FDP politician advocating for sanctions in Nawalny case
Title: German Lawmaker Pushes for Tougher Measures Over Navalny Poisoning
Berlin — The alleged poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has sparked calls for greater accountability, with FDP MP Gyde Jensen advocating for a stronger response in Germany. According to a report in Der Spiegel, Jensen is urging the introduction of a personalized sanctions regime, modeled on the U.S.'s Global Magnitsky Act, to penalize human rights offenses worldwide.
This push comes as nations such as Estonia, the UK, Canada, and Lithuania have already passed legislation based on this act. The Global Magnitsky Act, enacted in the U.S. in 2016, empowers the U.S. government to penalize individuals responsible for human rights abuses globally. These penalties include freezing assets and denying entry.
The European Union, which includes Germany, has also taken steps to tackle human rights violations via its own legal structures. The introduction of the European Magnitsky Act, or the EU Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime, in December 2020 allows member states, including Germany, to impose sanctions against offenders worldwide[3].
However, Germany has yet to implement its own version of the Global Magnitsky Act. Jensen believes it's high time Germany takes action to send a clear message. "We need to demonstrate our commitment to upholding human rights values," she says.
Other nations, such as Estonia, the UK, Canada, and Lithuania, have implemented policy-and-legislation based on the Global Magnitsky Act, and Germany, with its EU Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime, has the opportunity to do so as well. Moreover, in the political landscape of general-news, it is other lawmakers, like FDP MP Gyde Jensen, who are advocating for a stronger policy in Germany to respond to human rights offenses worldwide.
