agreements and programmes, including through the analysis of human rights impacts; ensure the introduction of human rights training elements in capacity-building projects with immigration and border agencies.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM
53.
b. Building on the steps already taken in the implementation of the EU Anti-Trafficking Strategy, fully integrate human rights and victim protection into discussions on Trafficking in Human Beings (THB) in political, migration and mobility, security and human rights dialogues with the identified priority countries, and in discussions on THB with international organisations and donors operating in those priority countries; EU DELs in the priority countries will make full use of their appointed contact person for THB, and raise human rights-related issues when addressing THB in local EU coordination meetings, as well as in discussions on THB with the host-country authorities; support the ratification and implementation of key international conventions relating to THB, including ILO conventions concerning forced labour and domestic workers.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM
54.
c. Address HR issues associated with people smuggling through political, HR and other dialogues in priority countries; encourage EU DELs in priority countries to make full use of their resources to ensure that people smuggling and its HR dimension are consistently addressed in their cooperation with the host country authorities as well as with civil society, international organisations and other donors.
By 2017
EEAS
55.
d. Support partner countries to promote and protect the rights of refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs), including through capacity building.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM
56.
e. Support improved access to justice and health for migrants in countries of transit; promote improved conditions of detention for detained migrants and alternatives to the use of detention for irregular migrants in third countries.
Ongoing
COM
57.
f. Engage with the diaspora communities both inside the EU and in non-EU destination countries to promote awareness of HR abuses faced by migrants and refugees in countries of transit, as well as of HR issues in their countries of origin.
By 2017
EEAS, COM, MS
58.
g. Identify countries of origin where HR violations act as a key push factor, and better target political dialogue and other dialogues and programmes so as to address these violations.
By 2016
EEAS, COM, MS
59.
h. Continue to address the issue of statelessness in relations with priority countries; focus efforts on preventing the emergence of new stateless populations as a result of conflict, displacement and the break-up of states.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM
60. Trade/investment policy
a. Provide support for and strengthen effective implementation, enforcement and monitoring of GSP+ beneficiaries' commitments (relevant HR treaties and ILO conventions), for instance through projects with key international bodies and civil society, including social partners.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM
61.
b. Continue to develop a robust and methodologically sound approach to the analysis of HR impacts of trade and investment agreements, including in ex-post evaluations; explore ways to extend the existing quantitative analysis in assessing the impact of trade and investment initiatives on human rights.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM
62.
c. EU MS to strive to include in the Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs) that they are negotiating with third countries provisions related to the respect and fulfilment of human rights, including provisions on Corporate Social Responsibility, in line with those inserted in the agreements negotiated at EU level.
Ongoing
MS
63.
d. Aim at systematically including in EU trade and investment agreements the respect of internationally recognised principles and guidelines on Corporate Social Responsibility, such as the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, the UN Global Compact, the UN Guiding principles on business and human rights (UNGPs), the ILO Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy, and ISO 26000.
Ongoing
COM
64.
e. Regularly revise Regulations on trade in goods that can be used for capital punishment or torture, and on Dual Use goods.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM
65. Counter-terrorism (CT)
a. Pursuant to the EU CT Strategy, develop sets of ideas on how to prevent radicalisation and extremist violence among young people in third countries, how to assist EU activities and how to engage with media and community leaders to develop counter-narratives in these countries; promote and support that the human rights are at the centre of all legislation, policies and mechanisms on counter terrorism in third countries, while also ensuring compliance with IHL, and enabling principled humanitarian action.
By 2015
EEAS, COM, Council, MS
66.
b. Ensure wide dissemination of the EU CT guidance, including by engaging in outreach activities and training practitioners in the field, in particular for activities deployed under the Instrument contributing to Stability and Peace.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM
67. Pursuing a Rights Based Approach (RBA) to Development
a. Implement the EU commitment to move towards RBA by pursuing its full concrete integration into all EU development activities, using training, capacity support and monitoring with a view to achieving a full integration within the mid-term review; EU MS to adopt and implement a RBA to development cooperation.
By 2016
EEAS, COM, Council, MS
68.
b. Assess the implementation of the Annex 12 of the 2012 EU Budget Support Policy that set up a Fundamental Values assessment as an essential element for budget support and in particular in this context the full integration of RBA into Sector Reform Contracts.
By 2017
EEAS, COM
69.
c. Explore the possibility to further implement a RBA into non-development related external activities, analyse the consequences of the right to development and assess the results of the post -2015 Development Agenda.
By 2017
EEAS, COM
70. Strengthening the contribution of impact assessments (IAs) to the respect of Human Rights
a. Building on the existing assessment of the impact of EU actions on fundamental rights, continue to improve the incorporation of HR in Commission impact assessments for proposals with external effect and likely significant impacts on HR; this should be done, as necessary, by developing further guidance on the analysis of HR impacts, strengthening the expertise and capacities for this type of analysis and ensuring robust consultations of relevant stakeholder groups exposed to major HR risks.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM
71.
b. Incorporate, where relevant, analysis of HR impacts in Commission ex post evaluations of EU interventions with external effects.
Ongoing
COM, EEAS
72.
c. Ensure policy coherence between the analysis of human rights impacts undertaken in Impact Assessments and other HR related policy instruments, including HR country strategies, HR dialogues and budget support/programming of financing instruments, with a view to addressing the identified potential negative impacts and maximise positive ones.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM
V. DEEPENING THE EFFECTIVENESS AND RESULTS CULTURE IN HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY
73. Increasing the effectiveness of Human Rights Dialogues
a. Develop, share and build upon the best practices identified for HR dialogues, including follow-up processes.
Ongoing
EEAS, Council
74.
b. Ensure that HR considerations are factored in the different sectorial dialogues with a partner country and as such part of the overall bilateral strategy.
Ongoing
EEAS, Council
75.
c. Ensure internal-external coordination in the context of HR dialogues, including for annual EU-CSO dialogue; define and address a number of HR priority issues in the context of external HR dialogues on which a better EU response can be provided.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM, Council, MS
76.
d. Mainstream "cooperation at the UN human rights fora" into bilateral HR and political dialogue and cooperation; pursue closer cooperation and identification of joint actions, in particular with strategic partners; develop guidance for the systematic use of reports and recommendations of the Universal Periodic Review, treaty monitoring bodies and Human Rights Council special procedures
Ongoing
EEAS, COM, Council, MS
77.
e. Establish/Assess priorities, objectives, indicators of progress for EU HR dialogues and consultations, to facilitate their review, recognising that partners' ability and willingness to engage varies and flexibility and pragmatism are paramount.
By 2017
EEAS, Council
78. Improving the visibility and impact of Human Rights Country Strategies (HRCS)
a. Mainstream the human rights countries strategies implementing priorities and democracy analysis in political dialogues, reporting and high level visits.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM, MS
79.
b. Ensure follow up to the HRCS through joint annual implementation reports to be presented to the relevant Council bodies.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM, Council, MS
80.
c. Ensure that EU and MS assistance programmes take into account and facilitate the implementation of the HRCS priorities.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM, MS
81. Focusing on a meaningful implementation of EU Human Rights Guidelines
a. Intensify dissemination of relevant guidance documents and training especially to diplomatic staff in EU DELs and MS Embassies, including at the level of Ambassadors.
Ongoing
COM, EEAS, MS
82.
b. Systematize reporting on the Guidelines' implementation and introduce logbooks on specific thematic issues, to ensure more systematic follow-up to individual cases and to promote regular exchange of best practice in Guidelines' implementation.
Ongoing
COM, EEAS, MS
83. Maximising the impact of Electoral Observation
a. Consolidate and codify best practices for leveraging of EU EOMS and OSCE/ODHIR Election Observation Missions recommendations in EU and EU MS political dialogues and democracy support activities.
By 2016
EEAS, COM, Council
84.
b. Strengthen long term planning and integrated deployment of all aspects of EU and MS support to the electoral cycle, by exploring innovative aid delivery mechanisms.
By 2019
EEAS, COM, MS
85. Ensuring the effective use and the best interplay of EU policies, tools and financing instruments
a. Consolidate various existing tools and reporting mechanisms used to support democracy and promote HR in order to increase coherence and effectiveness of EU action (e.g. HRCS, democracy analyses and APs, reports from election observation, election assistance and follow-up missions, Enlargement Progress Reports, ENP progress reports and APs, civil society engagement roadmaps, assessments of fundamental values for Good Governance and Development Contracts, risk management frameworks for budget support).
By 2017
EEAS, COM, Council
86.
b. Globally strengthen democracy analysis on the basis of lessons learned from the pilot exercise of democracy support.
By 2017
EEAS, COM, MS
1.
c. Further develop working methods to ensure the best articulation between dialogue, targeted support, incentives and restrictive measures.
Ongoing
EEAS, COM, MS
2.
d. Improve the coherence in the application of HR clauses which are systematically included in all new EU international agreements.
By 2017
EEAS, COM
3.
e. Support the ongoing development of HR indicators undertaken by the OHCHR with a view to: (i) facilitating measurement of the realisation of HR, including online publication of indicators at global level, and (ii) systematising compilation and use of HR and surveying good practices and lessons learned.
By 2017
EEAS, COM, Council
4.
f. Engage systematically with the UN and with the regional organisations (e.g. AU, OAS, LAS, CoE, OSCE, ASEAN, SAARC, PIF etc.) on best practices for HR and the strengthening of democracy in all regions.
Decisions on specific steps to implement this Action Plan will be taken in accordance with the Treaties. The Action Plan does not affect the division of competence between the EU and its Member States, and will be interpreted in line with Declaration 13 to the Treaties.
EU humanitarian staff is exempted from this reporting requirement, to avoid compromising the perception of their neutrality, impartiality and independence, which could expose relief workers as well as the affected population to attacks from warring parties, and to being denied access to the affected population.
