Amnesty International welcomes the European Commission’s proposal for a Directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence (COM (2022) 105 final, 8 March 2022) (hereinafter “draft Directive”). As this draft Directive is negotiated, we urge the Parliament, Council, and the Commission to consider our recommendations that would strengthen the protection of the rights of survivors of gender-based violence and domestic violence.

Reacting to a vote in the European Parliament today in favour of a draft bill governing the responsibilities of corporations towards human rights and the environment, known as the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, Hannah Storey, Amnesty International Policy Advisor on Business and Human Rights, said:

As the next EU General Affairs Council prepares to hold a hearing on 30 May 2023 on the situation in Poland and Hungary under the Article 7.1 TEU procedure, the undersigned civil society organisations would like to draw the attention to recent developments regarding the rule of law and human rights in both countries, with a particular focus on Poland, whose situation has not been examined in a long time.

Ahead of the forthcoming EU-Cuba Joint Council on 26 May, Amnesty International and 7 NGOs urged High Representative Borrell to ensure that human rights remain at the very centre of the EU’s relations with Cuba, at a crucial moment for the country’s human rights defenders.

Today, for only the fourth time since its foundation in 1949, the heads of state of the Council of Europe (CoE) will come together in Reykjavik, Iceland. And with Europe in the middle of a human rights crisis, and large-scale war raging on the Continent, this meeting of Europe’s top human rights organization is vital.

This blog is authored by Sébastien Duyck, Senior Attorney; Campaign Manager Human Rights & Climate, Center for International Environmental Law, Amy Jacobsen, Legal Counsel Communications, Greenpeace International, Katharina Rall, Senior Researcher in the Environment and Human Rights Division at Human Rights Watch, and Chiara Liguori,  Climate Justice Policy Adviser and Researcher, Amnesty International.

New legislation governing the human rights and environmental obligations of businesses in the EU, known as the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, risks being undermined by exemptions and loopholes, Amnesty International said today.

Responding to the European Parliament’s vote on how artificial intelligence systems should be governed under the EU’s Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act), Mher Hakobyan, Advocacy Advisor at Amnesty International, said:   

Responding to the final recommendations and report published today by the European Parliament’s PEGA committee, which urges the European Union (EU) to more tightly regulate the use, manufacture and trade of spyware, Donncha Ó Cearbhaill, Head of Amnesty International’s Security Lab, said: 

Responding to the Slovak parliament’s failure to adopt an amendment to the School Act which would take steps to address discrimination against Roma children, Rado Sloboda, Director of Amnesty International Slovakia, said:

With increased fighting across Sudan and mounting violence against civilians left without assistance and protection, Amnesty International urges HR/VP Josep Borrell to lead the EU and its member states in a robust response to ongoing human rights and humanitarian law violations in the country.