Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

RemovedB. whereas corruption remains a serious concern;

AddedB. whereas the Union is founded on the common values, enshrined in Article 2 TEU, of respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities; whereas these are values that are embedded in the Charter and in international human rights treaties; whereas the Charter is part of EU primary law; whereas respect for these values is an ongoing obligation for all Member States after EU accession, and a pre-condition for enjoying all Treaty rights and benefits deriving from EU membership;

RemovedC. whereas media freedom across the EU remains under threat, particularly in Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Hungary and Slovakia; whereas strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) remain a threat to media freedom;

AddedC. whereas democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights are mutually reinforcing values which, when undermined, pose a systemic threat to the rights and freedoms of the people living in the EU; whereas the Union’s existing rule of law toolbox constitutes an important set of instruments for upholding the Union’s values in Article 2 TEU; whereas their full and consistent implementation, accompanied by regular monitoring and follow-up actions, remains necessary to effectively address and prevent systemic challenges to the rule of law across the EU;

RemovedD. whereas journalists and media workers are suffering from precarious conditions and an unsafe environment;

AddedD. whereas the effective implementation of CJEU and ECtHR judgments is an essential component of safeguarding fundamental rights and upholding the rule of law within the Union; whereas recurrent delays or failures to implement such judgments risk undermining confidence in the European human rights system; whereas the pending judgment in case C-769/22, Commission v Hungary, could establish Article 2 TEU as an autonomous legal basis, thereby strengthening infringement procedures in this regard;

RemovedE. whereas the spread of disinformation polarises and weakens democracy;

AddedE. whereas the limited progress in the ongoing Article 7(1) TEU procedure against Hungary underlines the need to accelerate and strengthen existing processes; whereas achieving concrete and timely results is essential to ensure the protection of fundamental rights and the credibility of the Union’s commitment to the values enshrined in Article 2 TEU;

RemovedF. whereas new technologies, including AI systems, risk exacerbating discrimination and existing inequalities; whereas the use of spyware, facial recognition and mass surveillance technologies represent abusive and undemocratic practices;

AddedF. whereas corruption remains a serious concern, since it weakens democratic accountability, poses a serious threat to good governance and erodes citizens’ trust in institutions, undermining the EU values enshrined in Article 2 TEU, as consistently highlighted in the Commission’s annual rule of law reports;

RemovedG. whereas compliance with the Union values laid down in Article 2 TEU is a fundamental prerequisite to accessing EU funds;

AddedG. whereas corruption is often linked to the erosion of democratic institutions and exploited by organised crime to infiltrate politics and the economy, distort democratic processes, and launder illicit money; whereas restoring trust at all levels of society, including in the judiciary and law enforcement, requires sustained anti-corruption efforts, ethical political leadership, robust independent oversight and a strong commitment to transparency, accountability and the protection of core democratic values;

RemovedH. whereas the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights recommends carrying out comprehensive human rights risk assessments before engaging in external cooperation;

AddedH. whereas in its annual report, GRECO underlined concerns in several Member States, particularly as regards a lack of transparency in the law-making process, a robust framework to prevent conflicts of interest, a code of conduct for members of government and public officials, access to information on law reforms, and the strengthening of anti-corruption and integrity frameworks within law enforcement agencies; whereas in its study on the examination of persons with top executive functions and law enforcement agencies, GRECO stressed that the absence of integrity checks for top executives in governments and issues related to the recruitment and career of law enforcement personnel, particularly for top management positions, remain problematic;

RemovedI. whereas attempts to suspend the registration of asylum applications is a matter of serious concern; whereas the human rights of the people concerned must be respected, their protection needs assessed, and those who qualify for international protection must be given access to meaningful protection measures;

AddedI. whereas there is a lack of adequate protection for whistle-blowers across the EU; whereas some Member States have not yet fully or correctly transposed the Whistleblowers Directive; whereas during 2024 and 2025, the CJEU sanctioned six Member States for failing to transpose the Whistleblowers Directive; whereas whistle-blowers play an essential role in detecting and reporting wrongdoing and in strengthening democratic accountability and transparency, and their protection should be guaranteed and promoted;

RemovedJ. whereas gender-based violence against women and LGBTIQ+ people remains pervasive, particularly for those experiencing multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination; whereas the denial of access to safe and legal abortion is a form of gender-based violence;

AddedJ. whereas ECtHR case-law emphasises that pre-trial detention must remain an exceptional measure, applied only when strictly necessary and justified on relevant and sufficient grounds; whereas the misuse of pre-trial detention undermines the right to liberty, the presumption of innocence and the overall fairness of justice systems;

RemovedK. whereas there is an unprecedented and intensified attack on civic space across the EU; whereas attacks on civil society organisations (CSOs) and human rights defenders (HRDs) that protect and promote Union values have increased and remain a matter of serious concern;

AddedK. whereas media freedom across the EU remains under threat in several Member States, as illustrated by the Commission’s latest Rule of Law Report, which issues recommendations to several Member States on addressing concerns relating to media independence, political pressure and the persistence of attacks against press freedom, including SLAPPs;

RemovedL. whereas in some Member States, such as Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Poland and Spain, CSOs and HRDs have faced prosecution for assisting refugees and migrants;

AddedL. whereas the Media Pluralism Monitor (MPM) shows a deterioration in working conditions for journalists, including violence, harassment and intimidation, a growing concentration of media ownership and the impact of digital platforms and budget constraints; whereas further safeguards are still needed, including independent regulators, transparency of media ownership, protection from political interference and enhanced access to information and security for journalists;

RemovedM. whereas EU funding for civil society should be ensured in the next multiannual financial framework (MFF);

AddedM. whereas the Council of Europe’s 2025 annual assessment of press freedom in Europe shows that media capture, the lack of independence of public service media and AI-generated disinformation campaigns are growing threats across the EU, posing a direct risk to democracy; whereas preserving press freedom and ensuring the public’s access to independent, high-quality journalism is one of the key pillars of a democratic society; whereas SLAPPs remain a threat to media freedom; whereas the safeguards provided for in the Anti-SLAPP Directive should be extended to domestic and criminal cases; whereas the European Media Freedom Act entered fully into force on 8 August 2025; whereas in several Member States, journalists and media workers have been subjected to political smear campaigns, public denigration and orchestrated attempts to discredit their work, often accompanied by abusive legal actions and threats, pressure, harassment and violence, creating a climate of fear and self-censorship that undermines the public’s right to information;

RemovedN. whereas institutionalised racism is ingrained in governmental policies and public services such as police forces;

AddedN. whereas some journalists and media workers in several countries are suffering from precarious conditions, a lack of resources and an unsafe environment, including increasing harassment and legal challenges, and must also deal with additional challenges including intimidation, legal threats, political interference, limited access to reliable funding and shrinking media pluralism; whereas many face threats, attacks and intimidation in the course of their investigations, and some are forced to live under police protection due to ongoing death threats; whereas according to the MPM 2024 report, the precariousness of journalistic work has had a direct impact on the independence and quality of reporting across Europe; whereas journalists and media professionals must enjoy the rights and assume the duties conferred upon them by their function;

RemovedO. whereas FRA surveys of Black people, Jews, Muslims and LGBTIQ+ people in the EU show that they experience widespread hatred;

AddedO. whereas disinformation is often part of a broader range of hybrid threats aimed at undermining or harming democratically established governments, countries or alliances; whereas the spread of misinformation and disinformation, including state-sponsored and coordinated online campaigns, contributes to polarisation, erodes trust in democratic institutions, threatens the integrity of electoral processes and public debate, poses a threat to key electoral principles such as voters’ freedom to form their opinion, transparency, equality of opportunity and fairness, and is amplified by the rise of social media and digital platforms, which accelerate the dissemination of false and manipulative content;

AddedP. whereas algorithmic manipulation increasingly shapes public opinion by amplifying false or extremist narratives; whereas changes in content moderation policies and enforcement practices on certain major platforms have deepened this trend and raised concerns about the increased spread of harmful content and online manipulation; whereas the Commission has opened investigations into several platforms under the Digital Services Act for failing to curb disinformation and protect users;

AddedQ. whereas vulnerable groups are particularly exposed online, facing targeted manipulation, harmful narratives and limited media literacy; whereas young people remain particularly exposed to algorithmic bias and propaganda without adequate digital literacy tools; whereas digital platforms can also play a positive role in access to knowledge, civic participation, community building, innovation and the promotion of fundamental rights; whereas bias in algorithms and the business model of social media platforms, based on micro-targeted advertising, play a role in spreading and amplifying hate speech and inciting discrimination, including racism, misogyny and violence;

AddedR. whereas upcoming EU initiatives to combat disinformation, including the European Democracy Shield, must be fully consistent with international human rights standards;

AddedS. whereas new technologies, including AI systems, offer significant opportunities for innovation, economic growth and improved public services, but may also risk exacerbating discrimination and amplifying existing inequalities and creating new forms of bias; whereas they may raise concerns with regard to privacy and fundamental rights and should be subject to strict safeguards and clear legal frameworks;

AddedT. whereas children across the EU are facing a growing mental health crisis driven by the unchecked influence of algorithmic techniques, such as addictive and manipulative design, ‘dark patterns’ pushing children into extended screen time, and the promotion of harmful content; whereas this has negative effects on children’s healthy development, mental well-being and safety; whereas current EU legal frameworks governing the online environment do not sufficiently address the protection of children’s mental health online;

AddedU. whereas the use of spyware, facial recognition and surveillance technologies requires strict safeguards, transparency and democratic oversight in order to prevent abuses, protect fundamental rights and ensure full respect for privacy; whereas new technologies are being used to create predictions, profiles and risk assessments that affect people’s lives and can reproduce social biases; whereas the use of facial recognition technologies can have a chilling effect on the right to peaceful assembly and may have discriminatory effects; whereas biometric mass surveillance practices risk undermining fundamental rights; whereas such practices constitute serious violations of the right to privacy and to freedom of expression; whereas new technologies should be better regulated to protect fundamental rights;

AddedV. whereas, in the case of journalists, surveillance not only endangers their safety but also destroys the confidentiality of their sources, effectively preventing them from carrying out their work; whereas when there is mounting evidence and an alert from companies about surveillance operations, national authorities should provide information on the scope, authorisation and accountability of these operations, and not leave victims without clarity or effective redress;

AddedW. whereas there has been widespread use, including by governments, of spyware technologies in several Member States; whereas the use of spyware constitutes an abusive and undemocratic practice that undermines the rule of law and fundamental rights in our society, and for which there is no effective redress; whereas advances in technology are making spyware infections harder to detect and far more widespread;

AddedX. whereas the Parliament’s Committee of Inquiry to investigate the use of Pegasus and equivalent surveillance spyware (PEGA) found that spyware such as Pegasus, Predator and Graphite had been unlawfully used in several Member States against journalists, civil society actors, lawyers, opposition figures and officials; whereas it identified serious breaches of privacy, data protection and freedom of expression, and warned that such practices pose a systemic threat to democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights in the Union; whereas the full implementation of the PEGA recommendations is essential to prevent further abuses;

AddedY. whereas recent journalistic investigations have revealed that certain EU funds may have been allocated to companies developing or marketing intrusive surveillance technologies, including spyware; whereas it is essential to ensure that no EU funds contribute to the development, export or deployment of spyware or other surveillance tools that can be used to violate fundamental rights and the rule of law;

AddedZ. whereas according to the Venice Commission, spyware technologies could be turned into a surveillance weapon that could be used to curtail fundamental rights, censor and criminalise criticism and dissent, and harass, or even suppress, journalists, human rights activists, political opponents and civil society organisations, as shown by the multiple allegations and revelations;

AddedAA. whereas many instances of disproportionate use of force against demonstrators continue to be reported across the EU, including violence and the use of less lethal weapons to control or disperse crowds;

AddedAB. whereas there is evidence that some EU funds, including certain EU Home Affairs funds, have been used in a way that leads to fundamental rights violations, including discrimination; whereas EU funds should be used in a manner that promotes and respects fundamental rights and does not result in any such violations; whereas compliance with the Union values laid down in Article 2 TEU, including respect for the rule of law, democracy and fundamental rights, is a fundamental prerequisite for accessing and implementing EU funds, as reflected in the Rule of Law Conditionality Regulation; whereas Member States and the Commission must ensure respect for fundamental rights and compliance with the Charter in accessing and implementing EU funds; whereas increased transparency and accountability and effective oversight in the allocation and use of EU funds and the assessment of the relevant programmes are key to ensuring compliance with the horizontal enabling conditions;

AddedAC. whereas fundamental rights violations at borders, including ill treatment, pushbacks and verbal and physical violence, have been widely reported; whereas such practices have arisen in several Member States in recent years; whereas these include cases of migrants being mistreated by border guards or other officials; whereas these practices violate fundamental rights, EU law and international human rights and refugee law, including the principle of non-refoulement and the prohibition of collective expulsions; whereas Member States and the EU have the responsibility to conduct thorough and effective investigations into violations of fundamental and human rights at borders; whereas fundamental rights violations often go unreported;

AddedAD. whereas according to the report entitled ‘Externalised asylum and migration policies and human rights law’ by the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, externalisation policies may engage the responsibility of Member States, in particular with regard to the principle of non-refoulement, the right to life, freedom from torture and inhuman or degrading treatment, the prohibition of collective expulsion and arbitrary detention, and the right to access effective remedies, as guaranteed by EU and UN treaties, the Charter and the ECHR; whereas the report identifies the external processing of asylum claims, external return procedures and the outsourcing of border controls, some of which have a documented history of serious violations against people on the move, as being among the main areas in which the risks are particularly acute;

AddedAE. whereas the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights recommends carrying out comprehensive human rights risk assessments before engaging in external cooperation, reviewing the human rights impact of ongoing activities, defining clear and non-negotiable principles that exclude any cooperation likely to put people at risk of fundamental rights violations, ensuring adequate human rights preconditions and safeguards, and strengthening transparency, monitoring and accountability; whereas the division of responsibilities between the Member States and EU bodies or agencies should never result in accountability gaps;

AddedAF. whereas according to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, the detention of any child solely on account of their or their parents’ migration status constitutes a child rights violation and contravenes the principle of ensuring the best interests of the child; whereas the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe resolution entitled ‘Artificial Intelligence and Migration’ stresses that asylum seekers should have the right to challenge AI-generated evidence, such as flawed interview summaries or biased analyses, that legal aid should be expanded to support such challenges, that reparations must be available where harm results from algorithmic errors, and that technological innovation must not come at the expense of fundamental rights;

AddedAG. whereas certain Member States’ responses to irregular migration risk undermining fundamental rights and may perpetuate racialised narratives; whereas the EU and the Member States should ensure the protection of the lives of refugees and migrants and take credible steps to deliver accountability for violations;

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AddedAH. whereas attempts to suspend the registration of asylum applications are a matter of serious concern; whereas the human rights of the people concerned must be respected and their protection needs assessed, and those who qualify for international protection must be given access to meaningful protection measures; whereas the new legislative framework under the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum establishes revised rules for asylum procedures, border management and solidarity; whereas its effective application requires full respect for fundamental rights and compliance with EU and international obligations; whereas several Member States continue to face significant operational pressure at their external borders; whereas these challenges require a coordinated European response, including streamlined and effective procedures, in full accordance with the applicable EU and international legal framework; whereas the need to prevent the abuse of the European asylum system by smugglers and the need to combat all forms of transnational organised crime are essential for managing migration effectively;

AddedAI. whereas women and girls face increasing and pervasive online violence, hate speech and hate crime, with particular and extreme consequences for their daily lives, their participation in public life, and, as a result, for equal representation; whereas the EU Roadmap for Women’s Rights and the declaration of principles for a gender-equal society are welcome initiatives, although they have no enforcement power; whereas urgent efforts are needed to defend and promote gender equality, and thus a Union of Equality;

AddedAJ. whereas the growing global influence of the so-called ‘manosphere’ has given rise to online communities and male influencers promoting the false narrative that feminism and gender equality harm men, spreading misogynistic content, normalising violence against women and girls, and increasingly intersecting with extremist and radical movements;

AddedAK. whereas opposition to gender equality has escalated in recent years; whereas the level of gender-based violence, particularly against women and girls, as well as LGBTIQ+ people, including sexual violence and rape, remains high across the Union, particularly for those experiencing multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination; whereas gender-based cyberviolence represents a continuation of offline gender-based violence in the online environment; whereas gender-based cyberviolence often leads to self-censorship and can have serious consequences for victims’ personal and professional lives; whereas responses from the criminal justice system remain insufficient to address this phenomenon; whereas training police officers in the soft skills needed to listen to, understand and respect all victims of gender-based violence is essential to counter underreporting and re-victimisation; whereas ensuring accessible reporting mechanisms and effective remedies is indispensable to creating a safer environment for all victims of gender-based violence;

AddedAL. whereas the denial of access to safe and legal abortion exposes women to serious risks and is therefore a form of gender-based violence, as it also denies women’s autonomy and freedom of reproductive choice; whereas sexual and reproductive healthcare services are essential healthcare services; whereas more than 20 million women in the EU still lack access to safe and legal abortion and other sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) services, which puts women and girls at risk of physical harm and undue economic and mental stress; whereas the denial of such essential healthcare services as SRHR services in some Member States also includes women and girls who are victims of sexual violence, hindering the process of their recovery from the offence in question; whereas the ‘My Voice, My choice’ European Citizens’ Initiative calls on the EU to ensure access to safe and legal abortion for all while respecting the division of competences under the Treaties; whereas the ECtHR has ruled that restrictive abortion laws and the lack of consistent implementation in practice violate women’s right to bodily autonomy and integrity;

AddedAM. whereas discrimination based on sex, gender and other grounds is prohibited under Article 21 of the Charter;

AddedAN. whereas, as parties to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), Member States are bound by its commitments, including Article 12 on the elimination of discrimination against women in the field of healthcare, with a view to ensuring that men and women have equal access to healthcare services, including those related to family planning;

AddedAO. whereas denying access to safe and legal abortion in law and practice discriminates against women on the grounds of sex by prohibiting a type of healthcare only required by women; whereas no similar restrictions exist on health services that are needed only by men;

AddedAP. whereas total annual anti-gender funding in Europe rose from USD 220 million in 2019 to USD 271 million in 2023, which represents a 23 % increase; whereas a significant portion of the funding driving the growth of anti-gender movements across the EU comes from foreign actors; whereas the rise of anti-gender and anti-rights movements in the past few years is a result of coordinated transnational efforts with regard to organisation, fundraising and mobilisation; whereas research shows that these movements benefit from funding from a broad range of actors from the far-right of the political spectrum ;

AddedAQ. whereas media reports show that EU funding has in the past been awarded to organisations that mislead women about their sexual and reproductive health; whereas all EU funding must align with the common values of the Union as enshrined in Article 2 TEU and the Charter, ensuring that financial support reinforces the democratic values of the EU;

AddedAR. whereas we are witnessing an unprecedented and intensified attack on civic space across the EU, including through legal and financial restrictions, funding suspensions, smear campaigns, intimidation and criminalisation, and on the right to peaceful assembly; whereas the right to peaceful assembly is crucial in a democratic society;

AddedAS. whereas the UN Human Rights Council underlined that the global trend of backsliding on democracy and the rule of law and the securitisation of agendas have exacerbated and deepened restrictions on the right to peaceful assembly; whereas attacks on civil society organisations (CSOs) and human rights defenders (HRDs) such as those working to protect and promote human and environmental rights, including gender equality, migration, democracy and advocacy, have increased and remain a matter of serious concern; whereas CSOs and HRDs engaged in protecting and promoting fundamental rights play a vital role in safeguarding Union values; whereas their ability to operate freely and independently should be ensured and supported across all Member States;

AddedAT. whereas individuals in vulnerable situations, such as children, women, racialised and ethnic communities, LGBTIQ+ people, migrants and asylum seekers, people with disabilities and older people are recurrent targets of hate speech and derogatory narratives; whereas in several Member States, anti-LGBTIQ+ narratives are being spread by politicians and media outlets, and anti-LGBTI legislation has been tabled and in some cases even adopted; whereas such situations run contrary to international human rights standards and undermine the right of these groups to be treated as equal citizens;