Samira Rafaela Explained

Parliament:European
Constituency Mp:the Netherlands
Term Start:2 July 2019
Term End:15 July 2024
Birth Date:11 February 1989
Birth Place:Zoetermeer, Netherlands
Nationality:Dutch
Party:Democrats 66
Alma Mater:Leiden University

Samira Rafaela (born 11 February 1989) is a Dutch politician of Democrats 66. She served as a Member of the European Parliament between 2019 and 2024,[1] [2] and she was also a member of the Young Democrats.[2]

Early life

Rafaela grew up with her Jewish Dutch-Curaçaoan mother in Uitgeest. Her father was of Ghanaian-Nigerian descent and a practicing Muslim. She considers herself a progressive, liberal, feminist Muslim.[3]

She attended Bonhoeffer College in Castricum[4] and studied public administration at Leiden University. She did research on the causes of radicalization and terrorism and obtained a master's degree in Crisis and Security Management.[5] She worked as a policy maker and administrative advisor for the municipality of Amsterdam. In 2016, she transferred to the Police Netherlands, where she acted as project leader for inclusion.[6] As a social entrepreneur, she worked in Africa with young talent and as an international trainer and speaker on women's participation, leadership, security and inclusion.

Political career

Rafaela was elected a Member of the European Parliament in the 2019 election, making her the first Dutch MEP with Afro-Caribbean roots.[7] She has been a member of the Committee on International Trade (since 2019), the Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality (since 2019)[2] and the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (since 2021).[8]

In addition to her committee assignments, Rafaela is part of the Parliament's delegations to the Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly (EuroLat) and to the EU–Chile Joint Parliamentary Committee.[2] She also co-chairs the European Parliament Anti-Racism and Diversity Intergroup and is a member of the European Parliament Intergroup on Artificial Intelligence and Digital[9] and the European Parliament Intergroup on Disability.[10] [11]

On 3 May 2022, an internal commission of D66 investigated complaints of 3 former co-workers of the European D66-delegation about, among other things, abuse of power by Rafaela.[12] She was reprimanded, but a mediation committee ruled in November of the same year that the investigation was sloppy and that the reprimanding was unjustified.[13]

In 2023, Rafaela – together with Malin Björk and Evin Incir – alleged in a letter to the President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola that their fellow MEPs Anders Vistisen, Isabella Adinolfi and Cristian Terheș breached Parliament's rules on offensive language during a debate on the ratification of the 2011 Istanbul convention against gender-based violence and urged Metsola to investigate.[14] On 21 December 2023, she announced she would not seek re-election in the 2024 European Parliament election.[15] Her term ended on 15 July 2024.[2]

Recognition

Notes and References

  1. Web site: S. (Samira) Rafaela MA . www.parlement.com . 27 October 2020 . nl.
  2. Web site: Samira RAFAELA . European Parliament . 11 February 1989 . 26 July 2024 . en.
  3. Web site: Vuijsje . Robert . 13 May 2019 . Samira Rafaela: 'In het Europese Parlement is een gebrek aan diversiteit in alles. Jong, vrouw en kleur: het zit er allemaal niet, of niet genoeg' . 30 May 2019 . De Volkskrant.
  4. Web site: 2019-05-12 . Oud-leerling Bonhoeffercollege verkiesbaar voor het Europees Parlement . 2023-06-13 . www.kijkopcastricum.nl . nl.
  5. Web site: Samira Rafaela gaat voor het EuroParlement / "Dit gaat over ons allemaal". Afromagazine.nl. 27 February 2019. 31 May 2019.
  6. Web site: Samira Rafaela: ik wil Europa in. Nederlandse Politiebond. 16 May 2019. 31 May 2019.
  7. Web site: Baume . Maïa de la . 20 MEPs to watch in 2020 . . 27 October 2020 . 13 January 2020.
  8. Web site: 2021-03-26 . Movers and Shakers . 2023-06-13 . The Parliament Magazine . en.
  9. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/about-parliament/files/organisation-and-rules/organisation/intergroups/list-of-members-artificial-intelligence-and-digital.pdf Intergroup on Artificial Intelligence and Digital
  10. Web site: Bureau . Anti-Racism and Diversity Intergroup (ARDI) . 27 October 2020.
  11. Web site: Members of the Disability Intergroup - Renew Europe . European Disability Forum . 27 October 2020.
  12. News: Aharouay . Lamyae . de Witt Wijnen . Philip . 2022-05-13 . Scheuring in Brusselse fractie van D66, klachten over Europarlementariër Samira Rafaela . . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20221015180837/https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2022/05/13/scheuring-in-brusselse-fractie-van-d66-na-klachten-over-europarlementarier-samira-rafaela-a4124396 . 2022-10-15.
  13. News: Damen . Fleur . 2022-11-24 . D66 berispte Europarlementariër Rafaela onterecht; integriteitsonderzoek 'onzorgvuldig' . nl . . 2022-12-02.
  14. Web site: Eddy . Wax . Gregorio . Sorgi . 11 May 2023 . Three MEPs denounced for racist, sexist and transphobic 'hate speech' in European Parliament . Politico Europe.
  15. Web site: Roorda . Jasper . 2023-12-21 . Europarlementariër Samira Rafaela (D66) stopt . 2023-12-21 . Brusselse Nieuwe . nl-NL.
  16. Yoni Moldovan (16 December 2020), Women of the Year 2020: Samira Rafaela is Bazaars International Woman of the Year Harper's Bazaar.