C 214/82
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
16.6.2023
Wednesday 18 January 2023
C. whereas consistency between the EU’s internal and external policies is an indispensable part of a credible and effective EU human rights policy;
D. whereas the Union strongly believes in and fully supports multilateralism, a rules-based global order that is predicated on the observance of international law and democratic processes, and the set of universal values, principles and norms, including those laid out in the UN Charter, that guide the UN member states and their mutual relations;
E. whereas gender equality is a core value of the EU; whereas the right to equal treatment and freedom from discrimination is a fundamental right enshrined in the Treaties and in the Charter and should be fully respected; whereas the right to the integrity of the person is paramount under Article 3 of the Charter; whereas gender mainstreaming and an intersectional approach should therefore be implemented and integrated as a horizontal principle in all EU activities and policies;
F. whereas the rise in authoritarianism, illiberalism, populism and violations of human rights around the world threatens the global rules-based order and the values and principles on which the Union is founded; whereas according to the 2021 Democracy Index, less than half of the world's population (45,7 %) now live in a democracy ‘of some sort’ and more than 37 % live under authoritarian rule;
G. whereas terrorism continues to be one of the biggest threats to international peace and security and is a clear breach of human rights and fundamental freedoms;
H. whereas the COVID-19 pandemic led to human rights setbacks around the world, as a consequence of the instruments and policies put in place under the guise of slowing the spread of the virus, and in many cases those instruments and policies have been linked to the loss of state democratic principles in a number of states;
I. whereas environmental emergencies, including those resulting from climate change and deforestation, give rise to human rights violations and affect not only the people in their immediate vicinity, but also humanity as a whole; whereas in recent years there has been an increase in murders, assaults and other forms of violence against people who defend human rights, the environment and people’s access to their land and natural resources; whereas climate change and environmental degradation are two urgent and interlinked challenges underpinning both sustainable development and the enjoyment of human rights globally;
J. whereas the energy crisis, coupled with the production crisis facing Europe, may increase poverty and vulnerability in Europe, with a potentially detrimental impact on human rights;
K. whereas violations of the rights to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, including the right to believe or not to believe, to espouse theistic, agnostic or atheistic views, to change or leave one’s religion and to express one’s own faith publicly, give rise to situations of oppression, conflict and war around the world;
General trends and global challenges to democracy and human rights
1.
Reaffirms the universality and indivisibility of human rights and the inherent dignity of every human being; stresses, in this regard, its strong commitment to addressing the challenges facing human rights within the EU and worldwide and reiterates the duty of the EU and its Member States to strive to be a global leader in the promotion and protection of human rights, fundamental freedoms and democracy in line with the founding values of the Union;
2.
Insists that the protection of human rights, fundamental freedoms and the dignity of every human being must be the cornerstone of the Union’s external policy; strongly encourages the Union, to that end, to strive for a continued ambitious commitment to make the protection of human rights a central part of all EU policies in a streamlined manner and to enhance the consistency between the EU’s internal and external policies in this field;