European Parliament
EP human rights sub-committee elects new Green chairperson Barbara Lochbihler
The European Parliament sub-committee on human rights today elected Greens/EFA MEP Barbara Lochbihler as its new chairperson, replacing Heidi Hautala. Commenting on her election and new role, Barbara Lochbihler said:
"I am very grateful to the committee members for placing their confidence in me to take over the position of chair, with the significant responsibility that this brings. Having spent much of my career fighting for human rights (1), it is an honour and challenge, which I am looking forward to. While there are many international and political institutions that fight for human rights around the world, it is important that the European Parliament continues its valuable work to this end.
"Human rights is clearly a horizontal priority, which is relevant to almost all EU policy areas. As the recent events in North Africa and the Middle East have shown, it is important that the EU does not lose sight of its commitment to defend human rights and that this commitment does not play second fiddle to economic or geo-political interests. Defending human rights must be at the forefront of the EU's engagement with the rest of the world."
(1) Most recently, before being elected to the European Parliament, Barbara Lochbihler was secretary general of Amnesty International Germany. For more detailed information, see: http://tinyurl.com/BLochbihlerCV
