Honouring of obligations and commitments by "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia"
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Assembly debate on 5 April 2000 (12th Sitting) (see Doc. 8669, report of the Committee on the Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe, rapporteurs: MM. Dumitrescu and Sinka). Text adopted by the Assembly on 5 April 2000 (12thSitting).
- Thesaurus
1. The Assembly congratulates the Macedonian
nation for its hospitality towards refugees all through the Kosovo crisis, for
its restraint and its determination to maintain democratic stability, as well
as for its co-operation with the international community, all of which have
contributed to easing the dangerous situation in the Balkans. In doing so,
Macedonia has honoured in an exemplary way important obligations as a member
state of the Council of Europe and its commitment to seek settlement of
international disputes by peaceful means.
2. The Assembly commends Macedonia on having preserved the fragile
equilibrium between the Macedonian majority and the ethnic Albanian minority
and encourages both sides to continue striving for full integration of this and
the other minorities, within one state that is respectful of all citizens’
rights and freedoms.
3. The Macedonian authorities have undertaken many creditable legislative
initiatives, not only to meet commitments made to the Council of Europe but
also to implement a policy of rapprochement with the European Union and Nato.
These initiatives, if they have been interrupted during the Kosovo crisis,
should be re-launched and where necessary accelerated.
4. The Assembly observes that, following a delicate compromise reached
within the framework of the United Nations, the country in question has to be
referred to as “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” and encourages both
parties to reach an equitable solution in the near future.
5. In accordance with its commitments, Macedonia has signed and ratified the
European Convention on Human Rights and the required Protocols, as well as the
European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment, the Framework Convention for the Protection of
National Minorities, the General Agreement on Privileges and Immunities and its
Additional Protocol, the European Charter of Local Self-Government, the
European Convention on Extradition, the European Convention on Mutual
Assistance in Criminal Matters and the Convention on the Transfer of Sentenced
Persons. Macedonia has also signed and ratified the Criminal Law Convention on
Corruption.
6. Macedonia has signed, with a view to ratification, the European Charter
for Regional or Minority Languages, the European Convention on Nationality, the
European Social Charter and its Protocols and the Convention on Laundering,
Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds from Crime.
7. The Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia has adopted a Code of Criminal
Procedure.
8. The right to a fair trial has been included in Article 13 of the
constitution.
9. Legislation is being prepared in the fields of higher education,
citizenship and public media.
10. Moreover, the Macedonian authorities have honoured their commitment to
co-operate fully with the Monitoring Committee and its co-rapporteurs in the
framework of the monitoring procedure.
11. The Assembly understands and accepts that, during the conflict in Kosovo and in the aftermath of the crisis, among the commitments listed in
Opinion No. 191 (1995), priority was given by the Macedonian authorities to Macedonia’s humanitarian obligations towards the refugees and displaced persons from Kosovo and that action to honour other commitments was temporarily interrupted.
12. Within the Stability Pact for Southeastern Europe, which the Assembly
welcomes as an appeal by the international community to the states in the
Balkan region to work together to ensure the stability and economic development
of the region, Macedonia should now continue its efforts to honour its
outstanding obligations and commitments as a member state of the Council of
Europe.
13. In this respect, the Assembly encourages the Macedonian authorities to
bring to a successful conclusion the initiatives they have taken on the issues
listed hereafter:
13.1 The primary focus of any government action should be the integration of the ethnic minorities, in particular the Albanian minority, in accordance with the provisions of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, which Macedonia has ratified, and the principles set forth in Parliamentary Assembly
Recommendation 1201 (1993). For this purpose:
a facilities for the education and training of the Albanian and other
minorities in their own language should be improved and provision for such
improvements should be made in the new laws on further education;
b the use of the Albanian language in the courts, in social and welfare
institutions and elsewhere in public life should be facilitated in accordance
with the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages – which Macedonia
should ratify;
c incidents involving ethnic groups, such as
the killing of three Macedonian police officers in Arachinovo in January 2000,
should be settled in an objective, efficient and transparent way, so as to
avoid these incidents being used to disturb the ethnic
equilibrium.
13.2 Legislative work to reform
the judiciary and, if necessary, to improve the efficiency of the legal system
should be accelerated, in co-operation with the Council of Europe, and in
particular:
a laws to improve the organisation
and functioning of the courts and the independence of the judiciary should be
adopted and implemented;
b laws corresponding to a civil code
and a code of civil procedure should be revised in accordance with the
constitution;
c measures should be taken to ensure that the
role and functioning of the Public Prosecutor’s Office are in accordance with
the rule of law and Council of Europe standards.
13.3 Legislation to ensure implementation of the rule of law should be
improved to achieve the following objectives:
a full respect, by the police forces in the exercise of their duties,
for human rights and fundamental freedoms;
b an increase in
the proportion of Macedonians of Albanian origin, and of other minorities,
serving in the police forces;
c adoption and implementation
of an efficient anti-corruption law and a law on money laundering, as well as
implementation of the Criminal Law Convention on Corruption and ratification of
the Convention on Laundering, Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds
from Crime.
13.4 The Macedonian authorities
should, in co-operation with the Council of Europe, accelerate the reform of
the education system, and in particular take the following measures:
a encourage the training of Albanian language
teachers in secondary education and give careful consideration to the proposal
by the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities to create an Albanian
State University College for teacher training;
b increase the
opportunities for official higher education conducted in the Albanian language,
and start a dialogue with the governors of the so-called “University of Tetovo”
with a view to establishing formal relations in accordance with the relevant
provisions in the constitution;
c provide adequate training
facilities to enable Macedonians of Albanian origin, or other minorities, to
find employment in the public sector, for example by considering the proposal
of the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities to create a privately
funded higher education centre for public
administration.
13.5 The relevant laws should
reflect the vital importance of freedom of expression for a properly
functioning democracy and protect independence in broadcasting and in the print
media by guaranteeing complete editorial freedom, an equitable taxation system,
the availability of newsprint and equal access to broadcasting and printing
facilities and to distribution outlets. For this purpose:
a preparation of a law on the public media should be
accelerated, in co-operation with the Council of Europe, taking account of the
principles outlined above;
b the influence of the government
and of the parliament on the media should be restricted and the independence
and transparency of the Broadcasting Council should be guaranteed;
c the near-monopoly in advertising of the Nova Makedonia Agency should
be curbed.
13.6 Work on the draft asylum law
should be accelerated.
13.7 The Macedonian authorities should,
in close co-operation with the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of
Europe, work towards implementation of the European Charter of Local
Self-Government, which Macedonia has ratified.
13.8 In the
meantime, the central Macedonian authorities should improve implementation of
the 1995 Law on Local Government in order to increase local
autonomy.
14. In conclusion, the Assembly is of the opinion that Macedonia has honoured its obligations and most of its commitments, and that the remaining commitments are in the process of being fulfilled. The Assembly therefore considers the current procedure as closed. It will pursue its dialogue with the Macedonian authorities on the issues referred to in paragraph 13 above, or any other issue arising from the obligations of Macedonia as a member state of the Council of Europe, with a view to reopening the procedure in accordance with
Resolution 1115 (1997), if further clarification or enhanced co-operation should seem desirable.
