources available in countries that restrict press freedom;

66. Underlines the indispensable work of organisations such as Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in their promotion of democracy, media pluralism and access to neutral information; draws attention to the fact that where the voice of democracy is cancelled, it is easy for propaganda against democratic values to take over; highlights the need to ensure the consistent financing of such institutions, and calls for the EU to step up the financing of such organisations and fill researching gaps that may occur;