European Parliament Takes Aim at Human Rights Abuses—Because Someone Has To
The European Parliament just wrapped up its latest round of “strongly worded letters,” adopting three resolutions on Thursday that tackle human rights violations in Haiti, China, and Venezuela. Spoiler alert: things aren’t going great in any of these places.
Haiti: Where Half the Gang Members Are Kids
In what can only be described as a humanitarian nightmare with a side of “how did we get here,” Haiti is dealing with children making up roughly half of all gang members. The Parliament—clearly alarmed—insists these kids should be treated as victims, not criminals. Revolutionary thinking, really.
MEPs are calling for everything from gang dismantlement to better healthcare access, particularly for survivors of sexual violence systematically used by gangs. They’re also demanding Haiti stop the extrajudicial killings (apparently that needs to be said) and asking the international community to actually fund the under-resourced Gang Suppression Force. The resolution passed with 511 votes—because who’s going to vote against helping trafficked children?
China’s “Ethnic Unity” Law: Unity Through Assimilation
China’s new law on “ethnic unity and progress” has MEPs calling foul, demanding its immediate repeal. The law, which sounds nice until you read the fine print, essentially encourages assimilation policies that restrict cultural, religious, and linguistic freedoms for Tibetans, Uyghurs, and Mongolians.
Parliament wants political prisoners released—including 2019 Sakharov Prize winner Ilham Tohti—and insists that China keep its hands off the Dalai Lama succession process. They’ve also warned that this law will tank EU-China relations faster than you can say “transnational repression.” The resolution passed 439 to 52, proving that at least some things can unite European politicians.
Venezuela’s Amnesty Law: Amnesia Would Be More Accurate
Venezuela’s “Amnesty Law” ended on April 23rd, and MEPs aren’t exactly mourning its passing. The law failed spectacularly at its stated goal of political reconciliation, leaving at least 470 political prisoners still detained under conditions that make medieval dungeons look appealing.
Parliament made it crystal clear: this amnesty better not shield human rights violators from accountability. They’re demanding all political prisoners be released and insisting the EU maintain sanctions on regime officials until Venezuela actually moves toward democracy. The resolution sailed through with 507 votes in favor—turns out fake amnesty laws aren’t popular.
The Bottom Line
The European Parliament has spoken, resolutions have been adopted, and now we wait to see if anyone actually listens. But hey, at least someone’s keeping score.