Fundamental Rights Agency

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European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights
EU-FRA-logo.svg
Agency overview
Formed15 February 2007 (ratified)
1 March 2007 (established)
Jurisdiction European Union
HeadquartersSchwarzenbergplatz 11
A-1040 Vienna
Austria
48°11′53″N16°22′29″E / 48.198179°N 16.374628°E / 48.198179; 16.374628
Agency executive
Key document
Website fra.europa.eu
Fundamental Rights Agency

The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, usually known in English as the Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA), is a Vienna-based agency of the European Union inaugurated on 1 March 2007. It was established by Council Regulation (EC) No 168/2007 of 15 February 2007.

Contents

Mandate

The FRA is an EU body tasked with "collecting and analysing data on fundamental rights with reference to, in principle, all rights listed in the Charter"; however, it is intended to focus particularly on "the thematic areas within the scope of EU law". [1]

Those nine thematic areas are defined by Council Decision No 252/2013/EU of 11 March 2013, establishing a Multiannual Framework for 2013–2017 for the Agency. They are: access to justice; victims of crime; information society; Roma integration; judicial co-operation; rights of the child; discrimination; immigration and integration of migrants; and racism and xenophobia.

The FRA's primary methods of operation are surveys, reports, provision of expert assistance to EU bodies, member states, and EU candidate countries and potential candidate countries, and raising awareness about fundamental rights. [2] The FRA is not mandated to intervene in individual cases but rather to investigate broad issues and trends.

History

The FRA was established in 2007 as the successor to the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC), which was also based in Vienna. The EUMC's mandate was narrower than that of the FRA, as it was restricted to issues of racism and xenophobia.

The EUMC grew from the Commission on Racism and Xenophobia (CRX), established in 1994, and also known as the Kahn Commission. The CRX was transformed into the EUMC in June 1998; officially established by Council Regulation (EC) No 1035/97 of 2 June 1997.

Publications and surveys

Since its inception, the FRA has carried out surveys and published reports which are available online. A full list of publications is given on Publications & resources > Publications. This section discusses reports that have seen significant attention from outside observers.

Survey: Violence against Women

In March 2014, FRA published a major survey on violence against women, based on face-to-face interviews with over 42,000 women from across the 28 Member States of the EU. [3] [4] The survey asked about their experiences of physical, sexual and psychological violence including incidents of intimate partner violence ('domestic violence'). Questions also asked about incidents of stalking, sexual harassment and online harassment as well as their experience of violence in childhood.

According to the responses of the report some of the key findings indicated that:

Survey: EU-MIDIS (Minorities and Discrimination)

In 2009, FRA released a survey on the experiences of discrimination, racist crime, and policing of minority group and immigration groups in the EU. The survey was based on the responses of 23,000 individuals from selected ethnic minority and immigrant groups, and additionally, 5,000 people from the majority population living in the same areas as minorities in 10 Member States. [6] [7] Key findings of the survey include that:

A second round of the survey (EU-MIDIS II) is currently underway, and the results will be published in 2016. This will collect comparable data, and assess the impact of national anti-discrimination and equality legislation and policies in the EU. [10]

Survey: European Union lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender survey

In 2013, FRA conducted an online survey to identify how lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people living in the European Union experience the fulfilment of their fundamental rights. This followed a 2009 report on homophobia and discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity [11] which identified the need for comparative data on this issue. The results reflect the experiences of more than 93,000 individuals [12] who completed the online survey across Europe. The aim was to support the development of more effective laws and policies to fight discrimination, violence and harassment, improving equal treatment across society. [13]

From the findings, it was noted that:

A second round of the survey (EU-LGBTI II) is currently underway, and the results will be published in 2020. This will collect comparable data in order to compare the results with the prior survey. [16]

Methodology

The online survey methodology was chosen to ensure the anonymity of ‘hard-to-reach’ or ‘closeted’ LGBT populations, to encourage reporting of sensitive or negative experiences, such as criminal victimisation, and eliminate bias, which could have been introduced by telephone or face-to-face interview approaches. [17] Multiple responses were discouraged through the length (approximately 30 minutes) and complexity of the survey, while the input process in the different countries was closely monitored for falsifications. The results are not intended to be representative of all LGBT people in the EU, but provide the largest collection of empirical evidence on the experiences of LGBT people in Europe to date. [17] Data about the perceptions of discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity of the general public was not included in the survey, as it is already collected by Eurobarometer. The analysis of the results in the EU LGBT survey – Main results report compares some Eurobarometer data with the EU LGBT survey results. [17]

Survey: Roma

The Agency has a multi-annual Roma programme to allow it "to make regular reports on progress made and provide evidence based advice to the EU institutions and Member States based on data systematically collected across the EU". Data from the 2011 Roma survey is available via an online data explorer tool Archived 21 June 2016 at the Wayback Machine .

Publications of the EUMC

EUMC published reports are available from the website here [18] of the FRA, the EUMC successor agency. A selection is given below.

Report: Working Definition of Antisemitism

In 2005, the EUMC published a working definition of antisemitism, whose stated purpose was to "provide a guide for identifying incidents, collecting data and supporting the implementation and enforcement of legislation dealing with antisemitism". In November 2013 the definition was removed from the organisation's website in 'a clear-out of non-official documents'. A spokesperson stated that the document had never been viewed as a valid definition and that "We are not aware of any official definition". [19] [20]

Report: Rise in antisemitic attacks in the EU

In May 2004, a report labeled 'Manifestations of antisemitism in the EU 2002 – 2003' was published. [21] It detailed a rise in attacks targeting Jewish businesses, synagogues, cemeteries and individuals. The countries with the most significant number of attacks were Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. A second report, on perceptions of antisemitism, was also published. [22]

Report: Rise of Islamophobic attacks in the EU following 9/11

The largest monitoring project ever to be commissioned regarding Islamophobia was undertaken following 9/11 by the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC).

From a total of 75 reports, 15 from each member state, a synthesis report, entitled "Summary report on Islamophobia in the EU after 11 September 2001", was published in May 2002. [23] The report highlighted occasions in which citizens abused and sometimes violently attacked Muslims. Discrimination included verbal abuse, indiscriminately accusing Muslims of responsibility for the attacks, removing women's hijab, spitting, using the name "Usama" as a pejorative epithet, and assaults. The report concluded that "a greater receptivity towards anti-Muslim and other xenophobic ideas and sentiments has, and may well continue, to become more tolerated". [23]

Reception

The need for a new human rights institution was questioned given that human rights policy was a principal concern of the Council of Europe (CoE), of which all EU member states were also members. [24] In 2007 the British Conservative MEP Syed Kamall said: "The Fundamental Rights Agency will take £20m (30m euros) of taxpayers' money and use it to advance a partisan agenda with little accountability to anyone". [25] In 2010 the German newspaper Die Welt reported that the centre-right French politician Pierre Lellouche, then EU minister in the Sarkozy government, questioned "the added value" of the FRA when the Council of Europe already took care of human rights. [26]

A Resolution adopted in September 2009, in which the EP condemned a "Law on the Protection of Minors", which was then under discussion in Lithuania, as "homophobic" and requested the FRA to issue a legal opinion on whether the draft law was compatible with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. [27] The Lithuanian Parliament, however, responded by adopting a Resolution that condemned the EP's Resolution as an "illegal act" (pointing to the fact that the FRA explicitly has no mandate to examine the legislation adopted by Member States) and requesting the Lithuanian Government to take legal action against the EP before the European Court of Justice. [28]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xenophobia</span> Dislike of anything that is perceived to be foreign or strange

Xenophobia is the fear or dislike of anything that is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is an expression that is based on the perception that a conflict exists between an in-group and an out-group and it may manifest itself in suspicion of one group's activities by members of the other group, a desire to eliminate the presence of the group that is the target of suspicion, and fear of losing a national, ethnic, or racial identity.

Heterosexism is a system of attitudes, bias, and discrimination in favor of heterosexuality and heterosexual relationships. According to Elizabeth Cramer, it can include the belief that all people are or should be heterosexual and that heterosexual relationships are the only norm and therefore superior.

Marios Matsakis is a Greek-Cypriot doctor, coroner, forensic pathologist, and politician who served as Member of the European Parliament and Member of the House of Representatives for the Democratic Party from 2004 to 2009. He has been noted for his controversial statements and beliefs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBTQ rights in Romania</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Romania face legal challenges and discrimination not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Attitudes in Romania are generally conservative, with regard to the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender citizens. Nevertheless, the country has made significant changes in LGBT rights legislation since 2000. In the past two decades, it fully decriminalised homosexuality, introduced and enforced wide-ranging anti-discrimination laws, equalised the age of consent and introduced laws against homophobic hate crimes. Furthermore, LGBT communities have become more visible in recent years, as a result of events such as Bucharest's annual pride parade, Timișoara's Pride Week and Cluj-Napoca's Gay Film Nights festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBTQ rights in Cyprus</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Cyprus have evolved in recent years, but LGBTQ people still face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female expressions of same-sex sexual activity were decriminalised in 1998, and civil unions which grant several of the rights and benefits of marriage have been legal since December 2015. Conversion therapy was banned in Cyprus in May 2023. However, adoption rights in Cyprus are reserved for heterosexual couples only.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homophobia</span> Negative attitudes and discrimination toward homosexuality and LGBT people

Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who identify or are perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred, or antipathy, may be based on irrational fear and may sometimes be attributed to religious beliefs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBTQ rights in Albania</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Albania face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents, although LGBT people are protected under comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation. Both male and female same-gender sexual activities have been legal in Albania since 1995, but households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-gender couples, with same-sex unions not being recognized in the country in any form.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBTQ rights in Georgia (country)</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in Georgia face severe challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. However, before 2024 Georgia was one of the few post-Soviet states that directly prohibits discrimination against all LGBT people in legislation, labor-related or otherwise. Since 2012, Georgian law has considered crimes committed on the grounds of one's sexual orientation or gender identity an aggravating factor in prosecution. The legislative ban on discrimination has been enacted as a part of the Government efforts to bring the country closer to the European Union and make the country's human rights record in line with the demands of Georgia's European and Euro-Atlantic integration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBTQ rights in Lithuania</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Lithuania have evolved rapidly over the years, although LGBT people still face some legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female expressions of same-sex sexual activity are legal in Lithuania, but neither civil same-sex partnership nor same-sex marriages are available, meaning that there is no legal recognition of same-sex couples.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBTQ rights in Malta</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBTQ rights in Slovenia</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) rights in Slovenia have significantly evolved over time, and are considered among the most advanced of the former communist countries. Slovenia was the first post-communist country to have legalised same-sex marriage, and anti-discrimination laws regarding sexual orientation and gender identity have existed nationwide since 2016.

Racism has been a recurring part of the history of Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Racism in Ukraine</span>

Ukraine is a multi-ethnic country that was formerly part of the Soviet Union. Valeriy Govgalenko argues that racism and ethnic discrimination has arguably been a largely fringe issue in the past, but has had a climb in social influence due to ultra-nationalist parties gaining attention in recent years. There have been recorded incidents of violence where the victim's race is widely thought to have played a role, these incidents receive extensive media coverage and are usually condemned by all mainstream political forces. Human Rights Watch reported that "racism and xenophobia remain entrenched problems in Ukraine". In 2012 the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) reported that "tolerance towards Jews, Russians and Romani appears to have significantly declined in Ukraine since 2000 and prejudices are also reflected in daily life against other groups, who experience problems in accessing goods and services". From 2006 to 2008, 184 attacks and 12 racially motivated murders took place. In 2009, no such murders were recorded, but 40 racial incidents of violence were reported. It is worth considering that, according to Alexander Feldman, president of the Association of National and Cultural Unions of Ukraine, "People attacked on racial grounds do not report the incidents to the police and police often fail to classify such attacks as racially motivated and often write them off as domestic offence or hooliganism".

The Fighting Discrimination Program of Human Rights First focuses on the violence known as hate crimes or bias crimes. Because equality is a cornerstone of human rights protection, discrimination in all its forms is a violation of human rights. Discrimination can take the form of violence generated by prejudice and hatred founded upon a person's race, ethnicity, religious belief, sexual orientation, gender, disability, age or other such factors. Through the Fighting Discrimination Program, Human Rights First seeks to combat discrimination by reversing the tide of antisemitic, anti-immigrant, and anti-Muslim violence and reducing other bias crime in North America, Europe, and the Russian Federation.

European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) is the Council of Europe’s independent human rights monitoring body specialised in combating antisemitism, discrimination, racism, religious intolerance, and xenophobia. It publishes periodic reports on CoE member states and general policy recommendations. The decision to found ECRI was adopted in 1993. The organization became officially active as of March 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Right to sexuality</span> Right to enjoy ones sexuality without discrimination

The right to sexuality incorporates the right to express one's sexuality and to be free from discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. Although it is equally applicable to heterosexuality, it also encompasses human rights of people of diverse sexual orientations, including lesbian, gay, asexual and bisexual people, and the protection of those rights. The inalienable nature of rights belonging to every person by virtue of being human.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Therese Comodini Cachia</span> Maltese lawyer and politician

Therese Comodini Cachia is a Maltese lawyer and politician and former member in the European Parliament.

The working definition of antisemitism, also called the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism or IHRA definition, is a non-legally binding statement on what antisemitism is, that reads: "Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities." It was first published by European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC) in 2005 and then by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) in 2016. Accompanying the working definition, but of disputed status, are 11 illustrative examples whose purpose is described as guiding the IHRA in its work, seven of which relate to criticism of Israel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexander Pollak</span>

Alexander Pollak is an Austrian historian, author and human rights campaigner.

References

  1. ↑ "Proposal for a Council Regulation establishing a European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights" (PDF). European Commission. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 June 2006. Retrieved 23 July 2010.
  2. ↑ "The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights". European Commission. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
  3. ↑ "Violence against women: an EU-wide survey. Main results report". European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. 3 February 2014. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
  4. ↑ "Report reveals 'extensive' violence against women in EU". The Guardian. 5 March 2014. Retrieved 5 March 2014.
  5. ↑ "Violence against women: One-third of EU women affected – survey". BBC News. 5 March 2014. Retrieved 5 March 2014.
  6. ↑ "EU MIDIS Main results report". European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. 4 December 2011. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  7. ↑ "EU MIDIS: FRA survey sheds new light on extent of racism in the EU". Regional Centre for Minorities. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  8. ↑ "Diskriminierung in der EU ist "gravierendes Problem"". Kleine Zeitung. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
  9. ↑ "Los gitanos, la minoría más discriminada en Europa, por encima de árabes y judíos". El Mundo. Retrieved 9 April 2010.
  10. ↑ "EU-MIDIS II: European Union minorities and discrimination survey". European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. 8 January 2015. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  11. ↑ "Homophobia and Discrimination on Grounds of Sexual Orientation in the EU Member States Part I – Legal Analysis". European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. 10 November 2010. Retrieved 24 March 2015.
  12. ↑ "LGBT Discrimination In Europe: Most Gay People Afraid To Hold Hands In Public, Survey Says". Huffington Post. 17 May 2013. Retrieved 24 March 2015.
  13. ↑ "EU LGBT survey: Poll on homophobia sparks concern". BBC News. 17 May 2013. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  14. ↑ "Fear, isolation and discrimination common in Europe's LGBT community". RTE. 17 May 2013. Retrieved 24 March 2015.
  15. ↑ "EU LGBT survey: Poll on homophobia sparks concern". BBC News. 17 May 2013. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  16. ↑ "EU LGBTI Survey II". European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. October 2018.
  17. 1 2 3 "EU LGBT Survey Technical Report and Questions & answers on LGBT survey methodology". European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. Retrieved 24 March 2015.
  18. ↑ "Publications | European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights". Fra.europa.eu. 7 July 2005. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  19. ↑ "SWC to EU Baroness Ashton: "Return Anti-Semitism Definition Document to EU Fundamental Rights Agency Website" | Simon Wiesenthal Center". Wiesenthal.com. 6 November 2013. Archived from the original on 1 March 2016. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  20. ↑ "EU drops its 'working definition' of anti-Semitism". Times of Israel. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
  21. ↑ "Manifestations of Antisemitism in the EU 2002–2003" (PDF). European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 December 2009. Retrieved 24 July 2010.
  22. ↑ Manifestations of Antisemitism in the EU 2002 – 2003, FRA website, May 2004
  23. 1 2 Christopher Allen; Jørgen S. Nielsen (May 2002). "Summary Report on Islamophobia in the EU after 11 September 2001" (PDF). Vienna: European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 July 2009. Retrieved 24 July 2010.
  24. ↑ Financial Times, 7. February 2005
  25. ↑ "Europe | EU gets fundamental rights agency". BBC News . 1 March 2007. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  26. ↑ Schiltz, Christoph B. (1 January 1970). "Immer mehr Agenturen: Die verrückte Behördenschwemme in der EU – DIE WELT". Die Welt. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  27. ↑ Phillips, Leigh (17 September 2009). "EU parliament condemns Lithuanian anti-gay law". EUobserver. Retrieved 18 September 2009.
  28. ↑ "The controversial Lithuanian Law on Protection of Minors – Lithuanian Parliament v. European Parliament | The Lithuania TribuneThe Lithuania Tribune". Lithuaniatribune.com. 11 November 2009. Archived from the original on 1 March 2012. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
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