• The dark side of Santos’ visit to Europe

    Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos has just finished a five days marathon tour of Europe. The official purpose of his tour was to collect money for the ongoing peace process in Colombia. But at the same time, not bothered by any contradiction, he also

    Buenaventura (Colombia)

    11.11.2014 | Wearing his Halloween peace dove costume, Santos arrived to Europe seeking funds to support post-conflict Colombia. The president’s visit earned him great support from various EU members states, but also generated strong criticism from certain members of the European Parliament as well as organisations of civil society ... Mehr

  • Los derechos humanos de los colombianos valen menos que los intereses empresariales

    CONCLUSIONES DE LA MISIÓN DEL EURODIPUTADO JÜRGEN KLUTE

    17.05.2014 | La defensa de los derechos sociales y los derechos humanos de los ciudadanos continúa siendo combatida en diversas regiones de Colombia por los intereses particulares de poderes empresariales tanto colombianos como extranjeros. Esa es la principal conclusión del eurodiputado alemán Jürgen Klute, al término de la misión de verificación de derechos humanos que ha realizado por departamentos como Valle del Cauca, el Cesar y la Guajira, donde se entrevistó con líderes comunitarios, sociales, políticos y sindicales, así como autoridades, instituciones y empresas Mehr

  • Simon Gronowski: 1943-2014 - experience from the "Train to Auschwitz"

    Wednesday, 21 May 2014, European Parliament, Brussels

    08.05.2014 | This year is the 71st commemoration of the attack by three young men of the train to Auschwitz between Brussels and Leuven which led to the escape of 231 Jews (the German journalist Marion Schreiber wrote about it in her book "Silent Rebels"). The then eleven year old boy Simon Gronowski was one of those who could escape. He is now - in 2014 - the last person still living. To facilitate the organisation, please register via email: juergen.klute@europarl.europa.eu. Mehr

  • Syrian refugee crisis: Turkey must open border for humanitarian aid to Syrian Kurdistan

    17.04.2014 | "In Syrian Kurdistan in the north of the country the violence has been limited to an extent and people there have set up a basic democratic structure. As a result many refugees have fled there. We need to break isolation of this region, which sits on the Turkish border, so as to get aid through. We appeal to the Turkish government to open its borders for humanitarian aid." Mehr

  • MEPs call to enable Syrian minorities to acess humanitarian aid

    European Parliament resolution on Syria: situation in certain vulnerable communities

    17.04.2014 | "The European Parliament strongly condemns the recent attacks against certain religious and ethnic communities in Syria, notably the Christians, Armenians and Kurds, and calls on all the parties involved to stop all actions aimed at inciting interethnic and interconfessional conflict; stresses that all actors involved in the conflict have a duty to protect all the different minorities present in the country." Mehr

  • Basic bank accounts for all

    16.04.2014 | Anyone legally residing in the EU would have the right to open a basic payment account, and no-one could be denied this right on grounds of nationality or place of residence, under a new law passed by Parliament on Tuesday. This law should also ensure that fees and rules for all payment accounts are transparent and comparable and make it easy to switch to another payment account that offers better terms. Mehr