Derechos Humanos / Human Rights

Did you know that every day in Brussels up to 30,000 lobbyists try to influence 750 parliamentarians, 28 commissioners and their staff? Corporations and banks spend millions influencing our European politicians, including on the EU-US trade deal (TTIP), tax regulation, and energy policy. This is a threat to our democracy.

When Barroso, the ex-president of the Commission, the EU’s most powerful institution, recently became chairman of the bank Goldman Sachs, we had simply had enough of unethical behaviour and the corporate capture of the EU. Europe is in its deepest crisis; what the EU needs now, more than ever, is democracy, accountable politicians, and strict controls on lobbying.

MEPs in the European Parliament have drafted a report on “Transparency, integrity and accountability in the EU institutions”, including many proposals to promote cleaner decision-making in Brussels. Hundreds of citizens contributed their ideas to this report. But not all members of the European Parliament (MEPs) agree that there needs to be a change to business as usual.

Please write to MEPS and convince them to vote in favour of tougher transparency and ethics in the EU. MEPs are expected to vote on 12 September; before then, we must demand they stand up for transparency and democracy.

Christians only account for about 10% of Vietnam’s population, and they have long faced an uphill battle in terms of religious freedom. But problems for Christians escalated over the last few weeks as Authorities in the Central Highlands of Vietnam reportedly arrested 68 pastors for preaching the gospel and for allegedly refusing to consolidate their churches into a much smaller congregation. These pastors will join over 40 pastors who are already behind bars as authorities attempt to control the growth of Christianity in the region. Many of the pastors have been in jail since 2001.

True freedom of religion allows for the growth of religious minorities, but Christian groups in Vietnam are being unjustly restricted and Church leaders are being inhumanly imprisoned.

A ministry leader in Vietnam, who was given the pseudonym “Su” for security reasons, told ChristianAid, “The government wants to combine [churches] to limit their growth and have more control." He continued, "If the pastors refused to sign a paper saying they would combine and that their gatherings would not go over 500 people, they would be beaten or thrown into prison."