kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
if all twenty eight countries contributed we would be able to help many more people. the most immediate help we can give syria and the most vulnerable people there is by opening up for resettlement in cooperation with
it is true that the situation now seems to be under control.
and we have lots of other reports that the situation is very serious in bulgaria. in a short time a lot of people have come to a country which has not been prepared for this.
we have on several occasions raised with the bulgarian authorities the fact that push back is illegal according to international norms and european standards.
there are still things that need to be done when it comes to accommodation to reception conditions no automaticity in locking people up and to integration for those who have been granted the right to stay and who will probably stay for quite some time in bulgaria.
region. by doing this we can help the most vulnerable in this terrible
unhcr. then we would give access to our countries in a legal and safe way not making these people travel on rickety vessels across the mediterranean or taking other dangerous routes. today not even half of the member states are taking resettled refugees.
the neighbouring countries of syria as many of you have said are taking immense responsibility;
first of all open markets open for new and renewable energies but also open for competition pressing prices but also securing the best way of using the energy we have.
i think there are some key issues that we need to think about.
market prices because otherwise there will be no opportunity for the new emerging energy sources to be successful.
we do not support binding efficiency and renewable targets.
contrary to the commission's two thousand and fifteen renewable energy progress report i am happy to note that the uk is ahead of our mid term target and that we remain on track to reach our goal of thirty of electricity from renewable sources by. two thousand and twenty we recognise the importance of energy efficiency both for reducing dependence on imports as well as for overall consumption.
mr president conservative meps support increasing the amount of energy coming from renewable sources.
we want to do this in a way that does not unduly burden consumers and businesses and export jobs outside of europe.
these skew investment decisions and are not the best way for member states to spend taxpayer money effectively.
we do not support the rapporteur's desire to see an increased role for the commission in monitoring member states' action via enhanced oversight.
that depends on the markets and the status of the markets.
we need clear rules we need stability and in this respect i would like to emphasise something that maybe has not been emphasised that much so far.
but at the moment i think we should be phasing them out and definitely with regard to mature technologies.
we have had important and difficult discussions regarding the renewable energy progress report and the energy efficiency implementation report.
i believe that what has really happened in europe and what we have achieved in europe in renewable energy and energy efficiency in the last couple of years has absolutely been the consequence of ambitious binding targets.
so what we need is ambitious binding targets on the eu level for energy efficiency and also targets on the national level.
two thousand and seventeen despite making conditions for a formal suspension of the negotiation process the report invites the commission the member states and turkey to hold an open and honest dialogue and discussion on all areas of mutual interest.
i would also like to draw attention to the destruction of cultural heritage in the ancient mesopotamian town of hasankeyf where historical sites and artefacts are being destroyed and removed to make way for a new dam. this is a kurdish majority and historically an armenian area along the tigris river.
this must stop and we must let bresser and the turkish authorities know that.
i ask the high representative and the commission to call out to the turkish authorities on this and make a clear statement that the destruction and removal must end.
the dutch company bresser is helping the turkish government remove and relocate historic monuments and take apart ancient tombs on a site whose history goes back twelve zero years.
mr president on behalf of turkish nationals and minorities who live in my north west england constituency and also those who live oppressed in turkey i would like to say thank you to my colleagues for their work on this file.
i share the strong concerns of this house when it comes to the domestic situation in turkey as already reflected in the commission's two thousand and sixteen country report and in our public positions ever since. the number of jailed journalists remains very high currently over one hundred and sixty including some eu citizens.
we continue to have a very close eye on what is happening in the crucial areas of rule of law and fundamental freedoms.
our support has a clear impact but our overall relationship can only move forward if there is a clear improvement of the domestic situation in turkey. honourable members closely engaging with turkey is crucial.
with the statutes come rules and obligations obligations and standards to which turkey itself has subscribed. at the same time our common challenges are growing by the day from security in the wider region to the fight against terrorism to the handling of migration and refugees.
we have given hundreds of thousands basic livelihoods.
we have trained thousands of teachers and they are giving hundreds of thousands of refugee children a formal education.
all of this is key to reducing migration pressure.
my message will be clear. the european union sticks to its financial commitments under the refugee facility.
honourable members i am deeply committed to improving eu turkey relations but only tangible steps by ankara reversing the worrying trend on the fundamentals of our relationship can accomplish this in the mid and long term.
the situation of academics and of civil society in general has worsened.
in short we cannot and we will not ignore the worrying developments in turkey precisely because we want fruitful bilateral relations.
the euturkey joint action plan for refugees and migration management and the march two thousand and sixteen statement continue to be applied in the interest of both parties.
it has also led to an improved situation for syrian migrants in turkey.
we continue to appreciate turkey for its enormous efforts in hosting and addressing the needs of around three million refugees from syria and iraq.
we look forward to any further progress regarding this issue during our presidency this year. we follow the domestic developments in turkey with deep concern.
two thousand and sixteen the significant backsliding in the areas of the rule of law and respect for fundamental rights are deeply worrying and should be urgently addressed by the relevant turkish authorities.
in contacts with turkey the eu side takes every opportunity to recall these and other concerns and we will continue to do so.
as for the situation in the south east of turkey the eu will continue to call for an immediate cessation of violence and terrorist attacks.
the eu should remain the anchor for turkey's reforms.
regarding the april referendum this year president juncker high representative mogherini and commission hahn issued a joint statement which stressed that the constitutional amendments and their implementation will be assessed in light of turkey's obligations as an eu candidate country. we share many of the concerns to which you parliament referred both in its resolution on turkey from november last year and in relation to the draft resolution recently discussed and voted upon
turkey needs to normalise its relations with cyprus and fully implement the provisions of the additional protocol of their association agreement. nevertheless continued engagement and an open dialogue with turkey remain important.
we continue to expect turkey to respect the highest standards when it comes to democracy the rule of law and respect for fundamental freedoms including the freedom of expression.
the unequivocal rejection of the death penalty is an essential requirement for eu membership and it is also part of turkey's international obligations.
the eu facility for refugees in turkey has made a significant contribution through additional funding in the areas of humanitarian assistance education migration management heath municipal infrastructure and socioeconomic support.
we cooperate in many important areas of joint interest such as counterterrorism foreign and security policy energy the economy and trade as well as migration.
so far this cooperation has led to a significant decrease in deaths at sea and a substantial reduction of irregular migrant arrivals from turkey.
that is not only historic it is also a hopeful sign that many in turkey do not accept the authoritarian drift in their country. these people are fighting for their democratic rights and we in the european parliament stand side by side with all those in turkey who believe in the same european values as us.
the continually deteriorating situation is south east turkey deserves special attention.
and for all those millions of people in turkey it is also important that we continue to uphold our own values when dealing with a candidate country.
the numbers are swelling every day and more than one million people are expected to attend a peaceful march for justice when they arrive in istanbul this coming sunday.
especially in the areas where curfews were imposed excessive force has been used by security personnel and collective punishment has been applied to the inhabitants.
but all of these examples also show how millions of people in turkey are not giving up hope.
we support the commission's proposal to start negotiations on the modernisation of the current customs union with turkey.
not only does it leave millions of turks out in the cold it also fuels euroscepticism in our own countries and sends the wrong message to the other eu candidate countries in the western balkans. let us take a look at some examples from the past weeks.
why was there no eu statement when journalists from the sozcu newspaper were targeted?
the parliament and the constitutional court are bypassed as the government rules by emergency decrees.
on visa liberalisation we encourage the turkish government to comply with the last five remaining benchmarks.
the eu believes that there can only be a political solution to the kurdish question.
a heavy price is being paid by the turkish people.
this shows how little space is left nowadays for freedom of speech in turkey.
finally while the political groups in this house have very different views on eu turkey relations i would like to thank especially my colleague rapporteurs from the other groups in making sure that this parliament speaks with one clear and loud voice in condemning the turkish government's serious decline in democratic standards while continuing to support the turkish population
one year after the failed military takeover turkish democracy is under great pressure.
this would not only be beneficial to both sides in economic terms but it is perhaps also the only leverage the eu still has in making the government of turkey commit to european standards.
when looking at the widespread crackdown on all dissent in turkey silence is the worst strategy for the eu to take in reaction.
why was there no eu reaction when the head of amnesty international's turkish branch was arrested?
by looking away we are seriously undermining our own credibility.
we understand that turkey is an important country and we have many joint strategic interests.
at least half of the population voted against the new constitutional package in the referendum.
millions of whom would like to continue to see the eu as an anchor for reforms in their country.
in a deeply polarised country people from all walks of life are uniting to call for the restoration of the rule of law in their country.
difficult choices now lie ahead of us as to how to adapt the eu's relationship with turkey in the future but we should take care to ensure that those choices are not dictated purely by necessity rather than by our common values.
i want to draw your attention specifically to the situation of christians.
i call upon the commission to protest against this and to urge the turkish state to give these buildings back immediately.
our relations go back a long time.
we continue to follow developments in turkey very closely.
foreign policy is a very complex domain but even there some things are relatively easy leaving the chair open walking away pulling the plug if you will.
mr president i am grateful to all the colleagues who have contributed to this debate. as i said at the start of the debate i would like especially to give a warm thank you to the shadow rapporteurs who were also here during the whole debate because we worked in the third year consecutively towards a very constructive
it is not based on any hate towards the turkish population and i am proud that you will vote against this report as i absolutely do not share your racist positions.
after having lived in turkey for the past nine years he has not been allowed to return to the country where he has been living.
i very much hope under your presidency we will see more progress on that.
we wish you a good stay in turkey.
we look forward to continuing our cooperation and hope that the eu will be more confident in the coming months to stand up for its own values while maintaining an open constructive dialogue with turkey. as a final remark because many colleagues raised the issue we know the talks on cyprus are ongoing and we all hope that there will be a viable long lasting settlement reached.
this isn't a personal dig at you but do you understand my frustration that your party the british conservative party sits in the same pan european group the acre as erdogan's akp party? do you think that is an extremely difficult position for your party and would you welcome their withdrawal from it?
they are asking the world to listen to their plight.
their churches monasteries and cemeteries have been confiscated by the state. before today's debate kuryakos ergun director of the mor gabriel monastery foundation sent me the following statement and i quote while the turkish government should protect our roots and our religion it is instead threatening our existence by grabbing our holy
buildings and making us believe that christianity no longer has a place in turkey.
listening to the very strong clear and converging points made in this house today i think we are all equally concerned that turkey is moving further away from the european union and not closer. that is the reality we have to face.
we must continue to promote the values on which our union is based.
in short we must continue our principled firm engagement with turkey and support the positive currents in turkish society and i expect that we will continue the discussion here in the house to follow up on the events in turkey and to stay in contact and in touch with them.
madam president for the past years the progress report has become a reflection of regress of the rule of law and of democracy.
this regress weighs on the people of turkey as well as on our relationship.
our group and this parliament have been consistent.
we supported accession as we believed it would serve the rights and the freedoms of the people in turkey.
we urged the freezing of negotiations last year after the massive response to the failed coup attempt however despicable that attempt was.
yes perpetrators should be held to account but with fair trial and due process.
the package of constitutional amendments if implemented unchanged would de facto put an end to the accession process and negotiations.
still we do not want to slam the door in the faces of the population of turkey and we insist that any form of a future relation between the eu and turkey cannot be transactional only focused on trade security asylum and migration but will have to be deeply rooted in the rule of law and respect for human rights.
a very difficult and dramatic one.
it is important to say it and i understand that the security environment has change in turkey as well as in the surroundings of the european union.
i'm extremely worried when it comes to the fundamental freedoms in turkey and the way the mass liquidation of media outlets is the result of the state action. the way in which there are mass arrestation of journalists academics judges elected representatives of the opposition and so on and so forth.
our report is rightly pointing out all of this.
our commitment to the people of turkey remains nevertheless strong.
the civil society and the opposition in turkey are waiting for us to be further engaged and support them not only in their survival the physical survival sometimes but in preserving the remains of the democracy in turkey.
today they are continuing their march from ankara to istanbul a march for justice and democracy. i salute them all of them.
so this is not the time to give up on turkey.
it is the time when criticism should be strong when necessary and when a constructive open and pragmatic dialogue should be maintained.
it is the appropriate time to stress that turkey and the european union does have a strategic interest and have to continue their cooperation in very important areas migration counterterrorism syrian war in the middle east region where turkey can play a positive role.
the human rights abuses committed by them are increasing both in the number of victims and in atrocity.
this is why on numerous occasions we have expressed views and the determination to contain and defeat daesh and to contribute as fully as possible both at the individual level of member states and the collective level of the eu to the efforts of the global coalition. we believe that military action is essential but not sufficient on its
they are killing or expelling inhabitants and destroying their holy places including unique internationallyrecognised heritage.
the commission has made a continued effort to encourage political participation and to improve citizens' awareness of their rights in the eu.
other eurobarometers show that seven out of ten citizens believe that if they knew more about their national party and its affiliation to its umbrella european parties that would greatly help and six out of ten think that having party candidates for the commission president and a single voting day would also help
the good news is that the twenty five proposals have been implemented or are in the process of being implemented.
the second citizenship report in may two thousand and thirteen has taken stock of the many proposals which we received from the citizens themselves be it in the dialogues which we lead in the different member states
i would like therefore to thank the parliament and its rapporteur for addressing all these issues and to take up also the proposals of our recommendation.
this is also the sense of the commission's proposal to strengthen the effectiveness of all european political parties because this proposal would give the european political parties greater visibility and enable them to operate across the eu by giving them a genuine european legal status.
there is a chance that citizens will appreciate the difference but most importantly through the europeanisation of the debate we have a chance to get one central message across and mobilise people and i believe we can mobilise them even in great britain.
whoever wins in accordance with the lisbon treaty would lead the european commission on the basis of a clear political mandate.
i think that if we were successful in getting that message across maybe the elections would matter even more to european citizens.
that is why we call on the european political parties to nominate their candidates for the commission presidency who would in turn conduct a europe wide campaign.
citizens do not have an impression that they are well informed about european integration and that they have an influence over the political direction taken by eu institutions.
for the first time we would have a link between peoples' votes and the direction taken by the european commission.
it is in the european parliament where decisions impacting citizens' daily concerns are addressed.
i think and the committee agrees with me that we can by boosting the role of the european political parties by picking champions who will stand on party platforms and promote
that way the new parliament and the new commission president that we will elect by an absolute majority of this house in july of next year will have a seriously democratic
vital party politics that we have on the inside of this house to the wider public by posing real choices on the make up of the next commission on the pace and style of integration on the spending programmes of the eu and on
it is not a surprise in these circumstances to find that turnout at our elections has declined leading many to claim that this great experiment here in transnational or even post
however this report is outrageous even in federalist terms.
i have i think commented at least two or three times on similar types of reports authored by mr duff.
i believe that what will really breathe new life into european democracy and the european debate in the united kingdom is a referendum on our position in europe.
it is a referendum that your party mr duff continues to deny the people of the united kingdom but one which will be moved in the british parliament on friday. i trust that you will reflect on the position that the british people are in that you will allow them
one colleague this afternoon has actually said that these recommendations should breathe new life into european democracy.
if you really want to put the logos of these pan european groups on the ballot papers next year by all means do so but you will simply confuse our voters.
virtually nobody in the uk has heard of the aecr which is apparently the euro name of choice for what used to be called the conservative party'.
however by using these strange names it is possible to use uk taxpayers' cash to finance their campaigns.
by all means nominate a has been politician for the post of president of the commission but the average british voter will never have heard of him unless he is called tony blair.
by all means try to get the uk to permit political broadcasts by these euro parties but no genuinely british political party would want to be associated with this undermining of our political system by the eu.
you are just trying to create the concept of a european demos and hoping that british taxpayers' money will do the job for you.
the thrust of this report is to ensure that the elections to the european parliament next year are held with a maximum of success.
at the same time the report also wants to ensure that these are to the extent that is possible european elections with the stress on european.
we know from the past that national issues tend to hijack the european dimension of these elections.
a consequence of this is that the turnout is less than satisfactory and that voters have been known to use the european elections as a protest vote assuming that what happens in the european parliament is secondary.
we here know that this is a misreading of the situation but the voters are less clear on the issue.
to remedy this the assumption is that european level political parties will play an enhanced role in the elections and crucially that they will nominate candidates for the presidency of the commission.
the logic is that thereby the next president of the commission will enjoy greater legitimacy and be more accountable to the citizens of europe.
this step further means that a european level campaign will be held should be held in order to maximise the awareness of the citizens of europe that politics today is more than national.
the main point here is that over the years a good deal of power has migrated from the member states to the european union on a variety of grounds effectiveness the interdependence of the states of europe the integration of many functions.