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...

Amnesty International’s Annual Report for 2022/23 highlights Europe’s double standards on human rights and the failure of the international community to unite around human rights and universal values. The West’s robust response to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine contrasts sharply with a...

Joint statement from 34 organisations responding to the European Commission’s 2023 Rule of Law Report including detailed recommendations on rule of law and human rights.

Amnesty International has today welcomed calls to the UK government from the Council of Europe Commissioner on Human Rights, Dunja Mijatovic to withdraw its widely opposed Northern Ireland Troubles Bill and ensure victims’ rights and needs are at centre of the legacy process. The calls follow the...

The Decision on December 8, 2022, by the Council of the European Union to admit Croatia into the Schengen area despite substantiated reports of frequent breaches of EU and international human rights law by Croatian authorities and its border guards shows disregard for the EU’s commitment to...

Joint NGO letter to the GAC ministers ahead of their hearing of the Hungarian government under the Article 7(1) TEU procedure. The signing civil society organisations welcome the Czech government’s commitment to taking the Article 7 procedure forward by holding this hearing under its EU Presidency....

Today, the European Parliament holds a debate on a report showing that human rights have deteriorated in Hungary since the EU Parliament triggered Article 7 procedures against the country for serious breaches of EU values. Responding to the debate, Eve Geddie, Director of Amnesty International’s EU...

On behalf of the undersigned Polish and international non-governmental organisations working for the rule of law and the protection of human rights and freedoms in the European Union, we feel obliged to send to you another open letter regarding recent events in the Polish justice system, hoping for...

Letter ahead of the EU General Affairs Council’s meeting on 23 May 2022, on the situation of the rule of law and other Article 2 TEU values in Hungary. The hearing takes place at a time when the importance of the rule of law, democracy and fundamental rights across Europe is in ever sharper focus....

Civil Society Organisations letter ahead of the General Affairs Council on 14 December when EU affairs ministers will hear from the European Commission on the latest developments and take stock of the situation regarding respect for EU values in Hungary and Poland as part of the Article 7 (1) TEU...

Concerted Action needed to Counter Rule of Law Threats in Poland and Hungary European Union affairs ministers should put the governments of Hungary and Poland on notice that there is no place for attacks on the rule of law in the EU and step up scrutiny of their human rights-abusive policies,...

Dear Ministers,  As EU Ministers prepare to discuss rule of law issues at their 20 April and 11 May 2021 General Affairs Council meetings, according to the work programme of the Portuguese Presidency of the Council, we the undersigned representatives of Portuguese, Polish, European and...