Ein europäisches Magnitsky-Gesetz: Offener Brief an Heiko Maas
Joint Open Letter of Gyde Jensen, Sjoerd Wiemer Sjoerdsma and further signatories from the European Parliament, the House of Representatives of the Netherlands and the German Bundestag regarding the planned EU Magnitsky Act
Dear Federal Minister Maas,
In her State of the Union Address European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the Commission would bring forward a proposal for the EU Magnitsky Act. As members of the European Parliament and national parliaments we fully support and endorse the intended establishment of an individual sanctions regime for gross human rights violations and grave cases of corruption.
At the same time, the effectiveness of the EU Magnitsky Act depends on the design of the mechanism as well as the timeframe of its implementation. In order for an individual sanctions regime to empower the European Union in its fight against human rights violations and corruption, we would like to lead your attention to our main concerns:
- As the recent example of Cyprus blocking EU sanctions for Belarus has shown, a Magnitsky sanctions mechanism will only be effective if it is equipped with a qualified majority voting system. The European Union cannot afford a mechanism that allows single member states to impose vetoes due to particular economic and political interests. Without a qualified majority voting system, the EU Magnitsky Act will only be a political symbol rather than an effective tool to counter impunity in the world;
- It is crucial that the new sanctions regime does not only list human right violators, but also individuals responsible for corruption. Holding the EU Council Presidency, the Federal Government of Germany should actively promote the inclusion of corruption in the mechanism;
- We envision the EU Magnitsky Act as a tool that empowers individuals and civil society. The participation of victims and NGOs is indispensable to uncover human rights violations and corruption. That is why we strongly urge that the sanctions mechanism includes the possibility for civil society to submit proposals for the sanctions list;
- As recent developments show, the creation of the EU Magnitsky sanctions regime against human rights violations and corruption worldwide is urgent. We believe that the Federal Government of Germany needs to deploy the momentum of its EU Council Presidency and commit to the establishment of the mechanism by the end of 2020;
- Once the EU individual sanctions mechanism is established, we call for the EU to actively engage with countries who already installed Magnitsky sanctions lists to create synergies and to create the EU Magnitsky sanctions list in a timely manner.
Minister Maas,
Holding the presidency at the Council of the European Union, the Federal Republic of Germany holds a crucial responsibility in the upcoming phase of the design and establishment of an EU sanctions mechanism. We ask you to do everything in your power to engage with our concerns and to advocate for an EU individual sanctions mechanism that truly enables the European Union to fight human rights violations and corruption worldwide.
Yours sincerely,
Gyde Jensen, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Sjoerd Wiemer Sjoerdsma, D66 (Democrats 66)
Member of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands
Moritz Körner, FDP
Member of the European Parliament
Nicola Beer, FDP
Member of the European Parliament
Martijn van Helvert, Christen-Democratisch Appèl (Christian Democratic Appeal)
Member of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands
Bram van Ojik, GroenLinks (GreenLeft)
Member of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands
Lilianne Ploumen, Partij van de Arbeid (Labour Party)
Member of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands
Joel Voordewind, ChristenUnie (Christian Union)
Member of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands
Frank Schwabe, SPD
Member of the German Bundestag
Renata Alt, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Dr. Jens Brandenburg, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Bijan Djir-Sarai, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Dr. Marcus Faber, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Thomas Hacker, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Peter Heidt, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Katja Hessel, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Dr. forest Christoph Hoffmann, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Dr. Lukas Köhler, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Konstantin Kuhle, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Uli Lechte, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Michael Link, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Till Mansmann, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Alexander Müller, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Dr. Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Gerald Ullrich, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag
Johannes Vogel, FDP
Member of the German Bundestag