Debate contributions by Leire PAJÍN

Mr President, Commissioner, the European Union is surely at one of the worst crossroads since its birth. And, in my opinion, we're not living up to it. We don't know how to react. Because we should start calling things by their name, also in this debate: the current US administration is no longer an ally of the European Union. Now they've written it down. It is not in trade, it is not in the worldview, in respect for international standards and, unfortunately, not in health. When the United States pressures companies to sell medicines at a higher price in Europe, they are directly attacking our citizens and our patients. We need to develop real and intelligent strategic autonomy. We need to ensure the production and supply of medicines by protecting public health and our universal public system. We must ensure that the results of our science and our patents are developed here. We need, above all, to have a robust system. Because, Commissioner, getting better prepared and defending our security also means guaranteeing supplies of medicines and equal access for all, especially those who need it most.

Mr President, denying climate change, saying – as we have heard here today – that it is ideological fanaticism or that it is bullshit, will not only not prevent us from suffering more and more consequences in floods, heat waves or also in devastating fires, but will mean that we will increasingly expose our citizens, our economy, our security and our lives. That's why we have to take it seriously. I would also like to highlight the positive results of a summit that some tried to blow up and which, fortunately, continued with some progress. But I also want to denounce that we are not taking the commitment to climate change seriously. Fortunately today, citizens, civil society and indigenous people do, but we must take it much more seriously than we have done so far, especially the European Union. Because it is not enough just to sign agreements; we must be consistent. And, here, what we are doing every week is dismantling the firm commitment in the fight against climate change that we had advanced in the last legislature. That is why we ask the Commission for consistency and facts.

Madam President, Commissioner, today we bring once again to this sitting the most graphic example of horror, of a horror that sometimes we only intuit or imagine through the testimonies of children and women who manage to get out of it. A horror that involves ethnic cleansing and genocide in a place where 25% of the population suffers gender-based violence. A horror that is the epicenter of suffering, but also of indifference. Just look at what has been raised for the humanitarian response: only 33% of what we need, i.e. 0.01% of the Union's GDP. And what are we going to do in the face of this horror? First of all, we need to deliver a loud and clear, unanimous message here in Parliament. But the European Union, in addition to making a humanitarian effort, Mrs Lahbib, as you are doing, must take seriously its role of political deployment and humanitarian diplomacy. We need to involve regional actors. We have to take the response to this horror seriously and we have to deploy our full capacity to put an end to it.

Madam President, today we are visited by the victims of the damage and also by the mayors who, even today, continue to work and fight to rebuild their villages. That is why I would like this Parliament to give them the warm welcome they deserve and to pay tribute to them. Victims must always be honoured, treated with respect and committed to working hard to ensure that a disaster – and its consequences – does not happen again. Climate change will make us live new catastrophes, but the political responsibility is to be where it should be and, above all, to build policies that are able to anticipate and respond to them. That is why I would like today, once again, from here, to pay a profound tribute to the victims of dana.

Madam President, breast cancer is the most common tumor in women. There are more than 35,000 new cases diagnosed annually in my country. And today it is still the leading cause of cancer death in women. It is estimated that one in eight women will develop this disease. That's why prevention and early detection are a lifeline. However, in my country, in some regions governed by the right, unacceptable negligence has emerged. In the Valencian Community, for example, one in five women did not receive the screening invitation. More than 90 000 have been excluded from prevention programmes; 21 000 only in the case of Alicante. But, in addition, problems are emerging in the protocols, leaving women with uncertainty, with fear, without knowing the results. And this is unacceptable. That is why we call on the Commission and the European Council to act to implement cancer prevention plans and to ensure women's fundamental health-related rights. Because behind this there is a dismantling of the public system to generate business in private.

Mr President, Commissioner, we want our first words as a group to be for the victims - two hundred and thirty-five people, two hundred and twenty-nine in our region, in Valencia - for whom a year ago they saw their loved ones die and their homes, their lives and their memories destroyed forever. They are always in the center, above all else. It is before them that we have to commit ourselves once again. Commit ourselves, ladies and gentlemen, to knowing precisely and rigorously what happened, what failed and who failed that afternoon. To debug responsibilities and, above all, to commit ourselves so that this does not happen again. Those who were not where they should ask for forgiveness and should commit to repairing that pain. Because the climate emergency will continue to cause more and more catastrophes. We will have damage and virulent and devastating fires like those we have lived in León, Galicia and so many other countries of the European Union. We will live again pandemics and increasingly complex crises. That is why we must work tirelessly here to prepare ourselves better, to have systems that allow clear and rapid alerts, to ensure that our population knows what to do and when to do it. Recognize our professionals, who these days are mobilized again, with sufficient resources and, above all, do not give in to those who demand the dismantling of emergency units, as happened in Valencia, and it cost us painfully very expensive. The improvement of the Civil Protection Mechanism will allow us in this House to strengthen the solidarity of the European Union and is a good opportunity to improve all this. There we will listen again to the victims because it is to them that we must listen and not allow those who deny climate change to direct politics, who demand the dismantling of the public. Because not doing so will be the best tribute we can pay to the victims today.

Madam President, Commissioner, there are more than 1.5 million displaced people, and half the population suffers from hunger. The tragedy in Haiti is a clear example of a deeply forgotten crisis – a tragedy – such as that in Sudan and many others. A crisis that, despite the human suffering it entails, does not occupy our time, nor our agendas, much less our debates, because it does not occupy our newscasts. That's why. And look at the fact that in the end an atrocity has had to happen again for the international community and this Parliament to talk about this reality. And it won't be because we haven't tried. On September 11, in Cabaret, more than forty people were summarily executed victims of indescribable cruelty at the hands of gangs. Haiti today is the clearest sign that we have further relegated and left the United Nations alone: only 10% of the funding for that. There is hope, but we have to tell the Member States to strengthen their cooperation and commitment. And, above all, we need the Cabaret massacre not to be another number in the statistics, but to awaken our consciences and force us to act now.

Mr President, Commissioner, indeed, as you said, 2025 is a crucial year for social development and so is the Summit. Now is the time to assess progress and make decisions accordingly. Thirty years have passed since the Copenhagen Summit, but also thirty years since the Beijing Summit, which marked the global agenda for women and equality. And ten have also passed since the Paris Agreement and five are missing to meet the 2030 Agenda. It is time to understand what are the consequences of the crises we are experiencing; the importance of strengthening public services because they protect the vulnerable; the importance of better preventing responses to the crises that are coming to us. The need to understand that we live in a climate emergency and that should guide our decisions. And more importantly: weaving resilient societies with a strong civil society. And I want to tell you, Commissioner, that we have the opportunity to live up to it, but that the multiannual financial framework is not going in the right direction. It is precisely the cohesion funds and social instruments that should be the greatest shield. So, if we want to be consistent, we must change that course.

Madam President, in a few weeks we will be holding the EU-CELAC Summit and it is an enormous opportunity to strengthen relations with a region of the world with which we share the same values, the same way of understanding the world and the same interests. In other words, it is a region of the world that we know, that we recognize and with which we have the same interests. But the summit must be an opportunity to move from values to concrete things. We have to undertake together the reform of the international financial system and forgive the debt of middle-income countries, such as those in the Caribbean, for example. Also agree and definitively promote and approve the agreements with Mercosur and Mexico, which will boost our trade relations, but also guarantee our environmental rights. We must invest more in cooperation through Global Gateway and also humanitarian aid. We need to create a civil society forum for civil society to participate. And finally, we also want a bi-regional pact for care that puts care at the heart of the political agenda. I don't want to end up without the advice of my friend Forges: Don't forget Haiti. Because Haiti is the poorest country in Latin America and requires our attention and commitment.

Mr President, Madam President-in-Office of the Council, Commissioner, today we come to denounce once again a new situation of violation of international humanitarian law, one more twist to the unbearable apartheid of women in Afghanistan. And we want to denounce, loud and clear, the deliberate helplessness to which the Taliban regime has condemned the women victims of the earthquake catastrophe, many buried under the rubble without being rescued and without any right to receive medical care or assistance. We left Afghanistan and left them to their fate, because we sent humanitarian aid - and I thank you very much for your effort, Commissioner - but we must demand - the international community must do so - that humanitarian workers can act and can distribute aid. And, above all, we must speak loud and clear. We must say once and for all that we are talking about a crime against humanity against 50% of the Afghan population, and that the international community and the European Union must be involved so that this does not happen again.

Mr President, a new heat wave has hit Europe this summer. An estimated 47 000 people die as a result of heat each year, especially in Mediterranean regions, regions and cities such as Alicante. But studies show us that if temperatures in 2023 had occurred 20 years ago, deaths would multiply. That means that prevention and adaptation plans work, when they are put in place. For this reason, political will is important, as it is also important for cities to lead it: we need funding and cohesion funds, we need to bring the health dimension into urban planning, take into account materials, take into account green areas and blue areas. It is necessary to fight against heat islands, which have a devastating impact on people's health. And we need to protect the most vulnerable people. Therefore, we have to redouble these plans and take into account good practices, such as those of the State Pact of the President of the Government of Spain or those of the city of Barcelona, which has more than 300 climate shelters. What we don't need is disinformation and denialism, because that costs lives.

Mr President, High Representative, I would like to express my strongest condemnation of the recent attacks in Colombia and to convey our solidarity with the victims and their families. Since the 2016 peace agreement, successive governments in Colombia have made enormous efforts to put those agreements into practice. This is also the case with President Petro and his commitment to total peace. And throughout this process, the European Union has consistently demonstrated undisputed leadership, which we recognise, with strong political support and continued financial assistance, also the efforts of the Special Envoy. The road ahead – we know – is very long and very difficult and the current challenges, the fragmentation of armed groups and an increased presence of organised criminal gangs require more support for Colombia. Therefore, we ask you that the electoral aims do not ruin everything that has been built so far, that we build unity of action and no more polarization also in this House, because Colombia needs more support for dialogue, not less. More support to create economic opportunities, not less. More support and involvement of local governments, activists, civil society and women. And, of course, it needs more support because it is also a strategic partner of the European Union and our responsibility is clear: to continue to accompany him in this very complex process and to continue to have hope.

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, this summer has been particularly painful in Europe: Portugal, Greece, Italy, Spain, the mountain of León, the Bierzo, Orense, Cáceres, Asturias, Palencia have experienced the worst fires in thirty years, 130 fires in a single month, 330 000 hectares burned by fire. We have seen this summer, ladies and gentlemen, burn, with rage and pain, our cultural and natural heritage, our forests, our fauna, our peoples, our memories. We've lost neighbors fighting the fire. And, from that pain, ladies and gentlemen, it is where we are obliged to commit ourselves more against these fires and, above all, to be aware that we are living in a climate emergency - as the Commissioner has said - that multiplies up to forty times the risks and the chances of these fires occurring again. Also the danas, which occurred for example in Valencia. Therefore, it is important once again that we understand that it is not enough to respond, we must prevent and prepare. We need forest management plans throughout the year. We need native species and state-of-the-art infrastructure and, above all, well-endowed and well-paid human resources. We need to put depopulation in the equation, because abandonment of grazing and abandonment of land have a lot to do with it. We need, of course, a great political agreement, as proposed by the President of the Government of Spain. We need everyone and, above all, we need to understand - once and for all - that investing is not wasteful, as some leaders have said, it is better preparing for the response. And we need to comply with the laws, the ones we've passed here: nature restoration, the European Green Deal, all the laws that take advantage of us to better fight these fires. But what we do not need, ladies and gentlemen, are demagogy, but above all the denialism and negligence of those who deny climate change, of those who sow disinformation and hoaxes in catastrophes, because that causes much more pain and delays the response.

Mr President, in recent years, the number of development-related crises has increased and yet the financial resources to deal with them have clearly decreased. Four out of ten people live in countries where more money is spent on debt interest than on public education or health, as has been said here. And at this rate, according to all studies, we will not meet the Sustainable Development Goals by far. The world asks us for more action and we turn our backs on it. It is given by the United States, yes, but also by the Member States, which have been reducing aid for a long time, and also by this European Parliament, which did not even allow us to have a position for Seville. The Summit was held in a European country for the first time in many years. A country that has committed to debt swaps and official aid. And - as the Commissioner said - now, at this starting point in Seville, which must be for action, we need to move forward on a fair global financial system, on debt cancellation, on a much fairer global health architecture. Ladies and gentlemen, this debate is not just about solidarity, it is about how we build the political leadership of the European Union, about what values, with what allies; in short, about our moral stature and our credibility.

Madam President, in recent days a heat wave has swept Europe from north to south. Drought threatens all regions, not only to the south and not only to the Mediterranean, although in the Mediterranean it is devastating. There are fires in Greece, Germany, France, Serbia and Scotland. Two human lives have been lost in Lleida and we are fighting the consequences in Tarragona. Extreme weather events due to climate change put health, the economy and our lives at risk. If we have learned anything from the negligent and painful management of the damage in the Valencian Community – and also from what is happening in Texas – it is the importance of being on time, of alerting the population and also of investment and the need for good public resources and human resources, of conserving nature and fighting climate change. Commissioner, we need to shield the European strategy with resources and instruments; We're gonna support her for that. We need to involve governments, institutions, citizens and also science. We need to improve the systems and ensure coordination between them. These days we will have the opportunity, with the financial framework, to know if we are up to the task and also to see if the president is allied with disinformers and denialists or with those with whom we want to arrive on time and save lives.

Madam President, Commissioner, the UN report on humanitarian aid shows that there are two trends that are increasing humanitarian needs in the world: conflicts and the devastating consequences of climate change. Both are desperately occurring in South Sudan. A country exposed to the consequences of climate change, natural disasters and violence, yet the hardest part of everything South Sudan faces is our indifference. The indifference of those who want us to reduce our commitment to humanitarian aid and development cooperation. The indifference of those who look the other way or who vote against the report on financing for sustainable development. Ladies and gentlemen, if we continue to reduce our commitment to humanitarian aid, if we continue to reduce our commitment to financing for development, if we continue to show signs that the problems of the Global South do not matter to us, we will not only condemn millions of people, but also end up putting our security and our lives at risk.

Mr President, I want to condemn in all firmness the political violence in Colombia and, of course, the attack on Senator Uribe and the attacks on all the victims who preceded him. I also condemn the escalation of violence they suffered a few weeks ago in Cali and Cauca. But I also want to take this opportunity to condemn the murder of our fellow Democrat and her husband a few days ago in the United States, because there is no greater scourge for democracy than political, verbal and physical violence. And we must react. The irresponsible polarization, the permanent harassment of the adversary – especially women – and the destruction of the opposite as a way of doing politics are the breeding ground for this violence. And we must say enough, in Colombia and also here. Colombia deserves to achieve a total, lasting peace through democratic means. We must strengthen our political support for the Government and society. We must include civil society and local governments in its implementation, and our society deserves a public debate, serene, focused on solving problems and not sowing more hatred. As our colleague Jo Cox, who was murdered nine years ago, said precisely because of hatred: Democrats have more things that bind us together than things that separate us. Let us banish once and for all the extremisms of democracy.

Mr President, once again we bring to plenary the continuous and daily genocide of the people of Gaza. But today enough of words. It is time to talk about inaction, shameful hypocrisy and our indifference. Madam High Representative, are we really going to tell our citizens again that we are not going to do anything? Will we continue to tolerate the killing of children and the blockade of humanitarian aid? With what face are we going to tell journalists that they are risking their lives to tell us the truth, to humanitarian actors, that we are not going to do anything? Mrs Kallas, you have instruments to put pressure on the Government of Israel. We call on you once and for all to suspend the Association Agreement, to apply individual sanctions, to restrict trade with Israel, to prevent the sale and use of weapons and to demand once and for all the entry of humanitarian aid from the United Nations. Are you gonna do it this time? Because everything else is already complicity.

Madam President, the last year and a half, the last months and especially the last hours will be marked in the calendar of history forever; They will mark what kind of society we are, what moral stature we have – especially political representatives – on which side of history we were. And when our children, nephews and grandchildren look us in the eye and ask us what we were doing and how we responded while televising genocide, ethnic cleansing, the European Union will not live up to the answer. Madam Vice-President Kallas, I am very sorry that you are not here today. Enough of looking the other way, enough of supporting and being complicit in the instrumentalization of aid. The European Union must act now: not another second of a trade agreement with a country that uses humanitarian aid as an instrument of occupation, as a weapon of war, as a torture of hunger and cold. Not another minute of complicity. We must put an end to this barbarism, guarantee humanitarian aid, achieve peace and deploy our full force of peace, politics and humanitarian diplomacy to stop once and for all. Enough of the words: It's time to act. Everything else is already complicity.

Madam President, Madam High Representative, we European socialists always defend freedom, democracy and human rights, and we do so in any country, in any situation, including when there are arbitrary detentions: We do it in Cuba, also in El Salvador, in Gaza and elsewhere. And I would like to recall that the defence of democracy and respect for human rights are precisely the central element of the Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and Cuba, because, as the High Representative has said, one can and must be demanding in that framework: human rights violations must be reflected there, the necessary reforms in the economic and democratic field must be demanded. That is the area that will make us move forward, but making burned land does not help Cuban citizens at all. Ladies and gentlemen, let us be consistent: with the same energy with which this debate is brought here today, if we really want to deal with Cuban citizens, let us also denounce the devastating consequences that the blockade of the United States is causing on the Cuban population, which is having serious difficulties in its day to day.

Mr President, in this debate we should start with language, because rather than rare diseases we are talking about diseases that affect between 27 and 36 million people in the European Union. We are talking about between six thousand and eight thousand different diseases, some of which can affect only a few, but others can affect more than 245,000 people. Approximately 80% of these diseases are of genetic origin, highlighting the urgent need for care and resources in research and treatment. It's true that we've made progress. We have better coordinated the investigation. We have made a commitment to coordinate and have better aggregated data. But we need to go much further. And, above all, we need to accompany families, to give them a message of hope, a message of real political commitment, of accompaniment to their social circumstances and their life expectancy. That is why we believe that we must continue to advance, we believe that health is an inalienable right and we must ensure that there is equal access for all people, including those suffering from these diseases.

Madam President, Commissioners, 'the process of globalisation has broadened the concept of security which, going beyond purely military conceptions, has acquired a multidimensional character'. This phrase was uttered by our first High Representative, Javier Solana, more than twenty years ago. He was already right then and, from then until today, the European Union has experienced floods, devastating natural disasters, a pandemic, cyberattacks, digital threats to our democracy, military threats. We need a change of mindset to move from reaction to anticipation, to being merely prepared. But in a world of global threats, what does it mean to be prepared? First, it is to know the real threats rigorously – all of them – and to fight those who deny them. We need to know where our capabilities are and integrate our civilian and military instruments. We need to integrate all areas of global and local governance and, above all, generate a citizen culture of response. People should know how to do it and when to do it. And we need, above all, tools for communication and the effective fight against disinformation.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the humanitarian situation in Sudan is the mirror where all the failures of the international community are reflected: the impact of climate change, the extreme poverty of more than half the population, rape and systematic sexual violence against children as a weapon of war, the disappearance of hospitals and any kind of infrastructure... one wonders what else has to happen to get us to take the situation in Sudan seriously. Because the worst of all is the systematic oblivion to which we have subjected the citizens of Sudan. And as if this were not enough, the decision of the US Administration to withdraw its official development aid will enter into force on Monday. And that forces the European Union to redouble its efforts, to be even more present if possible. We talked about security today. And I say to them: security is not only a matter of defence, it is also a matter of conflict resolution and the fight against poverty.