unimelb-nlp/MultiEup-v2 huggingface dataset:
Debate: Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Ivars Ijabs
Political group: Renew
Country: France
Language: EN

Madam President, Madam Commissioner, what we are seeing right now in Ukraine makes some things crystal clear. We in Europe have always protected freedom of speech, freedom of information as our fundamental values, and at the same time we have allowed aggressive, authoritarian dictatorships to use information as a weapon against us.  It is now urgent to change this approach. Europe has to engage much more in the distribution of its positive message. We should not hesitate to emphasise our values, our position and our approach to reach the public in authoritarian countries like Russia. I’m talking here about supporting the quality journalism and analysis about access to objective expertise and independent channels of information.  I mean, these first two weeks of the ongoing Russian aggression have been catastrophic for the informational sphere in Russia. Prominent media outlets like Echo Moskvy or Dozhd have been forcibly closed, journalists expelled and arrested. Without our help, the last remnants of a free public debate will be gone in a matter of days. This is not just about helping the Russian people, this is about also ourselves getting informed about what’s happening in those countries. Thank you very much for the report.
Debate: Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Sunčana Glavak
Political group: PPE
Country: Netherlands
Language: HR

Poštovana predsjedavajuća, povjerenice, kolegice i kolege, zahvaljujem izvjestiteljici Kalniete na izradi izvješća koje je pravovremeno u novim okolnostima širokih pokušaja destabilizacije europskog susjedstva i narušavanja dinamike demokratskih procesa u samoj Europskoj uniji.  Kolegice i kolege, rad tipkovnicama i mobilnim uređajima traje više od desetljeća. Vjerujem da smo svi svjesni toga, a sada svjedočimo neviđenoj razini kršenja prava građana, ruskih građana na informacije, koje se u Rusiji manifestira kroz blokiranje pristupa velikim platformama kao što su Facebook, Twitter i Youtube te ograničavanje pristupa zapadnim i neovisnim ruskim medijima.  Kolegice i kolege, tamo se zbog istine ide u zatvor i to je odgovor svima onima koji pitaju zašto je Europa donijela odluku da se zabrane proruski mediji koji šire laži i dezinformacije.  Znate što je pranje novca, a ovdje je na djelu pranje informacija. Stoga pozdravljam naše izviješće koje ističe i razinu važnosti medijske pismenosti koje ostaje ključan način kako ojačavati sposobnost naših građana za prepoznavanje dezinformacija u vremenu zapaljive i manipulativne retorike na društvenim mrežama i u javnom prostoru.  Svojim amandmanom pozvala sam i Europsku komisiju da se zaduži za izradu liste softvera nezakonitog nadzora kao i osposobljavanje osoblja u institucijama.  Kolegice i kolege, transparentnost nikada nije imala bitniju ulogu, kao i odgovarajuće označavanje dezinformirajućeg sadržaja. Suradnjom europskih institucija i medijskih kuća naše strateško opredjeljenje mora biti prepoznavanje narativa manipulacije u borbi za istinu.
Debate: Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Isabel Santos
Political group: S-D
Country: Hungary
Language: PT

Senhora Presidente, ao longo dos anos temos assistido a piratagem de bases de dados e a campanhas de desinformação e manipulação que ameaçam a competitividade dos nossos processos eleitorais e a legitimidade das nossas instituições. Assistimos também ao financiamento de movimentos políticos radicais, alguns deles com assento nesta câmara, através dos esquemas de corrupção, de branqueamento de capitais, da criptomoeda e dos ativos digitais usados ao serviço de Putin e Xi Jinping e outros ditadores e autocratas. É tempo de dizer basta!  Uma UE resiliente implica 27 democracias fortes e uma política externa ativa no fortalecimento da democracia no mundo. É imperioso que a Comissão elabore uma lista com diretrizes com vista a pôr cobro aos resquícios de opacidade no financiamento dos partidos políticos e que em diálogo com a OSCE, com o Conselho da Europa e outras organizações relevantes neste âmbito nos centremos no fortalecimento e na adaptação da observação eleitoral face aos novos desafios. As últimas semanas têm-nos mostrado que a defesa da democracia é um combate que não admite ingenuidade, alheamentos ou adiamentos.
Debate: Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Karin Karlsbro
Political group: Renew
Country: Poland
Language: SV

Fru talman! Fru kommissionär, kolleger! Information är ett dödligt vapen. Att säga sanningen i dagens Ryssland är straffbart. Ingen kan blunda för att Ryssland gör och har gjort lögnen till sanning, för att nå sina syften och för att undergräva och destabilisera Europas och grannländernas demokrati, göra den egna befolkningen avogt inställd till det öppna liberala samhället och få dem att på falska grunder sluta upp bakom Putin och inte dras ner i västs frihetliga dekadens.  Sanningen är att utan lögner hade Putin aldrig kunnat invadera Ukraina. Varför ljuger då Ryssland? Jo, för att det har fungerat – för att alltför många, alltför länge, har varit alldeles för naiva. Vi måste sluta spela med i Putins teater, sätta stopp för lögnerna, avslöja desinformationen, värna vår demokrati och integritet.
Debate: Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Gheorghe Falcă
Political group: PPE
Country: Germany
Language: RO

Doamnă președinte, doamnă comisar, dragi colegi, provin din România unde, la mijlocul anilor ’40, interferența străină a URSS asupra procesului democratic ne-a costat jumătate de secol de comunism. Doamnelor și domnilor, prin experiența noastră să nu mai treacă nimeni. Zilele acestea, o refugiată ucraineană ajunsă în București descria dezinformarea rusă. Citez: „Când le-am trimis prietenilor mei din Rusia filmări cu oamenii morți din apropierea casei mele din Harkov, au încetat să îmi mai scrie”, închei citatul. Tot femeia spunea că a fost sunată de un văr din Crimeea și a invitat-o să stea la el până când armata rusă va elibera Harkovul de armata nazistă ucraineană, iar în final, când femeia și-a sunat mătușa din Belarus să-i spună că a ajuns cu bine în România cu fetița ei, aceasta a întrebat-o ce caută la atacatorii NATO. Doamnelor și domnilor, așa lucrează dezinformarea rusă, iar noi trebuie să avem curajul și determinarea să destructurăm rețeaua de dezinformare Putin din Europa, rețea care finanțează partide, oameni politici, jurnaliști și analiști. Lucrul acesta trebuie să îl facem pentru că ingerințele externe constituie o încălcare gravă a valorilor și a principiilor pe care se întemeiază Uniunea noastră, cum ar fi de demnitatea umană, libertatea, solidaritatea, democrația și statul de drept. Mulțumesc și la mulți ani, doamnelor!
Debate: Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Engin Eroglu
Political group: Renew
Country: Germany
Language: DE

Frau Präsidentin, Frau Kommissarin, meine sehr geehrten Damen und Kollegen hier im Raum! Desinformation ist die Saat des Bösen mit dem Ziel, sich in die Herzen der Menschen zu fressen. Desinformation ist nichts Neues – ein ganz altes Instrument, das schon älter ist als 2000 Jahre. Etwas Neues sind die digitalen Plattformen – nicht älter als 20 Jahre, das ist etwas Neues. Und wohin uns diese digitalen Plattformen geführt haben, sehen wir jetzt. Wir sehen, dass es dazu geführt hat, dass sich in der Europäischen Union flächendeckend radikale Parteien breitgemacht haben, die miteinander kommunizieren, die gleiche Saat verbreiten. Wir sehen, dass bei einer gigantischen Katastrophe wie COVID unsere Gesellschaft nicht geschlossen ist, sondern entzweit in verschiedene Radikale. Wir sehen, es kommt zum Brexit, und wir sehen, es kommt zu einem brutalen Angriffskrieg Putins mitten in Europa auf die Ukraine. Wir müssen dieses Krebsgeschwür bekämpfen und dazu die digitalen Plattformen mit in die Verantwortung nehmen. Sie verdienen hervorragende Summen mit ihrer Arbeit und können diese Summen auch darin investieren, diese Spaltung der Gesellschaft aufzuhalten.
Debate: Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Miriam Lexmann
Political group: PPE
Country: Spain
Language: EN

Madam President, for the first time in decades, Europe is facing a wide—scale war. This is also highlighting the failure to remain consistent with our values. For too long, we were naive, falsely believing that by engaging with authoritarian and totalitarian regimes, we can change them. Today, we see the consequences of this naivety. Instead, these regimes have been seeking to corrupt our democratic processes, degrade our economic strength, divide our society, undermine our alliances and rewrite international norms to suit their malign interests. Even worse, they seek to subvert the very notion of truth. How we respond will determine the world in which we will live. We must remain united and, above all, to seek and defend the truth and the very values on which our Union has been founded, because truth and our values make us stronger and are the best weapon we have to fight back against those wishing to subvert our freedom.
Debate: Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Charles Goerens
Political group: Renew
Country: Czechia
Language: FR

Madame la Présidente, pour un dirigeant autoritaire, rien n’est plus dangereux que des citoyens qui pensent et qui s’articulent librement. La place de ces personnes est devant une justice partiale, dans des camps de travail, voire dans des salles de torture.  Aussi, le dirigeant autoritaire voit-il souvent, à raison, son système menacé de l’extérieur. Avec ses cinquièmes colonnes présentes un peu partout dans les États membres de l’Union européenne, et même dans ce Parlement, il essaye de faire imposer ses vues, de faire basculer des majorités qui ne lui sont pas acquises. Les nouvelles technologies lui servent d’amplificateurs puissants dans des opérations de manipulation. Avouons-le, nous avons peu de moyens à y opposer. À vrai dire, nous n’en avons qu’un seul, et c’est le bon: la formation de l’esprit critique, dès le plus jeune âge, capable de discerner entre vérité, approximation, contre-vérité, mensonge, mésinterprétation.  J’aimerais conclure avec une citation de Frans Timmermans: «Poutine n’a pas peur de l’élargissement de l’OTAN, Poutine a peur de l’élargissement de la démocratie». Une société libre – et ça, c’est ma citation – est une société éclairée. Une société éclairée n’a pas peur.
Debate: Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Eva Maydell
Political group: PPE
Country: Portugal
Language: EN

Madam President, Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is part of a wider campaign to undermine our democracies. Disinformation and foreign interference isn’t a new phenomenon, but Russia has digitised it, and it has combined it with other hybrid tactics. It’s a playbook that has been borrowed and has been used before – be it by China, by Venezuela or by Trump.  Sometimes it feels that people may want to accept convenient lies. But we have to make sure that we can lead them to the sometimes uncomfortable truth. This is why, more than ever, we need to increase our media literacy and critical thinking. Also, platforms can and should do more. I wonder why there are some Russian state accounts that are still active on several platforms. This, for me, is hard to justify.  Tackling disinformation without suppressing free speech is a major task for Europe. This is why we need a special disinformation war room, for which I have already called – and if we ever wanted to try this, now is the time to do it.
Debate: Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Seán Kelly
Political group: PPE
Country: Greece
Language: EN

With unbridled access via social media to virtually everywhere, propaganda and misinformation have been weaponised to an extent not seen before. In Europe, we have seen the horrors of propaganda and the devastation it can cause. Putin has tried to lock away his people from the world, closed their eyes to his inhumane attacks on the innocent, and seeks to rewrite history in real time – all the hallmarks of a tyrant. Suffocated disinformation campaigns deeply sullied the US presidential election in 2016, as well as the Brexit vote.  We must ensure we have the tools in place to respond to this new reality. Free and fair democracies are worth defending, and no country or people should think they are immune from interference.
Debate: Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Paulo Rangel
Political group: PPE
Country: Germany
Language: PT

Senhora Presidente, Senhora Comissária, Presidência, antes de mais queria, naturalmente, saudar neste Dia Internacional da Mulher todas as mulheres e ter, em especial, uma palavra para as mulheres ucranianas que, ou na Ucrânia ou agora fora dela, tanta coragem têm demonstrado. Nestes últimos trezes dias a invasão e agressão criminosa e ilegal injustificada da Ucrânia pela Rússia também é produto da nossa tolerância para com a desinformação, para com as
Debate: Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Arba Kokalari
Political group: PPE
Country: Germany
Language: SV

Fru talman! Desinformation, cyberattacker, hacking, hot mot journalister, finansiering av extremistpartier, spionage – ja, listan kan göras lång i detta lågintensiva krig som har förts mot Europa i åratal, inte bara nu. Men det räcker nu. Vi får inte låta Ryssland föra informationskrig så att Putin kan motivera sina attacker mot oskyldiga civila och barn i Ukraina. Vi får inte låta Ryssland köpa europeiska politiker med styrelseplatser så att Europa blir beroende av den ryska gasen. Vi får inte låta dessa diktaturer påverka demokratiska val i västvärlden, så som man gjorde med brexit och i USA. Vi får inte låta Kina köpa upp europeiska hamnar och annan viktig infrastruktur för att använda det emot oss.  Vi måste stoppa den ryska gasen, isolera den ryska ekonomin och ha hårda sanktioner. Men vi kan också göra mycket mer för att skydda hela Europas motståndskraft, både militärt och med andra medel. Kampen för frihet, demokrati och en ljus framtid för Europas folk är viktigare än någonsin. Det är den viktigaste kampen vi kommer ta i vår generation. Vi får inte längre låta Ryssland och Kina och andra diktaturer utnyttja våra öppna samhällen. Det är en kamp vi måste föra hårt varje minut – och vi måste göra det nu.
Debate: Foreign interference in all democratic processes in the EU
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Mihai Tudose
Political group: S-D
Country: Latvia
Language: RO

Atrag atenția asupra cererii adresate Comisiei Europene să propună o strategie coordonată și transsectorială, dotată cu resurse financiare adecvate, bazată pe politici de reziliență și concretizată în instrumente de descurajare a atacurilor hibride la adresa UE, precum și într-un regim de sancțiuni comune. Avem nevoie, totodată, de campanii intense și eficiente de informare, care să sensibilizeze cetățenii cu privire la riscuri, dar și de un suport semnificativ pentru rezistența presei europene de calitate în noul cadru digital.
Debate: International Women’s Day – Address by Oksana Zabuzhko
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Roberta Metsola
Country: Poland
Language: EN

Good afternoon colleagues, I am very pleased to welcome Oksana Zabuzhko to this year’s celebration of International Women’s Day. On this day, the word ‘celebration’ is not, I think, a word we could use because the shelling of Ukraine continues unabated. We have all seen, heard, and felt some of the misery of the victims of the aggression, the first of which are always women and girls. Yet, in these dark days, we witness strength and we witness courage. In Ukraine women are resisting, they are standing up, pushing back and taking up arms against their aggressor. So it is therefore even more important and a privilege to have with us today a Ukrainian woman and writer, Oksana Zabuzhko, whose literature and strong voice exhibits the very strength of Ukrainian women in the face of oppression. Oksana, you left Ukraine two weeks ago with nothing but your hand luggage and you have not had the possibility to return since.  In Russia and in Belarus, women are protesting on the streets in an act of defiance against their governments. They do this in spite of the serious repercussions they face.  To these women, we say: Europe stands united, with you. We stand united with you. Because there are no winners in war, there is only death. Only the pain that someone bears when they are forced to leave their country, when they learn that their loved ones are not coming home, when they have to bury their children. Colleagues, the brave and resilient women of Ukraine serve as an inspiration to us all. Because yes, there is extraordinary power behind a Ukrainian woman asking a fully-armed Russian soldier to put sunflower seeds in his pocket, so that if he dies on her homeland, flowers may bloom from his lifeless body.  These are the acts of heroines, defending the same European values that we hold. On International Women’s Day, this European Parliament will serve as a platform for the strength of these brave women to be shown to the world. Oksana, you have the floor.
Debate: International Women’s Day – Address by Oksana Zabuzhko
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Frances Fitzgerald
Political group: PPE
Country: Germany
Language: EN

We have spent much of the past 13 days talking about European values because, as you have said, Oksana, as Ukrainians take to the front line to defend their country, they are not just defending themselves and their own beliefs, but the core of our very Union here. Human rights, democracy, the rule of law, these are our European values, and right at the very heart is gender equality, not an add-on, not an extra, but in fact essential and quintessentially European from the start of our project.  Yet the tragedy of this International Women’s Day is that thousands of women, as you have said, Oksana, are running under a hail of bullets, avoiding missiles and their houses falling down around them, running away from the violence, protecting their children and equally running into the fire to protect our European values.  Just two short weeks ago, these were the women contributing to Ukraine in business, in communities and in building up the country’s democratic spirit and democracy. Now they run under sniper fire. Yet Ukrainian women have others who know what it is like, even in the past year. Ask the women of Afghanistan – denied their voice, their education, their lives once again. And the women in Ethiopia raped and brutalised, that isn’t just another weapon of war. The women of Yemen, the women of Belarus.  This is just one year for women in some of the worst places to be a woman, now imagine all the rest. Even in the best of places to be a woman we have unfinished democracies, unfinished gender equality agendas.  In each of these places, and with each of these experiences, the task of finding peaceful solutions must be at the top of our agenda. The UN, the US, G7, NATO, if we are to have a sustainable and meaningful peace, we cannot only have the women working from the ground up. We must have women in the senior decision-making fora of our world. Human rights, democracy, the rule of law, our European values are worth fighting for and gender equality is right at the heart.
Debate: International Women’s Day – Address by Oksana Zabuzhko
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Iratxe García Pérez
Political group: S-D
Country: Germany
Language: ES

Y por eso, escuchar hoy la voz de Oksana en la casa de la democracia europea es tan importante. Este 8 de marzo es importante; este 8 de marzo es diferente.  Pero me vais a permitir también que hoy haga una referencia al movimiento feminista en Europa y en el mundo. El feminismo no entiende de fronteras. Las mujeres tenemos una lucha común por nuestros derechos, por nuestras libertades y, por eso, hoy quiero también destacar el valor de las mujeres en Ucrania, el valor de las mujeres en Afganistán, el valor de las mujeres en tantos y tantos lugares del mundo donde alzar la voz significa poner en riesgo sus vidas.  Hoy estamos con todas las mujeres que sufren, con todas las mujeres que están alzando la voz por un mundo más justo, más igualitario, donde tengamos los mismos derechos.  Este 8 de marzo es importante y las mujeres europeas no nos podemos resignar ni cruzar de brazos. Somos muchas las que tenemos que ser capaces de avanzar en este mundo, en esta sociedad más igualitaria. ¡Viva la lucha feminista! ¡Viva el 8 de marzo!
Debate: International Women’s Day – Address by Oksana Zabuzhko
Date: TUESDAY, 8 MARCH 2022
Speaker: Stéphane Séjourné
Political group: Renew
Country: Slovakia
Language: FR

La première est que les femmes subissent des violences spécifiques et structurelles. Les premières accusations de viol comme crime de guerre ont été enregistrées il y a quelques jours. La deuxième réalité est la place absolument fondamentale des femmes en première ligne lors de cette crise, dans les hôpitaux, les maternités, les écoles, sous les bombes. Tant de femmes sont à leur poste, y compris, aujourd’hui, au combat – vous l’avez rappelé.  Ces réalités illustrent tragiquement l’absolue nécessité morale d’un combat pour l’égalité entre les femmes et les hommes. C’est pour cela que mon groupe politique soutient sans réserve les initiatives de la Commission en la matière. Mais nous devons et nous pouvons aller plus loin, peut-être. L’égalité entre les femmes et les hommes doit devenir une partie constitutive de l’identité politique de l’Union européenne, comme la paix. Quand on dira: «je suis pro-européen», cela doit pouvoir vouloir dire que l’on est féministe, que l’on y croit et que c’est l’ADN de l’Union européenne.  Le pacte Simone Veil poursuit cet objectif en demandant continuellement aux États membres de mettre en place les dispositions législatives les plus avantageuses dans cinq domaines: le droit à l’avortement et à la contraception, la vie familiale, le combat contre les violences faites aux femmes, l’égalité professionnelle et la participation politique. Nous devons maintenir la pression politique pour que, dès 2022, les États appliquent les nouvelles législations plus protectrices. Ainsi, Madame Zaboujko, j’espère que nous pourrons accueillir vos compatriotes ukrainiennes dans une Union européenne encore plus protectrice, encore plus féministe que celle pour laquelle elles se battent encore aujourd’hui.