Current situation in Kosovo

Recommendation 1780 (2007)

Author(s):

Parliamentary Assembly

Origin

Assembly debate on 24 January 2007 (5th Sitting) (see Doc. 11018, report of the Political Affairs Committee, rapporteur: Lord Russell-Johnston). Text adopted by the Assembly on 24 January 2007 (6th Sitting).

Thesaurus

1 Referring to its Resolution 1533 (2007) on the current situation in Kosovo, the Parliamentary Assembly reiterates the historical role of the Council of Europe in improving good governance, strengthening democracy and the rule of law, reinforcing human rights standards and improving the protection of national minorities in Europe. The Assembly is convinced that the Organisation should play a similar role with a view to contributing to the full implementation of the Standards for Kosovo.

2 Similarly, the Assembly believes that the Council of Europe should give special support to Serbia, a member state which is going through a delicate political phase, and to the development of friendly and neighbourly relations between all the main actors in the Western Balkans.

3 The Assembly therefore asks the Committee of Ministers to ensure that the Council of Europe, in co-operation with other international actors, including the European Union, plays a key role in putting in place measures to ensure the protection of the human rights of all persons in Kosovo, including:

3.1 expanding the role of the Council of Europe in Kosovo, in particular as regards:

3.1.1 the protection of human rights;

3.1.2 the voluntary return in safety and dignity of refugees and displaced persons and their sustainable reintegration;

3.1.3 the protection of national minorities;

3.1.4 the use of minority languages;

3.1.5 intercultural dialogue and cultural heritage;

3.1.6 the fight against corruption, organised crime, money-laundering and trafficking in human beings;

3.1.7 the democratisation and financing of political parties;

3.1.8 the accountability of the police;

3.1.9 the independence and the efficiency of the judiciary;

3.2 communicating with the United Nations Office of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for the future status process for Kosovo (UNOSEK) in order to ensure that standards and mechanisms of the European Convention on Human Rights (ETS No. 5) are fully applied and integrated in the Status Agreement for Kosovo;

3.3 increasing the information activities of the Council of Europe in or aimed at Serbia, as well as the activities relating to history teaching, human rights education, youth and intercultural dialogue;

3.4 in view of its increased involvement in Kosovo during the post-status stabilisation period, engaging in a dialogue with the appropriate European Union bodies to secure an enhanced role for the Council of Europe, including by deploying a human rights adviser, to be appointed by the Council of Europe to work within the future enhanced European Union presence in Kosovo;

3.5 in accordance with Recommendation 1588 (2003) on population displacement in South-Eastern Europe: trends, problems, solutions, co-operating with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and, where applicable, with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), to find durable solutions for refugees, displaced and stateless persons;

3.6 reconsidering the request made by the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of the Interior of Kosovo (Provisional Institutions of Self-Government (PISG)) to receive Council of Europe expertise through the temporary appointment of a human rights adviser to their institutions;

3.7 enhancing the role of the institution of the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe to assist in reinforcing the protective role of the Ombudsperson in Kosovo.