合法博彩网站

听听S膿des vad墨t膩js. 鈥� N膩kamais darba k膩rt墨bas punkts ir debates par Padomes un Komisijas pazi艈ojumiem par Ganas parlamenta pie艈emto likumu, ar ko v膿r拧as pret LGBTIQ, un ietekmi uz cilv膿kties墨b膩m, v膩rda br墨v墨bu un demokr膩tijas principiem ().

听听Virginijus Sinkevi膷ius, Member of the Commission. 鈥� Mr President, honourable Members, Ghana is a solid democracy, an anchor of regional stability, and has a strong record in terms of protecting human rights throughout its laws and through its practice. Significant steps have been taken in this area. See, for example, Ghana鈥檚 decision of last year to take steps towards abolishing the death penalty.

However, challenges remain, notably in the area of the protection of sexual minorities. The recent passing in parliament of the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Act, more commonly referred to as the anti LGBTIQ Bill, is an issue of concern in Ghana, as is the case in any other country on the continent and in the world. In its current form, the bill requires close review in light of Ghana鈥檚 international and constitutional human-rights commitments. The constitutionality of the bill has been challenged and it is currently scrutinised by the Supreme Court. It is also to be noted that the bill also still requires presidential assent to enter into force. The president has publicly reiterated his commitment on the respect of human rights, and has expressed his concern to seeing a backsliding on human rights in the event of adoption of the bill. Senior members of the Ghanaian Government have also highlighted the bill鈥檚 potential financial consequences and losses for the 2024 budget. We are therefore confident that Ghana will stand firm in the commitments it has made on national and international human rights.

The EU, together with Member States, have followed the matter closely since its introduction in 2021. Our position and concerns on the matter are well known and regularly communicated. Ghana has a pivotal role in ensuring regional stability and an increasingly volatile region, marked by spill-over of insecurity from the Sahel to the Gulf of Guinea countries. The European Union has succeeded in further deepening its partnership with Ghana, as it evolved from a strictly developmental partnership to a more political one that is fit to face regional political and security challenges.

It is therefore of utmost importance that we remain close and build upon Ghana and use already strong partnership to defend our common values.

听听Hannes Heide, on behalf of the S&D Group. 鈥� Mr President, Commissioner, Ghana has developed into a reliable partner of the European Union, offering its citizens stability and prospects. Remarkable progress has been made, particularly in the areas of digitisation, economic and social development. First steps toward green transition have been taken and the death penalty was abolished last year.

Regrettably, Ghana鈥檚 parliament passed a draconian bill in February that carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison for anyone who identifies with LGBTI+ and up to five years in prison for funding LGBTI+ groups. One year after the European 合法博彩网站 adopted a resolution on global discrimination of homosexuality, this bill in Ghana risks the creation of one of the most restrictive LGBTI+ laws in Africa.

I call on the Commission and Member States to immediately engage in a dialogue with the Ghanaian Government and civil society organisations to tackle the growing culture of discrimination and intolerance.

I appeal to President Nana Akufo-Addo 鈥� whose speech here in the House we have fond memories of 鈥� not to sign the law, a law that is in stark contradiction to universal human rights, would undo all the efforts of recent years and jeopardise the stable partnership with Europe.

听听Michael Kauch, on behalf of the Renew Group. 鈥� Mr听President, the Commissioner has said that Ghana is a stable democracy. It has indeed made a lot of progress in the last decades. As a student, I worked in a Ghana under military dictatorship, and I would never have thought that freedom of expression would be suppressed again in this country. It is not a stable democracy, if freedom of expression is facing imprisonment. It is not a stable democracy, if democratic debate on LGBT rights is suppressed. This goes beyond LGBT rights; this is about the Ghanaian democracy.

So I would like to see a clear response and not only monitoring by the Commission and the Member States. There have to be consequences in the cooperation with Ghana if this law is finally enforced.

听听Kim Van Sparrentak, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group. 鈥� Mr President, dear colleagues, dear Commissioner, a year ago we adopted a resolution calling on universal decriminalisation of homosexuality and transgender people after the horrendous law in Uganda was adopted. We are standing here today because another horrible law was adopted, this time in Ghana. And we are seeing that the anti-gender movement, the movement that is against the democratic value of equality and against progress, has made violent marks in Ghana, where queer people are not only further deprived of being able to love who they love, from being who they are, but also from their liberty, from their access to healthcare, their access to housing, and from living their lives.

We have to acknowledge that criminalisation started under colonial rule, and therefore we have a historic responsibility to speak up, to stand in solidarity with the community whose activism is ever-inspiring. And we have to call on President Nana Akufo-Addo to exercise his right of rejection on the basis of constitutionality. President: kill the bill.

And Commissioner, thank you for coming, but I must admit I鈥檓 rather disappointed that the High Representative cancelled again on this topic. I know the world is a busy place, but this issue, these people, deserve to be a priority. So please convey this message to Mr听Borrell: we need action from the Commission to protect our LGBTIQ family around the world. I count on you.

听听Fran莽ois Thiollet (Verts/ALE). 鈥� Monsieur le Pr茅sident, mes chers coll猫gues, trois ans d鈥檈mprisonnement pour homosexualit茅, dix ans pour tout acte de sa promotion. La loi anti-LGBTQIA+ vot茅e par le parlement ghan茅en est aujourd鈥檋ui l鈥檜ne des plus r茅pressives d鈥橝frique. Elle suit celle adopt茅e en Ouganda, et d鈥檃utres pays s鈥檈ngagent malheureusement sur la m锚me voie funeste, comme la Tanzanie ou le Kenya. Ces lois sont un blanc-seing donn茅 脿 tous les auteurs de violences envers la communaut茅 LGBTQIA+. Les agressions homophobes ont d鈥檃illeurs progress茅 au Ghana avant m锚me l鈥檃doption de cette loi, encourag茅es par des discours politiques ou religieux haineux.

Au pr茅texte de valeurs, qu鈥檈lles soient nationales ou religieuses, ces lois bafouent une valeur universelle: le droit de chacun et chacune 脿 la non-discrimination. Ce recul des droits n鈥檈st pas la seule affaire de l鈥橝frique. Au sein m锚me de l鈥橴nion europ茅enne, l鈥檋omophobie est r茅guli猫rement d茅nonc茅e dans la plupart des pays d鈥橢urope. Les droits y sont m锚me menac茅s par certains gouvernements, 脿 commencer par celui de la Hongrie. Au sein m锚me de notre assembl茅e, quand on d茅fend les droits des LGBTQIA+, les groupes d鈥檈xtr锚me droite se distinguent par leur silence, voire leurs outrances homophobes ou transphobes, notamment le groupe ID et son vice-pr茅sident Jordan Bardella, comme le souligne le rapport de Forbidden听Colours publi茅 avant-hier.

Ce mouvement de recul des droits est alarmant pour le Ghana, pour l鈥橝frique, pour l鈥橢urope et pour la plan猫te. La libert茅 de conscience, d鈥檕rientation sexuelle et d鈥檌dentit茅 de genre ainsi que la non-discrimination sont des droits universels.

听听Virginijus Sinkevi膷ius, Member of the Commission. 鈥� Mr听President, our debate today illustrates the EU鈥檚 commitment to defending human rights as universal values. Ghana has shown a strong commitment to shared interests in a rules-based multilateral order, notably in the context of the Russian aggression in Ukraine, and to values dear to the EU, such as the abolition of the death penalty 鈥� an important milestone in Ghana鈥檚 support for human rights. Therefore, we cannot but partner Ghana in this commitment and regional leadership and in this respect for human rights, and continue to follow the country on this promising path.

听听S膿des vad墨t膩js. 鈥� Debates ir sl膿gtas.