Author: Karen Melchior

Togrevolutionen planlægges nu og ankommer om 10 år

Written on 23. July 2024.

Der er nemmere billetkøb til internationale togrejser på vej! Revolutionerne kommer langsomt… men de planlægges nu. Så vi har travlt. Der skal mere til end nyt billetsystem for at sikre gode togrejser. Det som gør en togrejse behagelig og nemt er ikke det samme som for en flyrejse. Der er nemmere billetkøb til internationale togrejser på vej! Kommissionen kommer til at foreslå en forordning, som kommer til at sikre dig, at du kan købe en billet hos en udbyder til hele din internationale togrejse – uden at du skal give køb på dine passagerrettigheder på hele rejsen. Det annoncerede Kommissionenspræsident...

Ukraine Media Guildhall interview – Ways to improve EU’s military aid to Ukraine and EU sanctions

Written on 4. November 2023.

Visiting Ukraine, Karen Melchior speaking with Kharkiv mayor in a white room sitting at a table next to Petras

Since the full-scale invasion by Russia of Ukraine, the Ukrainian media Guildhall has been interviewing European politicians about their views and on where the European legislators are heading in support of Ukraine. Guildhall has previously interviewed me in writing, but yesterday was my first video interview to provide my recommendations for improvement of the EU’s military aid to Ukraine strategy and EU sanctions policy. I will add the link when it’s public. Key messages from me are: The EU and the EU member states must quickly mobilise further military support for Ukraine to...

En frygtelig uge i Israel og Gaza

Written on 14. October 2023.

Hamas angreb, bortførte og dræbte civile. En terrororganisation angreb Israel. Angreb uskyldige mennesker på en musikfestival, familier i deres hjem. Hamas begår terror for at skabe så meget lidelse blandt sit eget folk, at befolkningen vil tage terroristens parti på ubestemt tid. Hamas hat udnyttet dette i årevis og følger en plan, der forudser en israelsk reaktion. Vi skal ikke belønne dem. Israel forsvarer sit land og er ved at finde bagmænd bag angrebene og de tilbageholdte gidsler. Uanset smerte eller vrede, skal Israel beskytte de civile i Gaza, hvor 1 million er børn under 14 år. Det...

European Parliament on Hamas attacks on Israel – for Renew Europe Group 10 oct 23

Written on 10. October 2023.

My speaking points for discussion in the Renew Europe Group meeting on the 10th of October 2023 We must condemn in the strongest terms the horrible terrorist attacks by Hamas against innocent Israeli civilians over the weekend. It should be acknowledged, and we must recognise the emotional weight of recent and past events and their impact on both sides. Not just now, this weekend, but from the past decades. The unresolved conflict between Israel, Palestine and the other Arab countries is one of the most highly emotive political issues in international relations. We must acknowledge the pain...

Nagorno-Karabakh og EU – Det er tid til handling nu!

Written on 30. September 2023.

Armenian refugees wait out side of a yellow bus with green lettering on a lawn with their suitcases and other belongings around them

Et område i det sydlige Kaukasus, Nagorno-Karabakh, er et territorium med historisk betydning og en overvejende etnisk armensk befolkning. Desværre er dette område for atter gang et midtpunkt for en vedvarende konflikt. På tragisk vis blev det ulovligt overtaget af Aserbajdsjan, og som har ført til fordrivelser og lidelser for befolkningen i området. Denne humanitære krise kan EU ikke tillade sig at være en passiv tilskuer på længere. Det armenske folk lider og det er på tide at EU omsætter ord til handling. Hvert liv der går tabt og hver familie der bliver revet fra hinanden kræver vores fulde...

EU Commission sells out for migration deal with Tunisia’s president Kaïs Saied

Written on 18. August 2023.

On 16 June, the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, agreed with the President of Tunisia, Kaïs Saied, to implement the comprehensive partnership package announced jointly on 11 June 2023. This came in the context of grave violations of the rights of migrants and asylum seekers, as well as an escalation of restrictions on civil and political rights. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) fails to address core human rights concerns observed in Tunisia, which include grave violations of...

Kan EU-Kommissionen lukke sociale medier med Digital Services Act i hånden?

Written on 4. August 2023.

TL;DR Nej Der er skrevet en del blogindlæg på internettet og kommentarer på sociale medier om, at DSA (Digital Services Act) skulle være en “censurlov” der giver Kommissionen beføjelser til at forlange misinformation fjernet (herunder bestemme hvad der er sandt og falsk, som et Ministry of Truth). Hvis man læser DSA er det svært at finde de påståede beføjelser. Nok kan der i DSA gives store bøder for manglende overholdelse af DSA, men intetsteds i DSA står der, at platforme har pligt til at fjerne falsk information. Det samme gælder skadeligt indhold, hvordan man så end definerer...

Dereliction of Duty: how the Women’s Rights Committee failed Women in the Discussions on the ChatControl (CSAM) Regulation

Written on 12. June 2023.

The proposal to break end-to-end encryption in the CSAM regulation (ChatControl) puts everyone’s privacy at risk but is particularly harmful for women. As countries in the EU and elsewhere turn to digital surveillance to hunt down women who are seeking reproductive healthcare, I called on the Women’s rights committee of the European Parliament to speak out about the dangers of breaking end-to-end encryption, but the committee created to protect women’s rights refused to defend them. Protecting Citizens’ rights to privacy, and women’s right to access reproductive healthcare have been two of my...

AI Act vote: our push to protect citizens from Mass Surveillance

Written on 11. June 2023.

On the 14 of June, MEPs will vote on Parliament’s position on the Artificial Intelligence Act, a proposed EU law on how AI is used in Europe. The reports of the IMCO and LIBE committees already go a long way toward protecting citizens, by banning dangerous Biometric Mass Surveillance, but there are still some gaps that need to be plugged. Firstly, while the AI act does ban so-called “emotional recognition”, there are concerns that this ban may not extend to “behavioral recognition”, a deeply flawed technology that has reported hugs as violent assault. I don’t believe that citizens should...

Due Diligence Mandate for European Parliament

Written on 7. June 2023.

It was a big moment when we in the European Parliament last week voted through the compromise on the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive! Now the negotiations with the Council (the EU Member States) can begin. The “due diligence” directive defines what responsible big companies must do to minimise their impact on the environment and uphold human rights. In the EU, we have rules covering hazardous sectors like conflict minerals and timber. With the proposed legislation, we want a set of rules that apply to all industries. The mandate for the European Parliament to enter into negotiations...

Radikales håndtering af arbejdsmiljøsag – advokatnotat

Written on 3. June 2023.

Karen Melchior in a yellow dress standing on black tiles by a red sofa looking up and smiling

I denne uge kom der endnu en gang fokus på et dansk politiker, og et dansk medlem af Europa-Parlamentet, i sammenhæng med påstande om dårligt arbejdsmiljø for medarbejderne. Det er både trist, ærgerligt og kedeligt – selvfølgelig først og fremmest fordi alle involverede er mennesker af kød og blod. Jeg er helt bevidst om, at arbejdsmiljø og adfærd opleves meget forskelligt af henholdsvis medarbejdere og ledere. Magtbalancen gør, at ord og samtale kan opfattes med divergerende vægtning. Derudover kan kemien og kompetencerne simpelthen være manglende i forholdet mellem medarbejdere og leder. For...

Free Period Products for EP Visitors

Written on 28. May 2023.

I am happy to share that the European Parliament is launching a pilot project of providing free period products at our visitors’ toilets! Thank you to all my colleagues from different political groups who supported this initiative of mine, which the Parliament has adopted. We believe that menstrual security should be a collective issue. It is a question of dignity, solidarity, and health. Period products are a necessity for a sizable proportion of our guests. For people on their period, they are as intuitively essential as toilet paper, soap or hand towels and should therefore be made...

ChatControl is illegal, so what can we do to protect kids?

Written on 19. April 2023.

We don’t have to spy on our children to keep them safe! Stop believing in the magic wands of digital filters and flagging content that can make our societies’ problems disappear. Let us use technology to empower our children to identify risks and enable them to reach out to trusted adults instead of a paternalistic approach using flawed technology that won’t protect kids but will make it harder to catch abusers! Let us build an internet that lets kids explore independently while learning about risks in an environment built to offer them safety, agency, and privacy. Introduction Last week,...

Sport og politik hænger sammen som ærtehalm – derfor skal russiske og belarussiske atleter ikke deltage i OL

Written on 2. April 2023.

Der er historier vi fortæller os, selvom vi burde have indset for længe siden at de ikke passer. En af dem, som mange bliver ved med at fortælle dem selv og verden er, at sport og politik ikke hænger sammen. En løgn, som blev gentaget i Politikens leder den 3. april, på trods af den var skrevet af satireredaktøren, så tror jeg desværre ikke den var satire. Sport og politik hænger sammen som ærtehalm. Statsledere, byer og nationer bruger sporten til at vaske deres image rent og hylde dem selv. Sportsfolkene i klæder sig de nationale farver og flag mens deres uddannelse understøttes gavmildt...

Twitter kills 3rd party app ecosystem?

Written on 16. January 2023.

Potentially anticompetitive shutdown by Twitter of third-party app ecosystem Last week, a service (API) provided by Twitter allowing third-party software to interact with the social network was shut down. For decades access via API spurred the development of a commercial ecosystem of third-party apps built around Twitter: software for tweet scheduling, business customer service, posting to multiple social networks, or analytics. Providing superior user control and experience. The shutdown of the service, around which many SMEs and indie developers have built their businesses, has paralysed the...

Are Shares in Companies Undue Influence?

Written on 21. December 2022.

Karen Melchior pale faced woman with a purple shirt on looking into a mirror adjusting her short dark har.

I find it super important to have transparency and openness about potential undue influence on politicians. So I welcome any conversation and questions about this. The financial interests of politicians is part of this conversation. As uncomfortable as it is being quizzed on my personal finances and talking about them openly. This is the only way we can avoid undue influence – through transparency and openness. For me, being transparent also makes me evermore aware of not being less critical of companies I have shares. I am actually more critical, because I do not want others to be able...

The European Digital Identity: our fight for a private digital wallet and a secure web

Written on 27. October 2022.

The European Digital Identity is a proposal that will allow EU citizens, residents and businesses to identify themselves, access digital services and digitally sign documents through a Digital ID and store and share “attributes” such as personal information, diplomas and licenses safely and easily using a Digital Wallet. It will provide inter-operability across the union; with signatures and attributes recognised in all member states, making it easier to work, study and travel around the Union. The Commission’s proposal could make tasks like getting a loan, applying to study at a university...

Global Encryption Day – Stop Scanning Us

Written on 21. October 2022.

Whether citizens know it or not, encryption is at the heart of everything we do: it protects our bank cards and ID, keeps us safe when shopping online, and keeps our conversations private.On this #GlobalEncryptionDay i think it is important to recognise, however, that encryption is under attack from all sides, including in the European Union. The Commission’s “Chat Control” proposal is the latest and largest of such attacks. It would subject all our conversations to government-mandated error-prone scanning systems, effectively ending the right to private correspondence. This...

Jobopslag: Praktikant i Europa-Parlamentet hos Karen Melchior

Written on 13. October 2022.

Vil du opleve Europa-Parlamentet indefra, arbejde med politik, lovgivning og kommunikation i løbet af et udfordrende og socialt halvt år i Bruxelles? Så er det muligvis dig, vi søger som akademisk praktikant for Karen Melchior, medlem af Europa-Parlamentet i den liberale gruppe Renew Europe til forårssemesteret 2023. Du får arbejdsplads i Europa-Parlamentet i Bruxelles – EU’s politiske hjerte, hvor du får indblik i forskellige politikområder, politiske processer og kommunikation. Helt konkret får du: Erfaring med konkrete politikområder, interessevaretagelse, politisk kommunikation samt produktion...

Vacancy: Communication Advisor for MEP Karen Melchior

Written on 13. October 2022.

Karen Melchior’s office is recruiting an experienced press and communications officer (Danish and English required, other EU languages a bonus) to join her team in Brussels on a full-time basis. The Communication Advisor produces and advises on communication and media outputs as well as participating in the more strategic long term work. The communication advisor will be advising team members as well as MEP Karen Melchior. Main tasks will focus on content creation for social media and website, managing and planning social media, branding of MEP Karen Melchior, designing merchandising, drafting...