LNC'15 Academic Preparation Kit

ACADEMIC PREPAR ATION KIT

13th National Conference of EYP Latvia

Olaine, Latvia 5-10 August 2015

TAB LE OF CO NTE NTS

10 – 15

2 4 – 31

SEDE FEM M

38 – 43

R EG I

51 – 57

LI B E I

E M PL DRO I

4–9 16 – 23

A F CO

3 2 – 37

I NTA

1 5 – 4 4

LI B E I I

58 – 61

E M PL SOCIAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE ON EMPLOYMENT AND

by Samuël Nelemans (NL)

1. EXPLANATION OF THE PROBLEM / RELEVANCE OF THE TOPIC Remember the ‘60s? Of course no. We’re the European Youth Parliament, so our world view is not based on an era that ended over 50 years ago. However, it seems that present day drug legislation is still a reaction to the mentality and problems of the ‘60s, when drugs were omnipresent and hippies gathered in drum circles on a daily basis. Nixon’s “war on drugs” has decreased worldwide drug use for a while, but now the tide has changed. As more European citizens experiment with brain altering chemical substances, more is discovered about the actual extent of health risks associated with these drugs.

In multiple places around the world, new policies are introduced concerning drug legislation. The tendency is decriminalisation, where drugs are considered more and more as a public health issue and less as a matter of criminal justice. However, different policies in multiple countries have caused drug tourism, and due to the open borders within the EU drug smuggling is now easier than ever. The internet has made reliable information about drugs and how to use the safely very easy to find, debunking many of the myths that were created to demotivate drug use, but this has also stimulated an increase in consumption. And now designer drugs are entering the market, substances that have barely been researched and of which the long term effects are completely unknown, yet people already partake without legal consequences. This raises the need for a uniform European drug policy that minimises damage to public health while in the meantime possibly fighting international drug related crime.

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to the health of individuals and age dam d late g-re dru sing imi Min with complex more becoming lms rea d late g-re Dru : iety soc ficking routes, they affect more ever-developing substances and traf mber States tackle this individual and and more Europeans. How can the Me g trafficking market? societal issue that has roots in global dru

2. KEY TERMS • Drugs: A drug is a chemical substance that affects the neural system and can be taken for the pleasant effects on the user. This includes all substances listed below.

For the sake of simplicity, we will not include nicotine and caffeine in our topic. The three main categories of drugs in terms of effect are stimulants, depressants and hallucinogens.1 Note that each drug has a different effect on different people and in different situations, so many drugs can have multiple of the effects below.

• Stimulants: Drugs that stimulate the brain and central nervous system, often increasing alertness and physical activity. Examples are XTC, Caffeine, Cocaine, Speed, PEP and Meth.

• Depressants: Drugs that slow down the activity of the brain and nervous system, often used to relax, to calm nerves and to relieve pain. Examples are Cannabis, Alcohol, GHB, Morphine, Heroin and other opiates.

• Hallucinogens: Drugs that interfere with the brain and central nervous system in a way that results in radical distortions of a user’s perception of reality, causing vivid hallucination. Examples are LSD, Magic Mushrooms and Ketamine. Note that many other drugs, such as Cannabis, can cause a hallucinogenic response in addition to their other effects.

• Designer Drugs: Most drugs that are used often are registered substances on which legislation is in effect. However, in recent years many new substances have been developed that have similar effects to illegal substances, yet do not fit the legal description of the original product. These so called “Designer Drugs” are often invented faster than legislation can keep up with and hence they are not officially illegal. The long term effects are generally unknown, while sale and use is difficult to fight. And by the time these substances have been researched and legislation is in effect, a replacement is often already on the market. The EU keeps a list of designer drugs or New Psychoactive Substances 1

http://www.ceida.net.au/drugs.asp

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EM PL (NPS)2, but even this list does not contain all substances. Hence, under Designer Drugs we will understand all drugs that have not yet been included in the law.

• Medicinal Drug Use: Many drugs are also used as medication, and by some definitions, drugs include all forms of medication prescribed by doctors. While the Medicinal use of Cannabis has been discussed in multiple regions over the world, addictive opiates are still sometimes prescribed by doctors to alleviate pain. We will not consider addiction related to medicinal drug use in committee work, but the medical world plays an important role in demand on for instance the global cannabis market.

2 ht tp://www.drugwar facts.org/cms/chapter/NPS#sthash.rL4NWCVl.PLR8j7Od.dpbs

3. KEY QUESTIONS • Which substances have which effects on the user, their health and society?

• In which countries and regions has drug-related legislation been most effective so far?

• Which effects do recent developments on the drug market have on the effectiveness of current legislation?

• How can the EU play a role in minimising drug related health issues?

• Should the EU inform people about drug related health and safety measures? If so, which methods are most effective in reducing health problems?

• How can the EU fight illegal drug trade and expel the sale of harmful products?

4. KEY FACTS AND FIGURES • In 2012, 3 in every 1 million EU citizens died due to drugs dependence. The majority of the victims were male.1 • Of all drug treatment entrants across the EU, the primary problematic drugs are opioids for 41% of the cases, 29.4% cannabis, 13.5% cocaine, 6.7% amphetamines, 0.3% ecstasy and 9.1% other drugs. 2 1 2

http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/en/web/products-datasets/-/TPS00149 http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/edr2015

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5. KEY CONFLICTS The main problems surrounding drugs are related to health, justice and international cooperation. First of all, many health hazards have been linked with the (excessive) use of drugs, although some substances can have positive health effects in small doses. For instance, a single glass of red wine per day has been correlated to low blood pressure, while heavy drinking often leads to grave health problems.

There has been quite some research into the effects of multiple substances on the body, but we will not focus on these to prevent the discussion from becoming very technical. Furthermore, many of the drugs in circulation are very addictive, which motivates excessive use and overdose.

Another problem is the legal issue related to drugs. While legal forces spend great amounts of time and money on finding and persecuting drug producers and traffickers, for each trader they arrest two new ones appear. Since all production is illegal, there is no form of control on the actual contents of the drugs sold, which greatly increases the health hazard. And as designer drugs keep increasing their market share, legislation and tracking become ever more complicated.

Finally, whenever a state or country plans to legalise a specific drug, people surrounding regions will cross the border and profit from the legislation. This so called drugs tourism both creates public nuisance in the border regions of the country where the drug is legal, as well as a health hazard for people crossing the border to use these substances. Hence, transnational policy seems to be necessary, even though each region can have a different problematic and needs with respect to drug legislation.

6. STAKEHOLDERS Obviously, the drug users are one of the main stakeholders in this story. However, we will distinguish between users and addicts. Drug users will be defined as people who use drugs for recreational purposes. These people, as any consumers, would say to benefit from an open market with easy access to drugs and proper information about the products they purchase. Drug addicts on the other hand will be defined as people who have become dependent on some form of drugs and who suffer from withdrawal symptoms when not consuming these drugs for an extended period of time. There has been a lobby to treat such people as patients rather than criminals, since they would benefit more from treatment than from imprisonment.

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EM PL The producers, traffickers and sellers of drugs are the bane of criminal activities throughout Europe. Legalisation of their trade would mean that their empire would collapse, but also that fewer casualties would fall in drug wars between cartels.

Police and Justice Enforcement departments on the other hand would have much more time on their hands when not fighting “the war on drugs�.

The medical lobby generally opposes the widespread use of drugs, due to the health hazards associated with the substances. Furthermore, some organisations against drug use plead for the banning of the substances, since easy access to drugs would mean that children and young adults could also get into contact with these dangerous substances before their brains have fully developed, which could increase the health risks and the chance of addiction.

7. MEASURES IN PLACE At this point, there is no centralised European legislation concerning drugs. Instead, all member states provide their own legislation on the subject. Most European countries prohibit all recreational drugs with the exception of alcohol. Some countries have decriminalised certain substances in order to fight problems surrounding drugs more effectively. One of the most remarkable examples of this is Portugal, where all drugs including hard drugs have been decriminalised, an example that is now being followed by Italy and Spain due to the good results.1 In the Czech Republic, many substances have now been associated with a maximum tolerated amount, under which possession will not be treated as a crime. 2 The consumption of Alcohol is legal everywhere in Europe, but it is often restricted to people over the age of 18. The exceptions are Belgium and the German speaking countries, where beer, wine and other beverages with low alcohol percentage are allowed for minors from the age of 16.3 Cannabis is illegal in all of Europe, with a few exceptions. In The Netherlands, the 1 http://www.cato.org/publications/white-paper/drug-decriminalization-portugal-lessons-creating-fair-successful-drug-policies 2 Government of the Czech Republic (2009), Regulation No. 467/2009 Coll., which defines for the purposes of the Criminal Code what is to be considered larger than small amount of narcotic and psychoactive substances and poisons (in Czech), Prague 3 http://iard.org/Dynamic/Team/Minimum-Age-Limits-Worldwide

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“Gedoogbeleid” allows the sale of cannabis within the confinements of licenced coffee shops to all those who are 18 years of age or older. However, a person is only allowed to carry 5 grams of weed or hasj with them, and one can only own 4 hemp plants (only for private consumption) while production on a bigger scale is always illegal, as well as import. A similar policy is in effect in Czech Republic, while quite some other countries have decriminalised cannabis use. We also note that in some states in the United States of America, the legalisation of Cannabis has already been in effect for over a year and we can observe some of the consequences the policy has had over there.

As for designer drugs, the EU has created a list of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) which include all substances known today that can be used by countries to frame legislation around. However, no general policy is set around Europe. The last UN drug treaty dates from 1971, in which a division of drugs in four categories is expressed, for older substances.4 Education has been an important part of drug policies all over the world. Some countries prefer campaigns based purely on health hazards (known by opposers of these techniques as “scare tactics”), which have led to quite some myths and misunderstandings about drugs, but have also created a culture in which drug use is socially unacceptable. Other groups such as “Generation Z”, founded by a Dutch DJ, educate young adults by focussing on honesty, facts and experience. The idea is that young people will use drugs responsibly if they respect the people that provide their information. There is also a forum where anyone can ask drug related questions anonymously and will be answered by experts.

Until recently, at great dance events in The Netherlands there would be a free drug testing office at the entrance, where anyone could test the contents of their drugs at the cost of one pill or a few mg of powder. This approach has indeed decreased incidents related to overdose and poorly combined drug mixes or bad quality drugs, but more people use drugs for recreational purposes and drug use is less of a taboo than in other countries.

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https://www.unodc.org/pdf/convention_1971_en.pdf

8. ADDITIONAL LINKS • http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/edr2015 - Most recent report of the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. Overview of all relevant information as of today on the topic.

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SE DE FE N CE CO M M IT TE E O N SE CU RI TY AN D DE

by Kārlis Jonāss (LV)

1. EXPLANATION OF THE PROBLEM / RELEVANCE OF THE TOPIC “Europe will be forged in crises, and will be the sum of the solutions adopted for those crises.” - Jean Monnet Since the establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1951, Europe has found a way to develop conjointly and become a Union. Soon after the end of the Second World War, the idea of Western Defence Community was proposed by France, Germany and Italy, however, unsuccessful. Until now, the Union has found a way to remain peaceful and without external menace but once again, the idea of European Defence Force has been reinitiated.

Nowadays more and more conflicts emerge close to the EU border, resulting in refugee flows and international political instability. Currently, the increasing influence of the Islamic State in the Middle East, occupation of Crimea by the Russian Federation and the insecurity of further crises escalating have driven the EU to reconsider more radical measures.

In March 2015 president of the European Commission, Jean Claude Juncker, once again presented the idea of establishing the European Defence Union to the public due to rising tensions with Russia. Juncker stated that the EU is not “taken entirely seriously” as an international force without its own Defence Union. The proposition has gathered many supporters in Germany as Ursula von der Leyen, the German defence minister, who alike to Juncker, believes that it would only strengthen Europe’s security.

However, there is a huge opposition to Juncker’s proposed idea. Many Member States have no clear stance on the matter yet, but government of the United King-

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ans would convey to Russia that we “- a common army among the Europe of the European Union” stated Jeanes valu the ing end def ut abo s iou ser are n mission in March 2015. Which directio Com the of nt side Pre r, cke Jun ude Cla opean Defence Force initiative, bearshould the European Union take with Eur tern Europe? ing in mind the rising instability in Eas

dom have insisted that such an idea is unacceptable. David Cameron, the British Prime Minister, has halted the measures to create European Defence Forces and Mike Hookem, a deputy of the British Parliament said: “A European army would be a tragedy for the UK. We have all seen the utter mess the EU has made of the eurozone economy, so how can we even think of trusting them with this island’s [Britain’s] defence.”1 What stance should the European Parliament Committee on Security and Defence take in the matter?

1 The Guardian - Jean-Claude Juncker calls for EU army: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/08/jean-claude-juncker-calls-for-eu-army-europeancommission-miltary

2. KEY TERMS • European Defence Union: The military of the European Union comprises the various cooperative structures that have been established between the armed forces of the member states, both inter-governmentally and within the institutional framework of the union.

• Sovereignty: Supreme and independent power or authority in government as possessed or claimed by a state or community.

3. KEY QUESTIONS • What are the advantages and disadvantages of the both supporters and the opposition of European Defence Union?

• What are the main reasons for establishing the European Defence Union?

• How to find a common stance between the 28 Member States?

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4. KEY FACTS AND FIGURES • 80% of the EU Member States’ defence spending has experienced long-term downward trends.1 • In 2014, among 22 European NATO members, only Greece, Estonia and the UK met the 2% budget target for their defence. 2 • Defence expenditure of Europe’s NATO members has been declining, while US defence expenditure represents 73% of the defence spending of the entire Alliance.3 • 70% the European citizens are in favor of a broad European project in the area of defence.4 • The EU Member States spend more than €190bn to keep up 28 national armies which is equal to 1.5 million service units.5 1 European defence cooperation - State of play and thoughts on an EU army: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2015/551346/EPRS_ BRI(2015)551346_EN.pdf 2 NATO defense spending: http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2015/jul/08/uk-defence-spending-to-be-kept-at-2-of-gdp 3 European defence cooperation - State of play and thoughts on an EU army: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2015/551346/EPRS_ BRI(2015)551346_EN.pdf 4 More Union in European Defense: http://www.fes-europe.eu/attachments/511_150225_CEPS%20TF%20European%20Defence.pdf 5 Ibid.

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The European Union and NATO Member States (https://conceptdraw.com/a1130c3/p1/preview/640/pict--political-map-eu-and-nato-european-membership-of-the-eu-and-nato-map)

5. KEY CONFLICTS The main issue to tackle is the differing opinions between the Member States and finding unison. The United Kingdom have firmly rejected any proposition of an EU army because they trust that defence is a national responsibility of each country.

Meanwhile, most of the German politicians, for example, Chancellor Angela Merkel and the German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen, are in favour of the European army as a long-term strategy. However, there are many differing opinions in the Member States, some of them being in favour, others arguing explicitly that it would be a duplication of NATO. In addition, the financial crisis weakened the Member States’ military budget. In the past years, 80% of the Member States have experienced long-term downward trends and only 3 European countries, which also belong in NATO, have met the budget target of 2% for defence matters.

Besides the differing opinions and financial struggle, the main reason why the topic of European Defence Union has been brought up is insecurity from growing external threats in East and South of the Union.

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6. STAKEHOLDERS European Commission: The executive institution of the European Union that withholds the power to propose legislations to further readings in European Parliament and Council of European Union.

Council of the European Union: Council of heads of ministers, who have the power to approve or disapprove proposition made by European Commission.

European Parliament: Institution that has the power to approve or disapprove a proposition made by European Commission. For example, formation of European Defence Union. The EP is the only directly elected organ in the EU. Member States: Members of the European Union and are under common legislative. As regards security, defence and foreign relations, Member States need to have a united stance.

European External Action Service: The EU’s diplomatic service that helps the EU’s foreign affairs chief – the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy – carry out the Union’s Common Foreign and Security Policy.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO): An intergovernmental military alliance between 28 international Member States from which 22 are a part of the European Union. The president of the European Commission has presented idea to establish similar organization across the Europe.

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7. MEASURES IN PLACE The article 44 of the treaty of European Union allows the Council to “entrust the implementation of a task to a group of Member States which are willing and have the necessary capability for such a task”. The Member States have not widely used this opportunity, although it allows a flexible cooperation between them in the field of security and defence.1 Due to rising international instability, in February 2015 Centre for European Policy Studies presented a report “More Union in European Defence” listing recommendations how to strengthen European defence and defended the idea of European Defence Union. The report encourages the European Council to make a roadmap with practical steps to launch the European Defence Union. 2 One of the main instruments used by European External Action Service to strengthen international security and peace is the ‘Common Security and Defence Policy’.

Under the supervision of the service, the Treaty of Lisbon acknowledges the potential intervention of multinational forces in the implementation of the CSDP. These forces are military alliances between certain Member States who have decided to network their forces, creating EUROFOR, which is the formation of Spanish, French, Italian and Portuguese land forces.3

1 European defence cooperation - State of play and thoughts on an EU army: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2015/551346/EPRS_ BRI(2015)551346_EN.pdf 2 More Union in European Defense: http://www.fes-europe.eu/attachments/511_150225_CEPS%20TF%20European%20Defence.pdf 3 European External Action Service: http://eeas.europa.eu/background/ about/index_en.htmCEPS%20TF%20European%20Defence.pdf

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D RO I CO M M IT TE E O N HU M AN RI G HT S

by Eirini Samara (GR)

1. EXPLANATION OF THE PROBLEM / RELEVANCE OF THE TOPIC The on-going crisis in the Middle East has caused an emergency situation for the people living there; the conflict has left since 2011 over 200.000 dead in Syria, many of whom are women and children, and almost 12 million people displaced either inside Syria or in other countries, with Turkey and Lebanon receiving almost 3 million refugees. This humanitarian tragedy could not have left Europe unaffected.

In refugees’ eyes our continent seems to be an utopic land, far away from war and instability. The reality comes to disenchant them. As soon as they set foot in Europe’s borders after their perilous, and for some fatal, journey, further insecurity and misery awaits them. The defective procedures in asylum claiming, the political unwillingness and the lack of proper infrastructure as a result of the economic problems that most of the countries of entry face (e.g. Greece and Italy), put refugees’ lives into threaten as either the living conditions in camps are more than degrading or force entire families to live in the streets.

For the countries receiving the refugees, both the conflict in Syria and the Dublin Regulations that oblige them primordially to examine the asylum applications of all refugees who enter Europe from their borders, have made them test their limits.

The stranglehold created is getting more intense as no solution appears to the horizon to the Syrian conflict. The affected from the flows countries, incapable of dealing with the problem by themselves, have no other option but to resort to the European Union for help in order to secure refugees’ safety as well as pacify the racist voices arisen due to the concerns resulted by the massive influx.

How will the European Union act towards the tragedy of those people who were lucky enough to escape from a fatal future in their country but not that much to

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unt of created to suit the ever-growing amo New smuggling networks have been ncy in the Middle East, causing an emerge est unr l itica pol to due s gee refu ing flee rty ing into account the right to life and libe situation in the European continent. Tak the EU is facing, how should the EU bet ies cult diffi l iona reg the d min in ring but bea ecting human rights? ter control its refugee flows while resp

find adequate aid in a continent that had been a battlefield itself a few decades ago? Will humanism outweigh in the scale the pretention of a homogenous European continent? How can the Union’s bodies assure that all countries share their responsibilities towards refugees and that it is not just a small portion struggling to integrate them? Are the construction of more walls and the stricter control of our borders going to help Europe reduce the refugees’ flows or, instead, it should focus on more long-term solutions?

2. KEY TERMS • Definition of refugee based on the 1951 Geneva Convention for refugees: Someone who owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality, and is unable to, or owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country. While refugees are forced to flee because of a threat of persecution and because they lack the protection of their own country, a migrant, in comparison, may leave his or her country for many reasons that are not related to persecution. Examples are purposes of employment, family reunification or study. A migrant continues to enjoy the protection of his or her own government, even when abroad.

Those who do not meet the criteria are not protected by the convention.

• Unrest in the Middle East; the Syrian conflict. The following link will help delegates get familiarized with the Syrian crisis by reading a few paragraphs. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-26116868 • Right to life and liberty. Definition of right to life and liberty as enshrined in the universal declaration of human rights on December 10th, 1948. http://www. claiminghumanrights.org/right_to_life_definition.html

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D RO I 3. KEY QUESTIONS • Is a stricter border control and more enforced patrols the solution to the decrease of the refugees’ flows?

• If Europe opens her borders to refugees, as many NGOs wish, how can we ensure the continent’s safety taking into account that terrorists might also enter?

• How countries affected by economic crisis can ensure refugees’ safety and smooth integration while they are even incapable of ensuring their own citizens’ rights?

• How can the European Union deal with the unwillingness of some countries to provide help to refugees and their hosting countries that “bend over” due the suffocating pressure? How should it react to countries’ behaviours that dynamite its efforts?

• Can a Europe’s more active involvement in the domain of international relations in the Middle East make a difference for the people in threat? How will this be possible without risking the safety and stability of the continent?

• Would a potential revision of the problematic aspect of the Dublin Regulations offer the solution to the problem appearing in the countries of entry?

4. KEY FACTS AND FIGURES More than 210.000 people have died in Syria’s civil war.

More than 7 millions are internally displaced inside Syria.

4 millions have fled Syria since the start of the conflict back in 2011.

The six Gulf countries - Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain - have offered zero resettlement places to Syrian refugees.

• Other high income countries including Russia, Japan, Singapore and South Korea have also offered zero resettlement places.1 • The number of Syrian refugees hosted by Turkey alone, is more than 10 times the number of new Syrian asylum applications received in all 28 EU countries.

(Turkey - 1.800.000, EU - 150.000). 2 • 1.700 refugees and migrants have died in the Mediterranean this year resulting • • • •

1 http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jun/17/hungary-closes-borderserbia-starts-building-fence-bar-migrants 2 https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2014/12/facts-figures-syria-refugee-crisis-international-resettlement/

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to an emergency situation.3 • An average of 100 refugees in entering Greece every day.4 3 http://data.unhcr.org/syrianrefugees/country.php?id=224 4 https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/campaigns/2015/04/7-questions-youmight-have-about-refugees-and-migrants-drowning-in-the-mediterranean/

5. KEY CONFLICTS • The Dublin regulations and their effects on refugees The Dublin regulation (III) that became applicable on the 1st of January 2014 and followed the Dublin I and Dublin II regulations, hasn’t yet provided us with information regarding its effectiveness since not much time has passed. However, the content of these regulations has been widely criticized since so far seem to fail to protect the asylum seekers. Taking into consideration that the vast amount of refugees enters from the south borders of the EU (the Mediterranean sea, borders of Spain and Greece with Africa and Turkey respectively) and that based on the Dublin regulations the countries of entry are responsible to examine the applications, those countries are subjected to enormous pressures and their bad economic situation only comes to aggravate the refugees’ living conditions. As a result, and due to their often political incapability and unwillingness, human rights of vulnerable groups of people (children, women, elderly) who make it to reach the European continent after risking their lives, are in threaten again. The criticisms expressed should alarm the European Union and lead to decisive solutions, as we are not simply talking about numbers of asylum applications but for human lives and their dignity.1 • FRONTEX and its action How Frontex works, its roles and responsibilities: http://frontex.europa.eu/operations/roles-and-responsibilities/ FRONTEX Eastern Mediterranean route: http://frontex.europa.eu/trends-and-routes/eastern-mediterranean-route/ 1 http://www.ecre.org/topics/areas-of-work/protection-in-europe/10-dublin-regulation.html

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D RO I Mare Nostrum and Frontex: The Italian naval operation “Mare Nostrum” has rescued around 150.000 migrants only in 2014, yet it was ended in the previous October and replaced by the European operation “Triton”. Although the migrant and refugee flows continued being very high the new operation “Triton” has only a budget of 3 millions per month while “Mare Nostrum” cost to the Italian government 9 millions per month. In addition, “Triton” will not operate in international waters and mainly focus on border enforcement. The statistics so far are something less than encouraging; they are disappointing. Only from the beginning of 2015 1,500 migrants have lost their soul in the Mediterranean, with the tragic accident on April 19th being the saddest highlight, when a boat capsized south of the Italian island of Lampedusa causing the death of 700 people. One could assume that if the Italian operation “Mare Nostrum” had continued to operate, Europe would not have faced its worst tragedy so far concerning migrants getting drowned in its waters.

• Regional difficulties The last few years Europe’s southern countries have another problem to deal with, apart from their economic deficit; it is the Syrian crisis and the flows of refugees it has provoked. Located in the Mediterranean, the aforementioned countries are the ones who primarily receive the refugees and are responsible of confirming their legal status based on the Dublin Regulations. Most of the refugees do not wish to stay in Greece, or Italy, but their target is to reach most of the times either Sweden or Germany, as there they can get more easily employed.

The long asylum procedure though combined with the obligations of the Dublin Regulations force refugees to remain in the country of entry for as long the procedure is not terminated. Consequently, the Mediterranean countries are also responsible to ensure those people’s rights and provide them with all the necessary in order to live with dignity.

However, how can some have such a demand from a country that can barely ensure its civilians’ rights? It is well known that in Greece the suffocating austerity measures have caused conditions of extreme poverty for over 6 million people. How is this country supposed to aid the refugees? Almost the same thing goes for Italy and Malta, whose financial condition might be better but are even more affected by migration. In this case also, it is vital to distinguish refugees from migrants as for

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the seconds the principle of “non-refoulement”2 does not exist. In Turkey, where almost 2 millions of refugees have found a shelter, the problems have started getting aggravated lately, since there are no adequate measures for their integration.

The majority now lives out of refugee camps in abandoned buildings in the cities, struggling to find work, while 300.000 children do not have access in education.

The countries in need are calling upon Europe’s solidarity. It only remains to see how the Union will react as a body.

2 Non-refoulement is a principle of international law which forbids the rendering of a true victim of persecution to his or her persecutor. Generally, the persecutor in mind is a state actor. It is a principle of both the customary and trucial law of nations.

6. STAKEHOLDERS The United Nations plays a vital role in ensuring and promoting refugees’ rights.

The action of the United Nation High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) can be summarized in the following lines; • Promoting accession to, and implementation of, refugee conventions and laws; • Ensuring that refugees are treated in accordance with internationally recognized legal standards; • Ensuring that refugees are granted asylum and are not forcibly returned to the countries from which they have fled; • Promoting appropriate procedures to determine whether or not a person is a refugee according to the 1951 Convention definition and/or to other definitions found in regional conventions; and • Seeking durable solutions for refugees.

Member States are primordially responsible to protect refugees and clarify whether and who meet the criteria of the 1951 Convention. Therefore, they are obliged to recruit special authorities with this specific knowledge and make sure their action is fair and efficient. UNHCR is further helping the Member States as it has been tasked to assist them to establish such procedures.

Apart from the UNHCR, many NGOs take action in the domain of refugees and have accomplished great achievements. One could mention their assistance to the refugees where governmental authorities are absent as well as the pressure they put to the States in order to act more decisively.

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D RO I 7. MEASURES IN PLACE The United Nations high commissioner for refugees, António Guterres, has stepped up calls for industrialized countries, including the United States, to shelter 130,000 Syrian refugees over the next two years.1 The figure is a fraction of the nearly four million refugees who have poured into the countries bordering Syria — chiefly Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey — straining their resources and plunging many displaced people into poverty.

Resettlement and other forms of admission that are going to take place are shown in this table: http://www.unhcr.org/52b2febafc5.html Resettlement involves the selection and transfer of refugees from a State in which they have sought protection to a third State that has agreed to admit them as refugees with permanent residence status.

Humanitarian admission2 is a similar, but expedited, process providing protection in a third country for refugees in greatest need in the region. Residence under humanitarian admission may be either permanent or temporary depending upon State legislation.

The resettlements have been agreed in 9th of December 2014 Convention of UNCHR in Geneva: http://www.unhcr.org/548737926.html Measures taken by the EU After the tragic accident that occurred in April 2015 and the death of 700 people in the Mediterranean, the European Union after Italy’s Prime Minister initiative has decided to act more vigorously in the domain of migration. In the special meeting that took place in April 2015 the Member States decided to enforce their presence in the sea, find traffickers and prevent illegal migration flows as well as reinforce internal solidarity. In the Commission’s proposals released on May 27th 2015 is pre1 http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/18/world/middleeast/un-calls-on-western-nations-to-shelter-syrian-refugees.html?_r=0 2 http://www.resettlement.eu/news/focus-syria

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scribed among others the emergent relocation of 40.000 refugees and migrants from Italy and Greece. Malta will be under close surveillance and might profit from the measure if considered necessary. Moreover, it proposed the resettlement of another 20,000 displaced persons in clear need of international protection. All the measures above have been discussed in the Summit that took place in June 2015, as Member States focused a lot in the migration section.

In addition, at the 3rd International Pledging Conference for Syria on March 2015, the EU Commission together with the member States pledged almost 1.1 billion, a gesture that made the EU the greatest donor in the Syrian crisis. The amount of money pledged has doubled compared to the one of 2014 as the crisis continues escalating.3 Face to the worsening situation, on the 16th of July 2015, the EU has decided to release further 64 million that has been added to the humanitarian funding for Syria.4 3 http://ec.europa.eu/echo/news/eu-largest-donor-syria-international-pledging-conference_en 4 http://ec.europa.eu/echo/news/eu-releases-further-%E2%82%AC64-million-worsening-syrian-crisis_en

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FE M M GENDER EQUALIT Y D AN S HT RIG N’S ME WO ON EE ITT COMM

by Enescan Karaer (TR)

1. EXPLANATION OF THE PROBLEM / RELEVANCE OF THE TOPIC Equality is one of the five values on which the European Union is founded.1 Having shown encouraging developments in many areas for women, such as progressing better education and higher participation in the labour market; the EU has not shown much progress in the battle of pay gap in recent years. European gender pay gap continues to exist in spite of the actions taken. The latest figures state that the rates stagnate around 16% across the Europe. 2 There has been a very low decreasing trend in the gender pay gap, which is an alarming signal for women. “... The pay gap has only narrowed marginally in recent years. To make things worse, the very slight decreasing trend for the past years is largely a result of the economic crisis, which has seen men’s earnings decrease, rather than women’s earnings increase...” stated former Vice-President Viviane Reding, the EU’s Justice Commissioner.3 The principle of equal pay for work of equal value is enshrined in the EU Treaties. In 1975, the principle of equal pay for of equal value for men and women was adopted in the Equal Pay Directive of 1975. It is also one of the five priority areas of “The Strategy for Equality Between Women and Men 2010-2015” of the European Commission.4 However the pay gap is not caused merely by the fact that legislations in place are not comprehensive enough or not properly applied.

1 Articles 2 and 3, the Treaty on European Union (TEU).

2 Eurostat 2012, “Structure of Earnings Survey” 3 European Commission Press Release, (28 February 2014) “Equal Pay Day: Gender Pay Gap stagnates at 16.4% across Europe” Retrieved from: http://europa. eu/rapid/press-release_IP-14-190_en.htm 4 “The strategy for equality between women and men 2010-2015”, European Commission, Retrieved from: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52010DC0491&from=EN

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stated “women still work A recent Commission press release ryday compared to their male on average 59 days for free eve ents, what should be done to counterparts.” Considering such statem ? address the european gender pay gap

When discussing the pay gap, there are several factors that needed to be spotlighted on. Women are concentrated in much smaller numbers of sectors than men and even within the same sector or company, the jobs done by women tend to be of lower value and less well paid. The disproportionate share in the family responsibilities pressures women to take more career breaks or work in part time jobs. Although this may be a personal choice and permits them to become breadwinners while managing family responsibilities, it can have a negative impact on their pay, career development, promotion prospects and pensions.

Another thing to take into account is pay transparency and lack of clarity in the definition of work of equal value. Without the necessary transparency and information in pay systems, discrimination and gender bias can be observed through waging in current pay systems. Using hourly pay as a basis in calculating the gender pay gap can also mask specific differences that go unrecorded, such as bonus payments, performance related pay or seasonal payments.

Women have always played a vital role in Europe. From social development to economic growth, they are always needed as role models, yet current gender pay gap and undervaluing of women’s work not only violates fundamental rights but also creates an environment in which productivity and development stall. In order to achieve true equality in the Member States, the necessary actions should be taken without further ado.

FURTHER READING: • European Commission - Justice - Gender Pay Gap: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/ gender-equality/gender-pay-gap/index_en.htm • Opinion on The effectiveness of the current legal framework on Equal pay for equal work or work of equal value in tackling the gender pay gap - Advisory Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men: http://ec.europa.eu/ justice/gender-equality/files/opinions_advisory_committee/2009_06_opinion_ gender_pay_gap_en.pdf • “Tackling the gender pay gap in the European Union” Brochure - European Commission: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/gender-equality/files/gender_pay_ gap/140319_gpg_en.pdf

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FE M M • The strategy for equality between women and men - Equal pay for equal work and work of equal value (2010-2015): http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/ EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52010DC0491&from=EN • Waging war on the pay gap - European Commission: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=6ItyTeurhWc

2. KEY TERMS • Gender pay gap: Relative percentage difference in the average gross hourly earnings of female and male employees as a whole. Gross earnings are wages or salaries paid directly to an employee before any deductions for income tax and social security contributions are made.1 • Equal pay for equal work or work of equal value: In the Article 1 of The Equal Pay Directive of 1975, “principle of equal pay” is defined as ‘for the same work or for work to which equal value is attributed, the elimination of all discrimination on grounds of sex with regard to all aspects and conditions of remuneration.’2 • Glass ceiling: Invisible but real barrier through which the next stage or level of advancement can be seen, but cannot be reached by a section of qualified and deserving employees. Such barriers exist due to implicit prejudice on the basis of age, ethnicity, political or religious affiliation, and/or sex.3 • Occupational segregation: The division of labour, in the context of paid employment, as a result of which men and women (or members of different ethnic or religious groupings) are channelled into different types of occupational roles and tasks, such that there are two (or more) separate labour forces.4 • 1 “Tackling the European Gender Pay Gap” Brochure - European Commission Retrieved from: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/gender-equality/files/gender_pay_ gap/140319_gpg_en.pdf 2 Directive 75/117/EEC of 10.02.1975. ‘Directive on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the application of the principle of equal pay for men and women’ 3 Glass ceiling - Business Dictionary http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/glass-ceiling.html 4 Occupation segregation - encyclopedia.com http://www.encyclopedia.com/ doc/1O88-occupationalsegregation.html

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• Parental leave: Time away from work, usually without pay, that parents are allowed in order to look after their children.5 5 Parental leave, Collins Dictionary http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/parental-leave

3. KEY QUESTIONS • Are the already existing policies and legislations not enough in tackling the gender pay gap? If so, why have they not succeeded yet?

• What are the main reasons of occupational segregation in Europe?

• Why does the European public have the perception of gender roles?

• What can the European Commission and the Member States do in order to tackle the lack of transparency in pay systems?

• How can the unity across the EU be established, considering the fact that each Member State has different approaches to the gender pay gap issue?

4. KEY FACTS AND FIGURES • Gender pay gap is referred to officially as the ‘unadjusted gender pay gap’ as it does not take into account all of the factors that impact on the gender pay gap, such as differences in education, hours worked, type of jobs etc.

• The gender pay gap varies across Europe. It is below 10% in Belgium, Croatia, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Romania and Slovenia, but higher than 20% in Czech Republic, Germany, Estonia, Austria and Iceland.1 • The majority of part-time workers are women (34.9% against 8.6% for men). 2 1 Eurostat, 2013 http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/tgm/table. do?tab=table&init=1&language=en&pcode=tsdsc340&plugin=1 2 Eurostat, 2012 http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/ Employment_statistics

FURTHER READING: • European Gender Pay Gap Statistics: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Gender_pay_gap_statistics

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FE M M

The unadjusted gender pay gap by working profile (%) (http://appsso.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/nui/show.do?dataset=earn_gr_gpgr2wt&lang=en)

5. KEY CONFLICTS One of the main conflicts that is needed to be dealt with is reducing the gender pay gap while balancing the rates of female and male work forces in the market. As gender pay gap only concerns salaried people, it is not an indicator of the overall inequality. In countries where the female employment rate is low, the gender pay gap tends to be lower than average. Given the social and economic situation in Europe today, closing the gap while maintaining a high level of employment rate is crucial.

Gender equality has been a topic that has been has been argued about since the establishment of the Union. Several actions have been taken and so far many developments, such as in the increasing rates of higher education and job opportunities have been granted to more women. It is advisable to provide more education opportunities for women to observe a higher participation in labour market, and

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eventually a lower pay gap. But in 2013, it was calculated that the tertiary education achievement rate is already higher than men, 41.2% among women while it is 32.7% among men.1 Moreover, women’s participation in lifelong education is much higher than men, but this advantage unfortunately does not translate into an advantage in the market. 2 The transition of women between education and labour market is another point that should be focused on.

1 Education and Training Monitor 2014, p. 33. European Commission Retrieved from: http://ec.europa.eu/education/library/publications/monitor14_en.pdf 2 Education and Training Monitor 2014, p. 20. European Commission Retrieved from: http://ec.europa.eu/education/library/publications/monitor14_en.pdf

FURTHER READING: • “Report on equality between women and men 2014” - European Commission: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/gender-equality/files/annual_reports/150304_annual_report_2014_web_en.pdf

6. STAKEHOLDERS As the gender pay gap varies in the Member States, national governments play an important role reducing the gap. In addition to the efforts of the European Parliament and the European Council, the Member States are responsible for applying their own initiatives. Also women groups and trade unions play a key role in promoting equality among civil society.

In the Council of the European Union, Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council configuration (EPSCO) has the overall objective of raising standards of living and quality of life of its citizens. It is responsible for drawing up annual employment guidelines that the Member States take into account in their national policies.1 The equivalent body tackling with this issue in the European Parliament is Women’s Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM). 2 EPSCO 1 Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council configuration (EPSCO), European Council http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/council-eu/ configurations/epsco/ 2 Women’s Rights and Gender Equality - European Parliament Committees http://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/femm/home.html

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FE M M and the European Parliament established European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE), an autonomous body of the European Union. It operates to contribute to and strengthen the promotion of gender equality and fight against discrimination based on sex.3 3

European Institute for Gender Equality http://eige.europa.eu/

7. MEASURES IN PLACE Reducing the gender pay gap has been a priority for the EU. It dates back to the Treaty of Rome in 1957. The principle of equal pay is also incorporated in Directive on Equal Pay for Work of Equal Value1 on equal treatment between women and men in employment and occupation.

In 2007, the European Commission has proposed a range of actions with its Communication on tackling the pay gap between women and men. A few key actions of this communication are exploring ways to improve legislative framework and its implementation, supporting the exchange of good practise at community level and encouraging employees to respect equal pay. 2 Strategy for equality between women and men (2010-2015) plays an important part guiding the actions regarding gender equality. The strategy represents the work programme of the European Commission on gender equality, aiming to stimulate development at both national and international level.

Besides monitoring the correct implementation of EU legislation, the Commission has taken action with several projects, such as the Equality Pays Off Initiative and European Equal Pay Days. Member States are also taking actions at national level according to country-specific recommendations given by the European Commission.

1 Directive 2006/54/EC 2 Communication from the Commission - Tackling the pay gap between women and men (2007) http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52007DC0424&from=EN

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FURTHER READING: • European Commission - Justice, Legislations: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/gender-equality/law/index_en.htm • Action at national level: examples - European Commission - Justice: http:// ec.europa.eu/justice/gender-equality/gender-pay-gap/national-action/initiatives/index_en.htm • BPW Equal Pay Day Events 2015 Across Europe - equal pay day: http://bpw-europe.org/pdf/EPD_Monitoring_BPW_Europe.pdf

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AFCO AF FA IR S CO MM ITTEE ON CO NS TIT UT IO NA L

by Laine Melkerte (LV) 1. EXPLANATION OF THE PROBLEM / RELEVANCE OF THE TOPIC The issue of democratic deficit has severe influence in European politics and in recent years, traditional political participation has been challenged with the introduction of new technological advances. Online voting is in active use in Estonia, which has gained a new nickname of E-Estonia, being a pioneer in the technological field in Europe.1 Jun, a small town in Spain takes the technology involvement in politics even further by administering its public services via Twitter and attempting to improve civic engagement with the use of technology since 1999. 2 Alongside progress in devices, their means of computing, external control and hacking have improved, causing new threats to personal, digital space. With given development in fast connections over space and risen activity of citizens in social media, technology stands as a great opportunity for mobilizing groups of people and individuals to have their say in the European democratic society. Therefore, could technology be the answer to increase democratic participation?

Currently technology has a great potential to stimulate the participation, but it still has not yet been fully used, while the growing lack of engagement in politics cause the lowest voter turnouts so far. The low participation affects the success of democratic states, as citizen participation plays an important role in any functioning democracy.

The current youth of Europe represent a generation that has grown up with technology by their side; hence social media and online platforms are familiar to this 1 https://estoniaevoting.org/ 2 http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/jul/02/twitter-jun-spain-bureaucracy-local-government

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democracy: Given the Digital revolution and participatory w should we transform benefits and risks of the Digital Age, ho ong young people? democratic participation, especially am

group of people who on the other hand have not lived in politically volatile societies. This is the opposite case with the elderly of Europe who grew up in changing times of the World Wars and the Cold War but without any comparable technology of today. Despite the youth’s online activism, traditional political activism has not notably stemmed from online platforms and similar, alike to the elderly’s skills in technology which are lacking. How can this digital divide and generational imbalance in democratic participation be dealt with?

2. KEY TERMS • Democratic participation: The act of participating in the process of decision-making, either directly or through elected representatives.1 • Democratic deficit: Describes the fact that citizens are less interested in politics, and thus less willing to be involved.

• Digital divide: An economic and social inequality according to categories of persons in a given population in their access to, use of, or knowledge of information and communication technologies (ICT). 2 • Participatory democracy: individual participation by citizens in political decisions and policies that affect their lives, especially directly rather than through elected representatives.3 • E-democracy: Incorporating 21st-century information and communications technology to promote democracy.4 1 http://journals.cambridge.org/download.php?file=%2F183_E69D683B6175 28FF656648F50F3B857B_journals__WPO_WPO28_01_S0043887100021031a.pdf&cover=Y&code=eedf22f7ac13d9bfff41ae708a1ef5e1 2 http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/digital-divide 3 http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/participatory+democracy 4 http://www.publicus.net/articles/edempublicnetwork.html

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AFCO

3. KEY QUESTIONS: • How to increase democratic participation with technology?

• How great is the potential for the technology to address the little interest and engagement of voters?

• What happens to user anonymity in case of electronic voting?

• How to tackle the different aspects of digital divide?

• To what extent should technology be used in political activities?

• How to ensure full technological support throughout the whole European Union?

• With the risk of technological failure and misuse of the system, should the EU continue develop e-participation?

4. KEY FACTS AND FIGURES: • Despite 2013 being dedicated as the ‘The European Year of the Citizens’, where the European Union (EU) citizens would be educated on their rights, the interest and voter turnout in the 2014 European Parliament elections reached an all-time low: 42.54%.1 • The youth is more likely to participate online than offline, but most of the politically active people online are between 55-64 years old.

• In Estonia, a study was made that revealed that around 16 per cent of e-voters said they probably would not have voted had internet voting been unavailable. 2 • The voter turnout varies drastically across the Union from Slovakia’s 13.05% to Malta’s 74.80% which indicates that there are vast differences included in the phenomena even between countries that joined EU on the same year, 2004.3 1 ht tp://ec .europa.eu /euros t at / tgm / t able.do? t ab=t able&ini t=1&lan guage=en&pcode=tsdgo310&plugin=1 2 http://vvk.ee/voting-methods-in-estonia/engindex/statistics 3 ht tp://www.europarl.europa.eu/elec tions2014-results/en/elec tion-results-2014.html

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Voter turnout of 2014 European Parliamentary Elections

5. KEY CONFLICTS Digital divide in access to technology and knowledge of technology functions vary in the Union drastically. If it is recognised that means of technology shall be used to advance democracy in the Union, the divide needs to decrease and the Union needs to find a common stance how to pursue this path. Even if technologies are used to improve the political participation, what is the extent to which it should be done? At the same time, the youth needs to be activated to participate in politics to increase political participation and further decrease democratic deficit. It is also important to note that technology might not be the only way how to increase the political engagement. How can these different aspects of digital and political divide be dealt with?

6. STAKEHOLDERS • Citizens of the EU: Citizen participation is needed to fulfil a state’s functioning as a representative parliamentary system, to have people elect their representatives by votes.

• European Parliament & National Parliaments: Actors most affected by the electorates and their cast votes.

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AFCO • The European Commission holds the right to initiate legislation, composition is approved by the Parliament but the principle of parliamentarism is not working as on national level, since the EU does not have an actual government.1 • European Alternatives: A civil society organisation acts in the belief that our contemporary issues can no longer be understood or dealt with at the national level alone, and that new forms of transnational collectivity must be fostered to restore to citizens democratic control over their future.

• The European Youth Portal: Information and opportunity center online for young Europeans.

• Council of Europe: European organisation founded in 1949, which aims to protect and promote human rights and democracy, and to achieve unity between its 46 member countries.

• NGOs act to represent issues and people who are left outside the traditional political sphere and agenda.

1

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/European-Commission.html

7. MEASURES IN PLACE • Treaty of Lisbon (2007): The Parliament received wider legislative powers increasing the powers of the only citizen elected body of the EU. The treaty introduced the Citizen’s Initiative (ECI), set a period of scrutiny of legislation proposals to national parliaments and announced the President of the Commission to be elected by the Parliament.

• Online voting has been introduced in few EU Member States with the aim of tackling decline in voter turnout.

• European Citizen’s Initiative (ECI): A direct democratic tool for citizens to initiate legislation. Initiative calls for the Commission to start a legislative proposal on the given matter.1 • The EU Citizen Reports: Published reports and statistics conducted by the Commission to remind the citizens on their rights in the Union.

• Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU): Treaty on the basics of the Union which includes values and objectives, competences and restraints for its work. In the Treaty, the youth is encouraged to participate in the democratic life of the Union.

• AEGEE – European Student’s Forum, was launched in June 2013 as a new “initiative oriented on increasing youth participation in the upcoming European Parliament elections 2014”. The AEGEE tried to activate the youth in National and 1

http://ec.europa.eu/citizens-initiative/public/basic-facts

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Union wide political activities, help and encourage the youth to make informed choices and guide them further towards their future Europe. 2 • European Charter on the Participation of Young People in Local and Regional Life3: an international policy document to promote youth participation at the local level. Since its adoption by the Congress of the Council of Europe in 2003 it has achieved wide recognition as a key reference policy document for the political participation of youth.

2 http://www.aegee.org/ 3 https://www.coe.int/t/dg4/youth/Coe_youth/Youth_Participation_Charter_ en.asp

8. LINKS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH: • The Guardian - Peter Millar: ‘What’s all this about the EU’s ‘democratic deficit’?’: http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/may/20/eu-democratic-deficit • Map. IP Addresses per Capita in 2009. http://www.espon.eu/export/sites/default/Documents/Publications/MapsOf TheMonth/MapMay2011/IP-addresses-2009.pdf • Map. European elections: the non-voters. https://twitter.com/afp/status/470712532291047424 • European Commission. Digital Agenda in the Europe 2020: strategy. http:// ec.europa.eu/digital-agenda/en/digital-agenda-europe-2020-strategy • Technology Bypassing Politics? Video by Michael Bhaskar https://www.youtube. com/watch?v=JcLKIVaTwFk • Estonian National Electoral Committee. Estonian Internet voting: http://estonia. eu/about-estonia/economy-a-it/e-voting.html • Review on e-voting by the Council of Europe: http://www.coe.int/t/dgap/democracy/Activities/GGIS/E-voting/Default_en.asp • Publication on e-voting by the European Parliament: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/headlines/content/20110321STO15986/html/Can-e-voting- increase-electoral-participation

• Case study on the example of Estonia: http://estonia.eu/about-estonia/economy-a-it/e-voting.html • Youth on Politics: http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/youth/tools/documents/perception-behaviours.pdf • Youth on Politics: http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/youth/tools/documents/lse_study_ on_youth_participation_2013.pdf • The road to e-democracy: http://www.economist.com/node/10638222

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R EG I PM EN T CO M M IT TE E ON RE GI ON AL DE VE LO

by Âli Okumuşoğlu (TR)

1. EXPLANATION OF THE PROBLEM / RELEVANCE OF THE TOPIC “The crisis has had a major impact on regions and cities across the EU. Regional economic disparities, which were narrowing, have stopped doing so, while unemployment has risen rapidly in almost all parts of the EU. Poverty and exclusion have also increased, including in many cities in the more developed Member States.“ - Johannes Hahn, European Commissioner for Regional Policy & László Andor, European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, 2014.

The 2013 revision of the EU Cohesion Policy put forward significant changes making the policy more time and money efficient, hoping to achieve more specific goals of promoting economic growth, job creation and competitiveness of EU regions.

While the policy is very inclusive and extensive, how these new ESIF allocations will be more effective are still yet to be seen.

Unemployment rates have risen in many regions after the economic recession.

Many regions are experiencing ‘brain drain’; a syndrome in which people choose to study elsewhere than their native region and later do not return expectedly due to the lack of suited work opportunities or internationally competing third-level education. Lists of disparities between regions are vast and even many regions near the capital have begun to suffer from lack of competitiveness.

2. KEY TERMS • Agglomeration: An urban-agglomeration is an extended city or town area comprising the built-up area of a central place (usually a municipality) and any suburbs linked by continuous urban area.

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budn Policy for 2014-2020 is 1/3 of the EU Strengthening cohesion: The EU Cohesio ising sustainable and inclusive growth. Recogn get and is designed to support smart, mometropolis and cities are the primary that 75% of Europeans live in or around ies? t decrease its regional economic disparit tors for growth, how should the EU bes

• Brain Drain: The emigration of highly trained or qualified people from a particular region.

• Cohesion: Action or fact of forming a united whole.

• Convergence: Moving toward union or uniformity.

• Disparities: Lack of similarity or equality; inequality; difference.

• Economic Disparities: Usually thought of in three branches: wealth inequality, income inequality and consumption.

• Metropolitan area: The most highly populated and usually most economically active and developed region. Since these areas are the main sources of economic growth, it is important not to harm them as part of the regional cohesion process.

• Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS): A hierarchical system for dividing up the economic territories of the EU. • Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics 2 (NUTS 2): Basic regions for the application of regional policies of the EU. • Periphery: The outer limits or edge of an area or object; A line that forms the boundary of an area; a perimeter.

3. KEY QUESTIONS: • How can the CP ‘decrease regional economic disparities’ more effectively with the given framework?

• The Union is based on the idea of free movement but how can this ideology be followed, at the same time encouraging people to return to their native regions and habitate least-favoured regions?

• How to make the allocation of the funds more efficient and competitiveness, sustainable development and quality of life be improved?

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REG I 3. KEY QUESTIONS: • How can the CP ‘decrease regional economic disparities’ more effectively with the given framework?

• The Union is based on the idea of free movement but how can this ideology be followed, at the same time encouraging people to return to their native regions and habitate least-favoured regions?

• How to make the allocation of the funds more efficient and competitiveness, sustainable development and quality of life be improved?

4. KEY FACTS AND FIGURES: • Over 80% of the cohesion policy budget is allocated to the poorest regions, which are those where the GDP per capita is less than 75% of the EU average.

• The European Cohesion Policy delegates hundreds of thousands of projects1 all over Europe that receives funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the European Social Fund (ESF) and the Cohesion Fund.

• Countries that have joined the EU after 2004 are all also in the list of ‘20 weakest European NUTS 2 regions’ • Through its 11 themed objectives, cohesion policy funds help achieve the goals of the Europe 2020 strategy; smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. The cohesion policy funds are the main investment tool for measures supporting employment, innovation, education, inclusion, and the shift towards a low-carbon economy.

1 The Cohesion Policy has contributed in the creation of over 600,000 jobs over the past 5 years, invests in the professional training of up to 15 million people every year in search for better order to improve their employability, co-financed the construction of 25,000 kilometres of roads and 1800 kilometres of railways, ensured provision of clean drinking water for 3 million people and invested 200,000 Euros in small-medium sized companies along with 61,000 Euros being spent on research projects.

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5. KEY CONFLICTS • Brain Drain: Some regions are more successful at attracting and retaining educated individuals and high-quality employers, which leads to a lack of such individuals in less-favoured areas.

• Competitiveness remains low in many regions of Central and Eastern Member States. Many regions that are close to the capital struggle to benefit from their proximity whereas in many other countries, regions close to the capital gain from such juxtaposition and are very competitive.

• Costs & step-backs: The Cohesion Policy is the most costly sector of the budget and opposition to the EU heavily investing in its peripheral areas has risen.

What is more, the policy has been proven to be ineffective in some areas receiving funding; the main problem is poor governance of the assets that slows down and complicates the implementation of the policy.

• Unemployment: Regional inequalities with unemployment have risen with the financial crisis and ensuing global recession. Many regions with high employment levels have shifted towards an increase in unemployment, causing an increase in EU-wide depression.

• Integration of the Cohesion Policy with Europe 2020 goals unveils the risk of aggravating rather than diminishing regional economic disparities.

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REG I 6. STAKEHOLDERS • EU Cohesion Policy 2014-20: Puts together the Common Strategic Framework in order to ‘reduce disparities between the various regions and the backwardness of the least-favoured regions’ along with promoting a more balanced, more sustainable ‘territorial development’ program.

• Cohesion Fund: “The Cohesion Fund is aimed at Member States whose Gross National Income (GNI) per inhabitant is less than 90 % of the EU average. It aims to reduce economic and social disparities and to promote sustainable development.” - InfoRegio, European Commision.

• The European Investment Bank provides finance and expertise for promising and sustainable investment projects that contribute to furthering the policy objectives.

• European Commission: The executive body of the European Union responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the EU treaties and managing the day-to-day business of the EU along with setting the available budget.

• The EU Structural and Investment Funds cover a set of rules including the ERDF, Cohesion Fund, ESF, EAFRD and EMFF in order to ‘establish a clear link with the Europe 2020 Strategy, help regions overcome their handicaps and reverse the ‘brain drain’ along with other disadvantages.

• European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) concentrates its investments on few key priority areas such as innovation and research, the digital agenda, support for small and medium sized enterprises and the low-carbon economy in order to decrease regional disparities.

• European Social Fund (ESF): “The ESF is Europe’s main instrument for supporting jobs, helping people get better jobs and ensuring fairer job opportunities for all EU citizens. It works by investing in Europe’s human capital – its workers, its young people and all those seeking a job. ESF financing of EUR 10 billion a year is improving job prospects for millions of Europeans, in particular those who find it difficult to get work.” - European Commission

7. MEASURES IN PLACE • EU Common Strategic Framework for Cohesion Policy 2014-20: Seeks to improve coordination and secure the more targeted use of the EU’s structural funds. It is expected to improve coordination by focusing the national and regional authorities’ activities on a limited set of common objectives.

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• Europe 2020 is the European Union’s ten-year growth strategy. Additionally to overcoming the crisis which continues to afflict many regional economies, it is also about addressing the shortcomings of our growth model.

• Competitiveness and Innovation Framework-Programme (CIP) is one of the EU funding programmes supporting innovation activities within the EU. Many projects it supports contribute to achieving the Cohesion Policy goals. The CIP also supports ‘statistical analysis of regional innovation’ under the “Regional Innovation Monitor Plus (RIM Plus)” project that allows for the sharing of knowledge between EU regions regarding innovation policy trends.

• European Local Energy Assistance is a project that allows local and regional authorities to develop and launch large-scale sustainable investments. It pays for 90% of everything that is needed to prepare, implement and finance a project allowing for maximisation of investment.

• Convergence Objective aims to promote growth in order to enhance conditions and factors leading to real convergence for the Member States and regions with a GDP lower than 75% of the community average

8. LINKS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH: • EU Cohesion Policy 2014 2020 – Investing in your Regions and Cities: https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=INNa656Yn6s • EU Cohesion Policy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9h-QYWZ2w0 • Outline of issues and positions regarding the Cohesion Policy: http://www. eurac tiv.com/regional-polic y/eu- cohesion-polic y-2014 -2020 -linksdossier-501653#group_issues • Regional Policy: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/summary/chapter/regional_policy.html?root_default=SUM_1_CODED%3D26&locale=en • Regional Policy in your country: http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/index_ en.cfm • Investment for Jobs and Growth PDF: http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/ sources/docoffic/official/reports/cohesion6/6cr_en.pdf • Powerpoint on the Cohesion Policy 2014-2020: http://www.goog l e . f i / u r l ? s a = t & r c t = j & q = & e s r c = s & s o u r c e = w e b & c d =1& v e d = 0 C B8QFjA A&url=ht tp% 3A%2F%2Fec .europa.eu%2Fregional _ polic y %2Fsources%2Fdocoffic%2Fofficial%2Fregulation%2Fpdf%2F2014%2Fpresentation_final_en.ppt&ei=YOWDVcCJPOb-ywO7va7oDg&usg=AFQjCNFYVb6cBb8AKP1cZfg2HXI2Z5c8Nw&bvm=bv.96042044,d.bGQ&cad=rja

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INTA TR AD E CO M M IT TE E ON IN TE RN AT IO NA L

A)

by Karolina Kraft (SE) & Olha Shvets (U

1. EXPLANATION OF THE PROBLEM / RELEVANCE OF THE TOPIC The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) is a currently negotiating free trade agreement between the European Union (EU) and the United States (U.S.)1 A free trade agreement is a comprehensive deal between two economies which aims to facilitate international trade and boost economic growth. In this case, a free trade agreement has a great potential as it is negotiated between the world’s two biggest economies with a current trade flow of €2 billion every day. 2 Foremost, the main aims of the TTIP is to remove trade barriers and strengthen the conditions for transatlantic trade mainly through three elements; ensure better market access, reduce red tape and work together on new rules.3 Taking into consideration that the final document is expected to be ready at the end of 2015, talks are now in its final steps.

Seeing that the U.S already is an significant trading partner for the EU, the outcome of an agreement removing current trade barriers would most likely boost economic growth, create more jobs and increase choices for consumers on both sides of the Atlantic.4 Following the fact that EU countries are major investors in the U.S, there is a great support for a agreement that can improve conditions for international investments. According to the European Commission, the TTIP would be the world’s biggest bilateral trade agreement and could add 0,5% to the EU´s annual 1 http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2014/may/tradoc_152462.pdf 2 http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2014/may/tradoc_152462.pdf 3 http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/in-focus/ttip/about-ttip/contents/ 4 ht tp://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/countries-and-regions/countries/united-states/

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antic negotiating documents on the Transatl Following the release of some of the surIP), how should the EU combat claims Trade and Investment Partnership (TT s, public dissatisfaction regarding the talk rounding the issues of transparency and r going s and aims of the agreement are clea while also ensuring the EU’s prioritie forward in talks?

economic output, if negotiations succeed.5 During the time negotiations for a trade agreement between the EU and the U.S has been in place, it has faced a lot of critic and opposition from society. Opponents are concerned that the agreement will lower EUs high standards on for example food safety, health and the environment as the U.S in general has less strict regulations in previously mentioned areas. Moreover, the EU has often been accused for negotiating behind closed doors without involvement of important stakeholders and the citizens. In January 2015, the EU addressed concerns about transparency through making some negotiating documents public. The action was seen as a step in the right direction and has been followed by several TTIP transparency measures.6 Although, stakeholders and citizens still call for negotiations on TTIP to be more transparent and involving to ensure the final document will be able to pass in the EU. In June 2013, the European Commission (EC) received a negotiation mandate from the European Parliament (EP) that contains guidelines and authorise them to lead the talks on TTIP with the U.S. After the first negotiating round in June 2013, negotiations have been taking place every few week to discuss the upcoming agreement. The 10th negotiation round took place in Brussels, between the 13th and 17th of July 2015. Taking into consideration that the final document is expected to be ready at the end of 2015, talks are now in its final steps.

5 ht tp://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/countries-and-regions/countries/united-states/ 6 http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/in-focus/ttip/about-ttip/process/#_transparency

FURTHER READING: • European Commission´s website on TTIP: http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/ in-focus/ttip/ • European Commission: Inside TTIP (An overview and chapter-by-chapter guide in plain English.): http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2015/july/tradoc_153635.pdf

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INTA

• UN calls for suspension of TTIP talks over fears of human rights abuses: ht tp://www.theguardian.com/global/2015/may/04/t tip-united-nations-human-right-secret-courts-multinationals • Communication to the Commission concerning transparency in TTIP negotiations: http://ec.europa.eu/news/2014/docs/c_2014_9052_en.pdf • Speech by EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström at the Open Europe & Friedrich Naumann Stiftung: http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2014/may/ tradoc_152462.pdf

2. KEY TERMS • Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP): A currently negotiating free trade agreement between the EU and the US that aims to remove trade barriers and open up for investments and thereby facilitate the transatlantic trade.

• Investor-to-state dispute settlement (ISDS): A mechanism existing as a safeguard for companies and their international investments in order to encourage international investments.

• Free trade agreement: An agreement between two economies aiming to remove trade barriers to boost economy, create more jobs as well as lower prices and widen choices for consumers.

• Trade barriers: Obstacles for international trade such as custom duties, red tape and restrictions on investments.

• Negotiating mandate: A mandate containing guidelines on the negotiations from the European Parliament giving the European Commission the authority to negotiate on behalf of EU at the negotiating table.

• Market access: The possibility for companies to import and export their goods on an international market.

• Regulatory cooperation: Regulators from two parts working closely together on new rules to reduce costs were standards match.

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3. KEY QUESTIONS • How far should the EU go in maintaining transparency and consumer protection?

• What should the EU’s main aims for TTIP be and how can they be realised?

4. KEY FACTS AND FIGURES: • The EU and the U.S economies account together for about half of the entire world GDP and for nearly a third of world trade flows. http://ec.europa.eu/trade/ policy/countries-and-regions/countries/united-states/ • The transatlantic relationship also defines the shape of the global economy as a whole. Either the EU or the US is the largest trade and investment partner for almost all other countries in the global economy. http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/countries-and-regions/countries/united-states/ • When negotiations are completed, this EU-US agreement would be the biggest bilateral trade deal ever negotiated – and it could add around 0.5% to the EU’s annual economic output. http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/countries-and-regions/countries/united-states/ • European companies are particularly efficient in the areas of services. Better access to US market, for example in the area of management consultancy or environmental services, would be good news for them. That is why the EU´s negotiators are using trade talks to try to open up the US services market to EU firms. http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2014/may/tradoc_152462.pdf • EU countries are major investors in the US. Their combined investments in the US top €1.6 trillion, making the EU the biggest investor in the US. So EU countries have a major interest in ensuring that their investments abroad receive the best possible protections - as is the aim in the TTIP. http://trade.ec.europa.eu/ doclib/docs/2014/may/tradoc_152462.pdf • The European Citizens´ Initiative against TTIP is currently powered by an alliance of over 480 European Organisations and has over 2 million participants.

As it has not got an official approval from the EC, it is now a so called self-organised-ECI. https://stop-ttip.org/about-the-eci-campaign/ • The public consultation on investment protection and investor-to-state dispute settlement (ISDS) got almost 150,000 replies. http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/ press/index.cfm?id=1234

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INTA FURTHER READING: • European Commission: The top 20 myths about TTIP: http://trade.ec.europa. eu/doclib/docs/2015/march/tradoc_153266.pdf • U.S Chamber of Commerce: Top 10 overlooked facts about Transatlantic Trade: ht tps://www.uschamber.com/sites/default /files/legacy/international/files/ Top%2010%20Overlooked%20Facts%20About%20Transatlantic%20Trade.pdf

5. KEY CONFLICTS While discussing the issue of TTIP and its ratification, one is to face a few concerns and criticism regarding its effectiveness. The main 3 conflicts transparency issues, protection of the investments and lowering of food standards.

One of the main issues to be concerned about is the issue with transparency. Many argue with the fact that the EU Commission is negotiating all agreements privately in Brussels. Those who criticize this lack of transparency not only point to the likelihood that TTIP is driven by a “corporate agenda”, but also that it is in direct contradiction with democratic principles and public oversight.

The other issue, which raises public awareness, is so-called Investor-State Dispute Settlement that enables companies to take legal action against the governments that, in their perception, are hindering potential profits. It would essentially deprive national justice systems of their power and have dangerous side effects as well.

This procedure would allow companies to sue foreign governments over claims of unfair treatment and be eligible for compensation. Critics say the measures undermine the power of national governments and prevent them from acting in the interests of their citizens.

The last but definitely not the least problem the majority is concerned about is food safety. Most of the critics are arguing that the EU has much stricter regulations on GM crops and food additives than the US. As a result, the agreement will open the EU market for cheaper yet more harmful products.

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FURTHER READING: • TTIP: The EU-US trade deal explained: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-30493297 • Corporate Europe Observatory: http://corporateeurope.org/trade/2014/01/ critics-score-against-extreme-corporate-rights-ttip-must-not-be-fooled-commission • TTIP negotiators get an earful from American critics: http://www.euractiv.com/ sections/trade-society/ttip-negotiators-get-earful-american-critics-314056

6. STAKEHOLDERS • The European Commission is in charge of negotiating TTIP as openly as possible through Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström. With TTIP, we’re now at the second stage - negotiation - which we want to do as openly and accountability as possible.

• In case of the US government, the Trade Representative Michael Froman is at the negotiating table.

• European Parliament is empowered to approve or reject the agreement.

• The Council: Only after the 28 governments approve or reject the negotiated agreement in the EU Council of Ministers, at which point the European Parliament will also be asked for its endorsement.

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INTA 7. MEASURES IN PLACE One of the biggest - and most justified - criticisms of the TAFTA/TTIP negotiations is that they are being conducted in almost complete secrecy. Attempts to deflect this criticism with token moves such as “stakeholder meetings” have failed, not least because so-called “civil society” sessions turned out to be packed with the usual business lobbyists.1 Similarly, the European Commission’s release of negotiating positions meant that we had only general statements of intent, but without any meaningful detail -- and, as ever, the devil really does lie in those details.

Therefore, European Commission represented by a new European Commissioner for Trade, Cecilia Malmström, offered the hope of a new era. A decision was made to get outlined two proposals for boosting transparency and highlighting the importance of this topic.

The European Commission has published a raft of texts setting out EU proposals for legal text in TTIP it is negotiating with the US. This is the first time the Commission has made public such proposals in bilateral trade talks and reflects its commitment to greater transparency in the negotiations. 2 The Commission is also constantly updating the information for the public as well as provides guides and explanations to the current state of things to ensure understanding of the importance and advantages of TTIP by the citizens. The Commission provided access to TTIP texts to all Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) by extending the use of a ‘reading room’ to those MEPs who had no access to restricted documents so far and classified less TTIP negotiating documents as “EU restricted”, making them more easily accessible to MEPs outside the reading room.3

1 https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20150107/07102529619/european-commission-announces-major-transparency-initiative-taftattip.shtml 2 http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-15-2980_en.htm 3 http://ttip2015.eu/blog-detail/blog/transparency%20TTIP%20open%20 door.html

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FURTHER READING: • Communication to the Commission concerning transparency in TTIP negotiations: http://ec.europa.eu/news/2014/docs/c_2014_9052_en.pdf • The best deal through transparency (video): http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/ in-focus/ttip/about-ttip/process/#_transparency • TTIP: beware what lies beneath: http://ttip2015.eu/ • TTIP: questions and answers: http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/in-focus/ttip/ about-ttip/questions-and-answers/

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LIB E I ICE COMMITTEE ON CIVIL LIBERTIES, JUST

AND HOME AFFAIRS I

by Piotr Cichocki (PL)

1. EXPLANATION OF THE PROBLEM / RELEVANCE OF THE TOPIC - I cut him off and I laid him on the sofa. I hugged him. - cried Anna Aleksandrowicz, mother of Dominik, a 14-year old from Bieżuń, Poland, who hung himself on his shoelaces in May 2015. In his farewell letter he wrote that his classmates were often using inflammatory language, calling him a ‘Faggot’ and throwing stones at him.

As the statement by the Campaign Against Homophobia, a Polish NGO reads, „his death was the result of persecution, psychological and physical violence, as well as lack of reaction from the surrounding area, including the school he was going to.”

Cases like this remind us that hate speech and discrimination is not an artificial, made-up problem, for it far too often is a matter of life and death. It makes us realise that, same as a legal act banning poverty cannot erase poverty, a legal act granting LGBTQA+ people equal marital and adoption rights will not be the ultimate solution to solving their difficult social situation. For that more complex, systemic and educational measures might have to be undertaken.

2. KEY TERMS LGBTQA+: according to the widest available definition, this abbreviation stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, Asexual, Aromantic, Allies, Advocates, All, Pansexual, Intersex Same-sex marriage: marriage between people from the same sex.

Hate speech: a speech that attacks a group or an individual on the basis of factors which are not of anyone’s choice, such as gender, race, religion, disability, sexual orientation. Hate speech in general is illegal in all EU Member States, however only 22 of them have specific laws combatting homophobic hate speech.

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l How can the EU best ensure their civi LGBTQ A+ rights in a diverse Europe: cultural backgrounds? How should Eurights in light of different social and s discrepancies in attitudes and policie ropean governments tackle growing marriage and adoption? towards anti-discrimination, same-sex

3. KEY QUESTIONS • Should marital/civil union rights of non-heterosexuals, such as the right to access medical information, be recognised all across the EU regardless of whether the Member State has legally establishes such institutions?

• Should parental rights of LGBT parents be recognised all across the EU? • Should there be a common European anti discriminatory and educational policy concerning LGBTQA+ people?

• Should the EU play an active role in making same-sex unions legally recognized all across the EU?

4. KEY FACTS AND FIGURES: • • • • •

Same-sex marriage is legal in 10 out of 28 EU Member States, Same-sex civil unions are legal in 16 EU Member States, Same-sex couples have no legal recognition in 9 EU Member States, Same-sex marriage is banned constitutionally in 7 EU Member States, Joint adoption of a child by a same-sex couple is legal in 11 EU Member States.

Germany and Finland are the only European countries forbidding joint adoption of a child by a same-sex couple yet allowing adoption for individuals remaining in a same-sex civil union.

• What is worth mentioning is that are no laws forbidding a single from adopting a child and thus 9 Member States that have no recognition of same-sex couples do both de facto and de iure allow same-sex couples to adopt children.

According to a research conducted by the Institute of Psychology of the Polish Academy of Sciences between 2013 and 20141, 9% of Polish non-heterosexual couples form families, whereas in the United Kingdom, where same-sex couples are legally allowed to adopt children, 2014 census shows that only 14% of non-heterosexual couples raise children.

1 Mizielińska J., Abramowicz M, Stasińska A. (2014). Families of Choice in Poland. Lives of Non-heterosexual People. Warsaw: Institute of Psychology of the Polish Academy of Sciences.

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LI BE I

Situation of LGBTI people in Europe (http://www.ilga-europe.org/sites/default/files/Attachments/side_a_rainbow_europe_map_2015_a3_no_crops.pdf)

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5. KEY CONFLICTS : • Member States that have adopted legal recognition of same-sex couples vs Member States that have not done so: Countries like Sweden, the Netherlands and Spain, have adopted very favourable legislation on LGBT rights and a vast majority of their societies supports granting rights to LGBT people. Poland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania and Cyprus have traditionally conservative societies generally opposed to the idea of same-sex marriage and joint adoption of children by same-sex couples.1 • Conservative groups in the societies vs left-wing liberals: All European societies are generally divided in two on the issues. Usually civil partnerships have the biggest number of supporters, whereas granting adoption rights to same-sex couples traditionally has lower public support. What is worth noticing, however, is that sometimes conservative politicians and voters do support same-sex marriage, civil unions and equal adoption rights. On February 5th, 2013 the House of Commons of the United Kingdom voted predominantly in favour of same-sex marriage and the both then and now biggest-represented party, the Conservatives, almost split in half during the vote. During the debate major conservative politicians, most notably PM David Cameron, were openly pledging for same-sex marriage by e.g. stating that LGBT couples should also be allowed to embrace conservative family values and that it was unthinkable for a couple to spend their whole lives unmarried. The reasoning behind the conservative vote in favour did set an interesting precedent for conservative parties and groups in societies to change their stance on the acceptance of the LGBTQA+ community.

1 Ten social science arguments against same-sex marriage: http://www.frc. org/get.cfm?i=if04g01

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LI BE I 6. STAKEHOLDERS • Member States LGBTQA+ rights, such as legislation of same-sex marriage or civil unions, remain a national competence.

• European Parliament can establish laws superior to those of the EU Member States, however, as mentioned above, legislation regarding same-sex marriage or civil unions lies outside of its competencies. It can, however, shape the EU budget and thus support educational programmes and grants awarded by the EU. • The European Parliament’s Intergroup of LGBTI Rights is an informal forum for Members of the European Parliament who wish to advance and protect the fundamental rights of LGBTI people. The LGBTI Intergroup is the largest of the European Parliament’s 28 Intergroup. Currently gathering over 150 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs).

• European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) is an international court established by the European Convention on Human Rights. It hears applications and complaints about contracting states have violated one or more of the human rights provisions set out in the Convention and its protocols.

• LGBTQA+ NGOs and associations, such as ILGA-Europe and its members, are advocating for the interests of the community at the European and national levels.

7. MEASURES IN PLACE Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights On 21st July 2015 the European Court of Human Rights made history by ruling in favor of 3 same-sex Italian couples against the Italian Republic and ordering Italy to pay compensation to the couples. As the ruling of the Strasbourg court said, Italy, a state not recognising same-sex civil unions or marriage, is violating Article 8 of the European convention of Human Rights, specifically the right to respect for his private and family life. The court summarized its ruling by stating that a civil union or registered partnership would be the most appropriate way for same-sex couples like the applicants to have their relationship legally recognised.

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EU Legislation Same-sex sexual activity was never banned in the EU legislation, however same-sex unions or marriages have never been recognised on the EU level. LGBT rights are related to human and fundamental rights which are protected by EU legislation and treaties, most notably the Treaty of Amsterdam that came into force in 1999, which introduced i.a. the Article 10 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, which reads: “the Union shall aim to combat discrimination based on [...] sexual orientation.”1 Constitutional definitions of marriage being a union of a man and a woman 6 out of 28 EU Member States have such a clause in their constitution, i.a. clause 110 of the Latvian Constitution. 2 In accordance with the rule of lex speciali derogat legi generali3, clauses concerning equality of all citizens do not apply to marriage.

1 Consolidated versions of the Treaty on European Union and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/ EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:12012E/TXT&from=EN 2 Constitution of the Republic of Latvia: http://www.saeima.lv/en/legislation/ constitution 3 in Latin, meaning “specific laws repeal general laws”.

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LIB E II ICE COMMITTEE ON CIVIL LIBERTIES, JUST

AND HOME AFFAIRS II

by Gabriele Simakauskaite (LT)

1. EXPLANATION OF THE PROBLEM / RELEVANCE OF THE TOPIC On the 7th of January 2015 a gruesome attack against workers of the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo was committed.1 Two men armed with guns forced their way into the offices of the magazine and killed twelve people. The main motive of the attack is considered to be the controversial Muhammad cartoons the magazine published. The gunmen identified themselves as members of the Islamist terrorist group Al-Qaeda’s branch in Yemen.

Not long after the incident, social media was taken over by condolences expressed through the hashtag #jesuischarlie (French for ‘I am Charlie’). In the aftermath of the attack demonstrations were held in Paris as well as other French and European cities. The slogan ‘Je suis Charlie’ appeared on hand-made and printed placards as the expression of solidarity to Charlie Hebdo and became an endorsement of the freedom of speech and press. Such events further encouraged debates about the freedom of speech and expression in Europe as well as safety of European citizens and religious minorities. 2 Several days after the Charlie Hebdo attack, four Jewish people were held hostage and shot at a kosher supermarket in a historical Jewish area of Paris.3 Security around schools and synagogues in the area has been tightened and many members of Jewish community are started fleeing France because of the incident and 1 BBC (2015): “Charlie Hebdo attack: Three days of terror” http://www.bbc. com/news/world-europe-30708237 2 Don’t turn Europe into a militarized surveillance state http://america.aljazeera.com/opinions/2015/1/after-paris-europes-long-view-on-antiterrorism.html 3 “Security Remains Tight in Paris Jewish Quarter One Month After Attack”: http://english.cri.cn/12394/2015/02/08/2361s865440.htm

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al magazine Charlie Hebdo: What Terrorist attacks on the French satiric tee the safety of its citizens and measures should the EU take to guaran h as the right to freedom of exthe protec tion of basic civil liberties suc ught conscience and religion? pression and speech, as well as of tho

the pressure coming from past. Even though, from the 28 states of the EU, only four (Denmark, Greece, Malta, England in the UK) have an official state religion, people still have to be afraid to freely express their religion-related views, thoughts and beliefs. Because of this, the question arises: what additional measures must be taken in order to maintain peaceful environment for people to live in Europe?

2. KEY TERMS • Freedom of speech - also referred to as freedom of opinion and expression.

Freedom of speech is covered in various documents, in Europe and European Union main being Article 11 in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union1 (EU) and Article 10 in the European Convention on Human Rights2 (ECHR). Regardless of the phrasing differences of the clauses in question, it mainly concerns the right to freedom and opinion as well as the right to hold opinions and receive information without obstacles.

• Freedom of thought, conscience and religion - covered in Article 10 in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU3 and Article 9 in the ECHR4. Anyone is allowed to change their religion or belief and to do so alone or in community, either publicly or privately.

• Hate speech - speech that attacks, threatens, or insults a person or group on the basis of national origin, ethnicity, colour, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, or disability.

• Civil liberties - liberties protective in nature, rights or freedoms given to the people by the First Amendment to the Constitution, by common law, or legislation, allowing the individual to be free to speak, think, assemble, organize, wor1 European Union: “Charter of fundamental rights of the European Union”, article 11 (page 11) http://www.europarl.europa.eu/charter/pdf/text_en.pdf 2 European Union: “Charter of fundamental rights of the European Union”, article 11 (page 11) http://www.europarl.europa.eu/charter/pdf/text_en.pdf 3 European Union: “Charter of fundamental rights of the European Union”, article 10 (page 10) http://www.europarl.europa.eu/charter/pdf/text_en.pdf 4 European Court of Human Rights, Council of Europe: “European Convention on Human Rights”, article 9 (page 10) http://www.echr.coe.int/Documents/Convention_ENG.pdf

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LI BE II ship, or petition without government (or even private) interference or restraints.

• Fundamental rights (alternative to human rights) - applied to everyone equally and without exceptions, these are the rights that humans have by the fact of being a human and that are neither created or can be abrogated by government. Most of the fundamental rights of the citizens of the EU are stated in Charter of the Fundamental Rights of the EU and European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR).

3. KEY QUESTIONS • Are there any misconceptions of the freedom of press in nowadays world? If yes, should they be revised in order to avoid possible tragedies?

• Should there be any legal provisions to define the line between expressing opinion and being offensive?

• While facing the fact that safety of people and protection of human rights both cannot be declined, which path should be chosen - restricting freedoms in order to guarantee safety or ensuring absolute freedom of speech with any possible risks?

4. KEY CONFLICTS The main confusion lies between the understanding of freedom of expression and crossing the line to being insulting. Freedom of expression does not prohibit being critical or the disapproval of religions or religious practices. However, national laws clearly define the difference between rights to speak up and being insulting, and forbid any form of incitement of national, racial or religious hatred.

Another key issue and highly discussed matter is harmonising civil liberties among Member States to the level where everyone has a right to express themselves and at the same time to not be afraid of being attacked by those rights. Are we in need of taking any action and revising the existing system and making changes?

If yes, who should be responsible for it and how to achieve result everyone is satisfied with? As the EU has limited competence in the field of civil liberties, should the Member States grant additional supremacy? There already are some common

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limitations in place such as a ban of insulting a state, flag or president. Therefore in reality there is no unrestricted freedom of speech and each Member State has variations in their national laws.

Last but not least comes the safety of European citizens. How indulgent can the EU be towards those invading fundamental rights of European citizens and claiming their beliefs in foreign territories over the legislation that already exists and serves for the peace of the locals? Fighting terrorism is a national competence. However, the EU shows its support to the Member States and has implemented numerous tools to combat terrorism, hate speech and other dangerous outbursts against European citizens.1 Some of these have proven ineffective or are still waiting for their turn. In the meantime, preventing disasters and deciding on common policy is a must.

1 “Fighting terrorism at EU level, an overview of Commission’s actions, measures and initiatives�: http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-15-3140_ en.htm

5. STAKEHOLDERS European institutions - the EU has limited competences with regards to civil liberties, most of them are stated in the Chart of the Fundamental Rights of the EU and the ECHR. The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) - set up in 1959, it is an international court ruling on State or Individual applications based on violations of civil and political rights set out in the ECtHR. The ECtHR monitors compliance to the human rights in 47 Member States of the Council of Europe that ratified the Convention.

National governments - each Member State has its own regulations of civil liberties such as freedom of expression thought, conscience and religion in their constitutions. There is no unified policy across Member States but international charters and conventions are highly respected and considered.

The Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) - provides the EU with expert advice on a range of issues and helps to ensure that the fundamental rights of people living in the EU are protected.

European citizens - the receivers and users of civil liberties.

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