The week in the European Parliament in Strasbourg

Full house in Strasbourg, the HQ of the European democracy... Foto: Eurojournalist(e) / CC-BY 2.0

(Félicia Dassonville) – Like every month, MEPs were in Strasbourg for the traditional plenary week. From Monday 16 to Thursday 19 June, they discussed a range of subjects, including child sex abuse and the situation in the Middle East.

“Europe will no longer be a voice for human rights” – The week promised to be intense. Beginning on Monday, when the session opened at 5pm, the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, made a statement on the shooting last week at a school in Graz, Austria, by a former pupil, which left ten people dead and many injured. The President sent her “condolences to the victims and their families […]. Violence and hatred have no place in Europe and in our schools. Schools must remain safe spaces for learning and development; there is no place for fear”. The declaration ended with a minute’s silence.

The situation in the Middle East was one of the topics on Monday’s agenda, as a war has been raging between Iran and Israel for the last six days, causing the deaths of many people and increasing tensions in a region already weakened by various wars. This was an opportunity for Rima Hassan, MEP for the “Left” in the European Parliament and “La France Insoumise”, to reflect on her humanitarian journey aboard the Madleen. “I was kidnapped in the international sea by the Israeli army while on board a humanitarian ship en route to Gaza. I want to remind you, dear colleagues, that the action of the flotilla is perfectly legal”, said the MEP to thunderous applause from her colleagues who were shouting “Free Palestine”. She added: “As long as this Parliament remains silent, Europe will no longer be a voice for human rights, but an echo of its own complicity and political cowardice”.

In response, Jordan Bardella, MEP for the “Patriotes pour l’Europe” and the “Rassemblement national”, said: “Ms Hassan has just demonstrated once again that she is not a French MEP here in the European Parliament, but Hamas’s ambassador to the European Union”. According to the President of the Rassemblement national, “the FEMYSO association has distinguished itself on numerous occasions by taking a communitarian stance and by campaigns promoting the Islamic veil, all with public funding and European taxpayers’ money. [...] We continue to alert you to the growing influence of the Muslim Brotherhood within the European institutions themselves”.

 After several minutes of debate, it was time to celebrate 40 years of the Schengen area. An important moment because for several years now, the Schengen area has been facing a growing migration, as well as security and technological challenges. Last September, Germany, one of the founding members of the European Union, had reintroduced border controls to combat illegal immigration and thus, abandoned “Schengen” as far as Germany is concerned. In response, many MEPs defended the right to free movement made possible by the Schengen treaty. “Schengen is for the people”, said one MEP. For the President of the European Parliament, the Schengen area is “admired”. “It is a clear and tangible example of what European cooperation can achieve. But we must never take it for granted. Preserving and strengthening Schengen requires constant commitment and effort from all of us”, said Roberta Metsola during her speech.

The King of Jordan at the European Parliament – From discussions on combating the sexual abuse and exploitation of children, to an amendment to the regulation on additional aid for regions affected by natural disasters, Tuesday was a day full of twists and turns. From eleven o’clock onwards, the subject of the European pact for the oceans was presented with a single aim: to obtain more concrete measures to preserve the oceans. The European pact for the oceans aims to tackle activities that destroy the oceans. “We still have a lot of work to do”, said César Luena, Spanish MEP for the “Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats” in the European Parliament. Idoia Mendia, a Spanish MEP from the same group, said: “What is at stake, is the future of our children. It must contain more concrete measures for our fishermen. We need to encourage small-scale fishermen while protecting our oceans”.

But the MEPs were mainly impressed by the speech by the King of Jordan, Abdallah II, who came to Strasbourg to speak about the situation in the Middle East, where several wars are going on. “Our world feels lost, as if it has lost its moral centre of gravity”, said the King. For Abdullah II, it is vital to “recommit ourselves to our values […], because when the world loses its moral bearings, we lose our common sense of right and wrong, of what is just and what is cruel”. The King of Jordan then reminded MEPs of the situation in Gaza where, in his words, “a shameful version of our humanity is unfolding before our eyes in real time [...] nowhere more clearly than in Gaza. How is it possible that what was considered an atrocity just 20 months ago is now so commonplace that it is barely noticed? What version of our humanity allows the unthinkable to become commonplace? Or to use starvation against children? Or to normalize the targeting of health workers, journalists and civilians seeking refuge in the camps?”, added Abdullah II. The King concluded by saying that “this year will be one of crucial decisions for the whole world. Europe’s leading role will be essential in choosing the right path. And you can count on Jordan as a loyal partner”. The President of the European Parliament welcomed the visit, hailing “Jordan’s commitment to maintaining stability and peace in the Middle East”. However, the hostages still held by the Hamas terrorists, do not seem to bother the Parliament too much…

“The Iranian people’s war and resistance against religious fascism” – The third day was no picnic either, with a number of subjects debated on Wednesday, including the forthcoming NATO summit. At 1pm, a topical debate, proposed by the “Left” of the European Parliament, began with a single objective: to put an end to the “genocide in Gaza”. “The Israeli government has been methodically and deliberately organizing the genocide of the Palestinian people for eighteen months. It wasn’t until our left-wing group used its opportunity to organize a debate that the word genocide and the need for sanctions appeared for the first time on the official agenda of our Parliament”, said Manon Aubry, MEP for the “La France Insoumise” in the European Parliament. She added: “The Palestinians have no alternative but to starve to death or die from a bullet. Not in the future, but now. The survival of the Palestinian people is at stake”. An action was organised in the courtyard of the European Parliament, bringing together all the left-wing MEPs carrying a “Stop the genocide” banner. “As a Member of the European Parliament, I am ashamed of the silence and complicity of the European institutions in the face of the genocide in Gaza. We will not be silent! Free Palestine”, wrote Emma Fourreau, MEP for “La France Insoumise” in the European Parliament, on her X account (formerly Twitter).

Faced with rising tensions in her country, Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), went to the European Parliament for a meeting and to ask for European support. Iran has been ruled with an iron fist by the mullahs’ regime since 1979, and all freedoms are restricted. “The war that began in the early hours of Friday 13 June marks the start of a dangerous period for the situation in Iran and events in the region. But I must stress that the main war, which has been going on for 44 years, is the war of the Iranian people and their resistance against the religious fascism in power”, said the leader of the Iranian opposition.

On Thursday, the final day at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, MEPs debated media freedom in Georgia, the welfare of dogs and cats, and the repression of the opposition in Mali.