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Media environment in Belarus
The media situation in Belarus has never been easy. With Aliaksandr Lukashenka being elected president of the country for the first time in 1994, the necessary reforms to provide media freedom have never materialised. Instead, over the years various laws have lessened the rights of independent journalists and imposed limits on both traditional and electronic media. Following the August 2020 presidential election, which ignited a brutal crackdown against the democratic opposition, the situation has ...
Outcome of the European Council video-conference of 26 February 2021
On 26 February 2021, EU leaders met for a second videoconference session to discuss security and defence and the southern neighbourhood. They reaffirmed their commitment to implement the 2019-2024 Strategic Agenda by increasing the EU's ability to act autonomously and strengthening its resilience by taking 'more responsibility for its security'. They also expressed their wish to deepen the transatlantic bond with the US and through NATO. In line with past meetings dedicated to security and defence ...
Oleg Sentsov: The 2018 Sakharov Prize laureate
Thirty years since it was first awarded, the European Parliament's Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought retains all its symbolic meaning, as human rights are continually under threat in many parts of the world. By awarding the 2018 Prize to the Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov, Parliament aimed to increase the pressure on the Russian government to release him. The award also drew attention to all Ukrainian political prisoners in Russia and the annexed Crimean peninsula. On 7 September 2019, Sentsov ...
EU-Azerbaijan people-to-people contacts
The European Union and Azerbaijan are negotiating a comprehensive agreement in order to reinforce their partnership. Even if Azerbaijan is geographically the most distant Eastern Partnership country, the EU remains its main trading partner. In 2019, the EU and Azerbaijan will celebrate the 20th anniversary since their partnership and cooperation agreement (PCA) entered into force in 1999. In recent years, EU support for civil society in Azerbaijan has been made more difficult by a new legal framework ...
Le prix Sakharov 2018
Trente ans après avoir été remis pour la première fois, le prix Sakharov du Parlement européen pour la liberté de l'esprit conserve toute sa signification symbolique, car les droits de l’homme restent contestés dans de nombreuses régions du monde. Le courage des personnes qui se sont battues pour eux mérite donc d’être largement reconnu. En décernant le prix 2018 au cinéaste ukrainien Oleg Sentsov – qui est actuellement interné dans une colonie pénitentiaire de Sibérie –, le Parlement vise à accroître ...
Human Rights in Cambodia
Ravaged by genocide and armed conflict in the 1970s and 1980s, since 1985 Cambodia has been under the stable but repressive rule of Prime Minister Hun Sen. Nominally a multi-party democracy, the country has long been in effect a one-party state. Repression has intensified since the results of the 2013 election showed growing support for the opposition. With the next parliamentary election scheduled for July 2018, the government decided to ban the country's main opposition party, a move which drew ...
Human rights in Thailand
Thailand is one of several south-east Asian countries where the human rights situation has recently deteriorated. Following a military coup in May 2014, the junta clamped down on political dissent. In 2017 a new constitution restored some of the rights taken away in 2014, but the timing of elections remains uncertain and the military is likely to maintain political influence even after handing over power to a civilian government. Other long-standing concerns include abuses of migrant workers' labour ...
Human rights in Belarus: The EU’s role since 2016
This study provides an overview of the European Union’s contribution to promoting and protecting human rights in Belarus since 2016. This analysis presents the main human rights trends in Belarus, examining legislation, policy commitments and violations of human rights. While the Belarusian government has made nominal concessions towards the EU, no systemic progress in terms of human rights has been made in the post-2016 period. The study also describes and assesses the EU’s human rights promotion ...
Human rights in Ukraine and the EU response, including relevant activities of the European Parliament
The present study provides an overview of how the European Union and the European Parliament (EP) contribute to the promotion and protection of human rights in Ukraine. The analysis adopts an institutional approach, separately addressing the role of the various EP bodies involved, such as the plenary itself and the Subcommittee on Human Rights (DROI). The actions of the EU-Ukraine Parliamentary Association Committee (PAC), a parliamentary body created by the Association Agreement, as well as those ...
Le prix Sakharov 2017
Créé en 1988 par le Parlement européen, le prix Sakharov pour la liberté de l’esprit récompense chaque année, en décembre, des citoyens ou des organisations qui se sont distingués par leur action en faveur des droits de l’homme et des libertés fondamentales. En décernant le prix Sakharov 2017 à l’opposition démocratique au Venezuela, le Parlement dénonce la situation qui règne dans ce pays, réaffirme son soutien à l’Assemblée nationale démocratiquement élue, plaide en faveur d’une transition démocratique ...