Read the full letter in PDF
Dear Taoiseach,
Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU) comes at a critical moment for Ireland, Europe, and the global multilateral system. In the face of unprecedented attacks on the foundations of human rights and international rules-based order, the European Union – itself a cornerstone of the multilateral system – has a critical role to play in bringing it back from the brink.
The international legal order remains the best guarantee for peace, security, sustainable development, and the protection of human rights. As crises multiply and deepen across the globe, the Irish Presidency now has an opportunity to ensure the EU plays its role in upholding the multilateral system, allowing it to thrive as a vital stabilizing and preventive force and a critical safeguard against impunity, injustice and mounting authoritarian practices.
Authoritarian leaders are accelerating their assault on the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at a time of escalating conflict and crisis across the globe, where international human rights law and norms are one of the few safeguards for people exposed to violence and attacks on their lives and rights.
Russia has intensified its aerial attacks on civilians and critical civilian infrastructure in Ukraine, the conflict in Sudan has reached three years of a devastating war against civilians, while the US and Israel’s unlawful attacks against Iran and Iran’s retaliatory strikes have endangered the lives and health of millions of civilians.
The attacks on international law have been accompanied by a wider, more insidious, though no less dangerous trend of selective application and enforcement of international laws and standards. These double standards and inconsistencies by states – particularly those with strong legal standards and commitments on human rights and rule of law – have significantly weakened the effectiveness and credibility of the multilateral system, with devastating consequences for global stability, accountability, and the lives of millions around the world.
Israel’s ongoing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza and accelerating ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in the West Bank is emblematic of this breakdown. The EU and its member states have failed to act in accordance with proclaimed EU values to end Israel’s violations of international law. They have failed to prevent Israel’s genocide in Gaza, to respect the terms of Article 2 of its Association Agreement with Israel, to implement the International Court of Justice (ICJ) Advisory Opinion by preventing trade, funding or investment that may aid or assist in the maintenance of Israel’s illegal settlements. They have also failed to enforce the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant against Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to call out Israeli war crimes, or to refuse Israeli bond issuance in the EU market as a clear instance of financial facilitation which could amount to a failure to prevent genocide and even carries the risk of aiding or assisting in genocide. If the EU cannot or will not act to hold Israel to account, member states should act unilaterally, and Ireland must lead the way.
The recent engagement of the Taliban by the EU and a number of member states in an effort to deport Afghans to Afghanistan is another example of the EU’s failure to respect its own legal obligations and clearly stated concerns on serious human rights violations and international crimes. Instances such as these send a worrying signal to the world of the selective applicability and accountability by the EU for the standards it asserts to uphold. The European Union must never lose sight of its duties to protect people, of its primordial treaty obligations to ensure its action is guided by its values and principles, including the rule of law and the universality and indivisibility of human rights. In a rapidly evolving world, the EU and its member states should avoid any false dichotomy between EU values and interests and the risk of trading human rights for short-term political gains or perceived stability. Only by centering human rights can the EU and its member states maintain the credibility, legitimacy and long-term effectiveness of EU foreign policy.
At this critical moment in which Ireland assumes the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, Amnesty International urges the Irish Government to:
1. Put human rights, justice and accountability at the centre of EU foreign policy.
2. Lead on effective and sustainable asylum and migration policies, centred on human rights.
3. Remain vigilant in upholding human rights and rule at law across the EU ensuring people can live in dignity, equality, and security.
4. Prioritize decisive action to strengthen safeguards, prevent harm, and ensure that corporate interests do not override people’s rights and protection.
Amnesty International calls on Ireland to realize its potential and use the upcoming Presidency to advance strong, principled, and consistent actions to support and strengthen human rights standards, their application, and their enforceability.
In addition to reconnecting people to what Europe means in their lives, the Presidency is an opportunity for Ireland to reconnect EU member states and Institutions to what the EU’s founding values mean for people, both across its continent and around the world, through its internal and external action.