The European Institutions Office (EIO) engages decision makers in the European Union and at the Council of Europe for positive human rights change.

Hungary’s attempts to prohibit the legitimate and vital work of people and civil society organizations working to protect the rights of migrants and asylum-seekers are unacceptable.

17/07/2018 – We are writing to urge the European Union (EU) and its member states to ensure accountability for crimes against humanity in Myanmar, and in particular to take the lead in the creation of an international accountability mechanism during the upcoming session on Myanmar at the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council (HRC) in September.

09/07/2018 – In high-level dialogues around the third anniversary of China’s ‘July 9 Crackdown’, the European Union must press the Chinese government for the release of detained activists, say human rights groups

“After days of bickering, EU leaders have signed off a raft of dangerous and self-serving policies which could expose men, women and children to serious abuse,” said Iverna McGowan, Director of Amnesty International’s European Institutions Office.

26/06/2018 – In accordance with Article 2 of the Treaty of the European Union, which stipulates that the Union is founded on values of respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities, delegations will find attached a corrected draft of the conclusions prepared by the President of the European Council.

“With the 3rd of July fast approaching, the European Commission and the Council must act with urgency to halt the purge of up to half the judges of the Supreme Court. This irreversible attack on the independence of the judiciary is unacceptable and Poland must be held to account.”

25/06/2018 – Comparison of the 4th Rule of Law Recommendation presented by the European Commission on 20th December 2017 and the amendments proposed by the government of Poland – update 20 June 2018

“Instead of concentrating on striking an agreement on Dublin reform, some EU leaders have come up with a last minute pitch of having docking platforms for refugees and asylum-seekers – a notion as irresponsible as it is dangerous,” said Iverna McGowan, Director of Amnesty International’s European Institutions Office.

Alan and Gyan Mohammed are siblings, who were both teachers in their hometown of Al Hasakah in North Eastern Syria. They have muscular dystrophy and use wheelchairs. When the so-called Islamic State (IS) group captured their town in summer 2014, they had little choice but to leave. The siblings faced a torturous journey. Strapped to either side of a horse, they travelled with their mother, sister Shilan and brother Ivan; first to Iraq before crossing the mountains into Turkey. Eventually they reached Turkey’s western coast, where smugglers put them on an inflatable dinghy to Greece. They ended up in a refugee camp in an isolated and abandoned military base 80km from Athens.

19/06/2018 – Various organizations including Amnesty International continue to document China’s abusive campaign against human rights. The EU has taken some steps to push back against these developments. Yet the EU’s commitments to promoting human rights has not been matched in China with a willingness to act or a determination to at least achieve releases. Amnesty International and 23 other NGOs urged the EU to publicly and repeatedly call for the release of Liu Xia, Wang Quanzhang, Tashi Wangchuk, Ilham Tohti, Lee Ming-cheh and Gui Minhai.