The European Union and its member states have repeatedly failed to translate their human rights commitments into practice, Human Rights Watch said today in its World Report 2024.
The report highlights a number of areas where the EU has fallen short on Human Rights Commitments, including:
- Migrant rights: EU migration policies have contributed to deaths, torture, and abuse, including unlawful pushbacks at external borders and alliances with abusive countries.
- Rule of law and civil society: The EU has failed to act in the face of growing curbs on rule of law and civil society by member states, including Hungary and Poland.
- Discrimination: The EU has failed to tackle attacks on and structural discrimination against members of marginalised communities.
- Foreign policy: The EU has exhibited double standards in its foreign policy, including by failing to insist on the renewal of scrutiny of Libya or to support any follow-up to a damning inquiry on Ethiopia.
“There is a troubling gap between the EU’s commitments and its practices on human rights, and people are paying the price,” said Benjamin Ward, deputy Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “If the EU aspires to be a beacon of human rights in a troubled world, it needs to prioritise rights in practice, not just on paper.”
The World Report 2024 is the 34th edition of Human Rights Watch’s flagship report on human rights conditions worldwide. The report covers more than 100 countries and analyses human rights developments in the year 2023.
Analysis
Civilised politicians running in the upcoming European Parliament elections could In the Human Rights Watch report find a platform from which content they present solutions. Especially, since it is human rights that the European Union fundamentally rests on. In some cases, the situation has recently developed positively. For instance, Donald Tusk won the election in Poland despite media control and other restrictions by the former government. The new migration agreement is another step on the way, but still missing one of the most essential steps that would allow refugees to seek asylum close to conflict areas or where other systematic abuses occur. And thus, to a significant extent, would close down the terrible business of refugee smugglers and their activities.
Human rights are also something that the dark forces, the fifth columns, in the European Union despise. Something they have in common with external actors who directly threaten European values and freedom in word and activities. Their collaboration probably runs very deep, which should be better highlighted.
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