Asuntos destacados pasados

On 27 January 2025, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr Volker Türk addressed the Members of DROI and AFET for the first time this term. The meeting provided a timely opportunity to discuss the human rights situation in the world and the High Commissioner’s work at the UN level. The European Parliament remained strongly committed to supporting the independence of the Office of the High Commissioner and its leadership role in protecting and promoting human rights across the globe.

16 December 2024, the Committees on Foreign Affairs and Development and the Subcommittee on Human Rights held a joint exchange of views with the 2024 Sakharov Prize laureates María Corina Machado, leader of the democratic forces in Venezuela and President-elect Edmundo González Urrutia, representing all Venezuelans inside and outside the country fighting to restore freedom and democracy.

On 5 December 2024, DROI held an exchange of views with Olof Skoog, EU Special Representative for Human Rights. The discussions focused on the ways to promote human rights and democracy despite global challenges.

On 4 December 2024, the Subcommittee on Human Rights held a hearing on the Rights of the Child in the EU external policy on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

On 4 December 2024, DROI held an exchange of views with European Ombudsman Emily O'Reilly on human rights conditionality in the EU agreements with third countries. The discussions included the need for human rights impact assessments and monitoring mechanisms, suspending funding in cases of violations, transparency, and issues related to the externalisation of migration management.

On 17 October, the DROI Subcommittee exchanged views with the new Director of the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), Sirpa Rautio, who became Director in March this year. She presented FRA's latest and upcoming work. Created in 2007 to collect data on the situation of fundamental rights within the EU, FRA also includes more and more candidate countries to EU membership in its surveys. Its work is made available to Parliament to ground its positions on well-established evidence.

On 17 October 2024, the DROI Subcommittee debated with Antônia Pereira De Sousa, Chief of Office to the Registrar of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on the challenges of the work of the Court. The EEAS and the European Commission briefed Members on EU policies on accountability and justice. Civil society explained their views and messages on the current state of the international criminal justice architecture with a focus on victims of international crimes.

On 17 September 2024, the Subcommittee on Human Rights held an extraordinary meeting with a group of Afghan women human rights defenders. Guests shared testimonies about the life of women and girls in Afghanistan under the Talibans. In this first meeting since the elections, DROI has chosen to shed light on the ever-worsening situation of women. On top of existing denials of human rights, a new law adopted in August forbids women to speak in the public sphere.