01/10/2024 | 19:55:50 Thank you, President. It is my privilege on behalf of the Group of the European People's Party (EPP) to welcome the report as it both pertains to the internal situation in Iran and the external situation in Europe of exiled Iranians. And in my short few remarks, I propose to address both questions. I congratulate both Max and Mariia, and there is a slight generational divide between myself and Max, but I think he has proposed the report very well. Now, since the change of leadership in Iran... 01/10/2024 | 19:20:34 Thank you, President. At the outset, could I just briefly congratulate Ms Saskia KLUIT on her report and on her fine exposition of it? May I remind us all that we are primarily a human rights organisation, where the rule of law, democracy and human rights are sacrosanct. We should suspend geopolitical and ideological divides, and we should unite around those core principles and values on this question. We should recognise that in Gaza, we've had an effective genocide with the death of 40 000... 01/10/2024 | 18:31:45 Freedom House has designated Azerbaijan as one of the most authoritarian states. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)'s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) have grave reservations about the recent elections establishing firmly a family monarchy. Arbitrary arrests, indefinite detentions, severe beatings and torture are a common feature. Three hundred and nineteen individuals are in prison on political charges. At the heart of all of this is... 01/10/2024 | 16:45:34 Mister President, I want at the outset to congratulate my good friend and colleague Lord Simon RUSSELL, rapporteur, and also Mr Julian PAHLKE, co-rapporteurs. Can I also acknowledge the remarks of our human rights commissioner Mr Michael O'FLAHERTY, born out of a passionate concern in this area. I'll just set out some of the stark figures at the outset and it merits doing every time we address this issue. Since 2014, the International Organization for Migration has recorded 60 000 people who... 26/06/2024 | 12:56:18 Yes, Mister President. The illegal occupation of Ukraine and the atrocities that go with it in terms of loss of life, of grievous injuries, the abduction of the children, the destruction of infrastructure, and the destruction of cultural heritage are combined to be the greatest contemporary crime internationally, a huge international crime, a huge wrong. We support without reservation, without question, the independence, the sovereignty and the territorial integrity of Ukraine. We condemn... 25/06/2024 | 10:48:02 Thank you, President. By recognising somebody who would be the most inspirational speaker today if she were here. Sadly, Baroness Doreen E. Massey has left us recently. I want to say that she was a visionary, inspirational and pioneering woman in the area of youth participation, of organising young people, and as Chair of the Youth Sub-Committee of the Parliament. I think Doreen Massey was the greatest pioneer of youth participation that I have ever encountered, and I found her absolutely... 19/04/2024 | 11:56:30 Thank you. Thank you, President. At the outset, could I thank our colleague from the administration, Ms Jannick Devaux, for her extraordinary help and work on this and her eternal patience and courtesy? Can I also thank all the contributors to the debate today? It's not totally germane to the report, but may I at the outset acknowledge the very particular horrendous brutalisation, suffering, of children in both Ukraine and Gaza. Their suffering, their brutalisation, what they observe around... 19/04/2024 | 10:32:49 Thank you, President. Without doubt, the internet represents tremendous opportunities for children as a source of knowledge, a tool of communication, and a springboard of creativity. It can help open the windows of wonder for our children. What we must address today is that this is not the full story. Sadly, the internet has also become a breeding ground and a conduit for violence, exploitation and abuse. This Assembly has already sounded the alarm on the urgent need to shield our children... 20/06/2023 | 17:49:40 Madam President, It is my great honour and privilege to speak on behalf of the Group of the European People's Party in this very important debate. This law is reminiscent of the witch-hunt conducted by Senator Joseph McCarthy in the USA in the 1950s and 60s. It also has echoes of Stalinism. Using the very understandable emotion created by the barbaric Ukraine war and with high inflation raging, the ironically named Law and Order Party, or Law and Justice Party, are seeking to drive from... 20/06/2023 | 16:40:39 And thank you, Madam President. And at the outset, I would like to welcome Ms Sviatlana TSIKHANOUSKAYA to the Assembly today and thank her for her remarks and salute her courage and that of her husband Mr Sergei Tikhanovsky. In Ireland, we claim you as one of our own arising from the months of your formative teenage years you spent with us. We salute your courage and that of Sergei. I also salute the rapporteurs on an excellent report. It is widely reported that more than 1 500 people have...