This motion has not been discussed in the Assembly and commits only those who have signed it.
The Parliamentary Assembly considers that objective criteria
should be set up how to identify a genuine political prisoner. The
Assembly would then use those criteria as a reference for all reports
related to allegations of the presence of political prisoners in
a member state.
Although there are currently different definitions about who
is to be considered as a political prisoner - according to different
international bodies - the Assembly has never taken a decision in
this matter. The sometimes mentioned document 1272/2002 is only
referring to a specific country and there is not a general definition
that could be used as an applicable rule in every member state.
The absence of such a definition creates a serious risk for double
standards and unwanted precedents, and may hamper the credibility
of the Assembly.
For this reason clear criteria should be established to be
respected by all member states. Because of their high importance,
these criteria should be adopted by the Assembly before any report
on political prisoners in a particular case or country is prepared,
as a general definition has to be clear before, and not during or
after, the preparation of an individual report.
In the interest of all member states of the Council of Europe,
the process of establishing criteria for the definition of a political
prisoner should be considered without delay.
