Activities of the Assembly’s Bureau and Standing Committee (27 January – 22 April 2012)
Progress report
| Doc. 12902 Part I
| 21 April 2012
1 Introduction
1. On 27 January 2012, the Bureau appointed me rapporteur
for this report. Since the last part-session of the Assembly, the
Bureau has met in Paris on 8 March 2012. The Standing Committee
also met in Paris, on 9 March 2012.
2. In line with my predecessors, this progress report covers
the period outside of Assembly sessions, leaving aside the decisions
which have already been ratified by the Assembly. Thus, the first
part of this report presents the Bureau’s activities since the end
of the 1st part-session of 1012 (23-27 January 2012) up until the 2nd
part-session (23-27 April 2012). The activities of the Standing
Committee of 9 March 2012 are presented in Chapter 3 of this report.
3. The Bureau will hold its next meetings in Strasbourg during
the April part-session, on Monday 23 April 2012 at 8 a.m. and Friday
27 April at 8.30 a.m., and then on 24 May 2012 in Tirana. The next
meeting of the Standing Committee will also be held in Tirana on
25 May 2012.
2 Activities
of the Bureau since the last part-session
2.1 Follow-up to the
first part-session of 2012 (Strasbourg, 23-27 January 2012)
4. On 27 January, the Bureau approved the proposals
made by the Secretary General of the Assembly:
- Follow-up
to the “free debate”: the Bureau authorised the Secretary
General of the Assembly to devise a means for following up on issues
raised during the “free debate” with various institutional entities
of the Council of Europe;
- Follow-up to the current affairs
debate on “the Russian Federation between two elections”:
the Bureau referred the issue to the Monitoring Committee to be
taken into account in the preparation of the report on “The honouring
of commitments and obligations by the Russian Federation”;
- Resolution
1855 (2012) on the functioning
of democratic institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina: regarding paragraph 15Note, the
Bureau invited the Monitoring Committee to assess the progress made before
15 March 2012 with a view to returning to the issue at the second
part-session of 2012 in the event of no progress being achieved;
- Resolution
1857 (2012) on the situation
in Belarus: the Bureau invited the Assembly committees
to follow up the proposals contained in paragraphs 11.1 and 11.2,
in particular as regards stepping up the Assembly’s engagement with
representatives of civil society, independent media and opposition
forces, and enhancing co-operation between the Assembly’s different
bodies working on Belarus and its international partners in view
of increasing the effectiveness of the activities of the European
institutions aimed at strengthening civil society in Belarus;
- Follow-up to the Assembly’s
reform: the
Bureau asked the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and
Institutional Affairs to prepare a report on the evaluation of the
implementation of the reform of the Parliamentary Assembly and to
submit it to the Assembly in due course;
- Modifications to Article 18.5
of the Rules of Procedure: following a letter from Ms
Maury Pasquier (Switzerland, SOC) dated 25 January 2012, the Bureau
asked the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional
Affairs to present a report concerning the status of chairpersons
of political groups in the committees;
- Precedence of Vice-Chairpersons
of the committees: the
Bureau asked the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and
Institutional Affairs to provide an interpretation of the procedure
for the establishment of the order of precedence of vice-chairpersons
of committees and to report back to the Bureau. Pending the reply,
Assembly committees were invited not to apply an order of precedence
of the elected vice-chairpersons.
2.2 Terms of reference
of General Rapporteurs
5. At its meeting on 8 March, the Bureau approved the
terms of reference of the following five general rapporteurs on
the basis of proposals submitted by the committees, for a duration
of two years, which were subsequently ratified by the Standing Committee
(Appendix I):
- General Rapporteur
on violence against women, Committee
on Equality and Non-Discrimination;
- General Rapporteur on the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual
and transgender people (LGBT), Committee on
Equality and Non-Discrimination;
- General Rapporteur on Science and Technology Impact Assessment, Committee on Culture, Science, Education and
Media;
- General Rapporteur on Children Committee on Social Affairs,
Health and Sustainable Development;
- General Rapporteur on Local and Regional Authorities,
Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development.
2.3 Election observation
2.3.1 Revised Guidelines
for the observation of elections by the Assembly
6. At its meeting on 27 January 2012, the Bureau amended
and approved the revised Guidelines prepared by the Secretariat
at the request of the Bureau (Appendix 3), which established inter alia a new system whereby members
of ad hoc committees to observe elections and referenda must sign
a declaration on conflict of interest prior to being confirmed in
the list of members.
2.3.2 Elections to the
National Constituent Assembly of Tunisia (23 October 2011)
7. On 27 January 2012, the Bureau took note of the oral
report by the Chairperson of the post-electoral mission (16-17 January
2012).
2.3.3 Kazakhstan: early
parliamentary elections (15 January 2012)
8. On 8 March 2012, the Bureau approved the report issued
by the ad hoc Committee.
2.3.4 Russian Federation:
presidential election (4 March 2012)
9. On 8 March 2012, the Bureau took note of the press
release issued by the ad hoc committee. Further to a consultation
with the members of the Bureau on 12 March 2012, it was decided
to send a post-electoral mission to Moscow before the next part-session
and to constitute an ad hoc committee for this purpose composed
of one member from each political group and the two co-Rapporteurs
on the Russian Federation of the Monitoring Committee, Mr Frunda
(Romania, EPP/CD) and Mr Gross (Switzerland, SOC). This post-electoral
mission took place from 11-13 April 2012.
2.3.5 Armenia: parliamentary
elections (6 May 2012)
10. On 8 March 2012, the Bureau took note of the declarations
on conflict of interest of the candidates for this observation mission,
approved the composition of the ad hoc committee and appointed Baroness Nicholson
(United Kingdom, ALDE) as Chairperson. A pre-electoral mission to
Yerevan took place from 10-14 April 2012.
2.3.6 Serbia: parliamentary
elections (6 May 2012)
11. On 8 March 2012, the Bureau took note of the declarations
on conflict of interest of the candidates for this observation mission,
approved the composition of the ad hoc Committee and appointed Mr
Gardetto (Monaco, EPP/CD) as Chairperson. A pre-electoral mission
to Belgrade took place from 16-19 April 2012.
2.4 Selection Panel
of the Parliamentary Assembly Human Rights Prize
12. On 8 March 2012, the Bureau appointed Mr Hammarberg
and Ms Mole as independent experts to serve on the panel for a renewable
term of five years beginning on 1 April 2012.
2.5 Issues raised by
committees
2.5.1 Committee on Political
Affairs and Democracy:
13. On 27 January 2012, the Bureau authorised Mr Vrettos
(Greece, SOC) to carry out a fact-finding visit to Israel and the
Palestinian territories in the context of the preparation of the
report on the “Situation in the Middle East”;
14. At the same meeting, it authorised Mr Volontè (Italy, EPP/CD)
to carry out a fact-finding visit to Morocco in the context of the
preparation of the report on the “Evaluation of the partnership
for democracy with the Parliament of Morocco”.
2.5.2 Committee on Equality
and Non-Discrimination
15. On 27 January 2012, the Bureau authorised Ms Saïdi
(Belgium, SOC) to carry out a fact-finding visit to Morocco and
Tunisia in February 2012 in the context of preparing the report
on “Gender equality and the status of women in the Council of Europe
southern neighbourhood”.
16. On 8 March 2012, the Bureau decided to invite Ms Bassima Hakkaoui,
Minister of Solidarity, Women, Family and Social Development in
the Moroccan government and Ms Lilia Labidi, Minister of Women and Family
Affairs in the Tunisian government to address the Assembly in the
context of the debate on “Gender equality and the status of women
in the Council of Europe southern neighbourhood”.
2.5.3 Committee on Legal
Affairs and Human Rights
17. Following a request from the Committee asking the
President to issue a statement urging the competent Belarusian authorities
not to execute the two young men, Dmitri Konovalov and Vladislav
Kovalev, convicted of the bombing of the Minsk metro in April 2011,
the Bureau, at its meeting on 27 January, invited the President to
react. The President made an appeal to the relevant Belarusian authorities
the same day.
18. On 8 March 2012, the Bureau authorised an ad hoc sub-committee
of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights to participate
in the conference of the Joint Committee on Human Rights of the
British Parliament entitled “Redressing the Democratic Deficit in
Human Rights – how to enhance Parliament’s role in relation to human
rights” (London, 17-18 April 2012).
2.5.4 Committee on Social
Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
19. On 27 January 2012, the Bureau authorised an Ad hoc
Sub-Committee, to be set up by the Committee on Social Affairs,
Health and Sustainable Development, to participate at the 6th World
Water Forum, 12-17 March 2012 in Marseille and invited the Chairperson
of the Committee to proceed accordingly;
2.5.5 Committee on Rules
of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs
20. On 8 March 2012, the Bureau approved the proposals
contained in the document “Participation of members in Parliamentary
Assembly plenary sessions and committee meetings” [AS/Pro (2012)
02] and, in particular:
- authorised
the President to write to the delegation chairpersons and the speakers
of the parliaments concerned by low participation;
- decided to publish statistics relating to the participation
of national delegations on the Assembly’s website;
- invited the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities
and Institutional Affairs to carry out a study among the delegations
concerning the expectations of national parliaments as regards the
Assembly’s work and activities, as well as a study on the impact
of adopted texts on the work of parliaments and national governments
in the framework of its report on evaluation of the implementation
of the reform of the Parliamentary Assembly.
2.6 References and
transmissions to committees
2.6.1 References approved
by the Bureau
21. During the reference period, the Bureau approved
the following references, which were subsequently ratified by the
Standing Committee:
- Doc. 12842, Motion
for a recommendation, Accountability
of international institutions for human rights violations,
to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for report
- Doc. 12843,
Motion for a recommendation, The European Convention on Human Rights:
reinforcement and consolidation of the training of judges, law enforcement
officials and lawyers, to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human
Rights for report
- Doc. 12844,
Motion for a resolution, Abuse of pre-trial detention in States
Parties to the European Convention on Human Rights, to the Committee
on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for report
- Doc. 12850,
Motion for a resolution, The need to amend Article 27 of the Rules
of Procedure of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
so as to establish German, Italian and Russian which have hitherto
been working languages, as official languages of the Assembly, to
the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional
Affairs for information
2.6.2 Requests for modification
of references following the Reform of the Assembly
22. Under the terms of
Resolution 1842 (2011) (regularisation
of the so called “standing references”), the following references
were transferred:
i to the Committee
on Political Affairs and Democracy
for
report
- The situation
in Belarus
- The situation in Cyprus: Rapporteur: Mr Hörster (already
appointed by the committee)
- The situation in the Middle East : Rapporteur: Mr Vrettos
(already appointed by the committee)
- The situation in KosovoNote :
Rapporteur: Mr von Sydow (already appointed by the committee)
- The activities of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation
and Development (OECD) in 2011-2012: Rapporteur: Mr Bockel (already
appointed by the committee)
- The activities of the European Bank for Reconstruction
and Development (EBRD): Rapporteur: Mr Elzinga (already appointed
by the committee)
ii to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights
for report
- The implementation of judgments of the European Court
of Human Rights: Rapporteur: Mr de Vries (already appointed by the
committee)
- The situation of human rights defenders in Council of
Europe member states: Rapporteur: Ms Reps (already appointed by
the committee)
2.6.3 Requests for extension
of references
23. The Bureau approved the extension of the following
references:
- Doc 12061, Motion
for a Resolution, Families' freedom of
choice in education in each member State, Committee
on Culture, Science, Education and Media until 31 October 2012;
- Doc 11886,
Motion for a Resolution, The ethics of science Committee on Culture,
Science, Education and Media, until 31 December 2012;
- Doc 12228,
Motion for a Resolution, European cultural
and educational policies through national parliaments,
Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media, until 31 December
2012;
- Doc 12256,
Motion for a Recommendation Young Europeans: an urgent educational
challenge, Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media, until
31 December 2012
2.7 Communications
24. The Bureau took note of communications by the President,
the Secretary General and the Deputy Secretary General of the Council
of Europe, as well as by the Secretary General of the Parliamentary
Assembly at its meeting on 8 March.
2.8 European Committee
for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment
or Punishment (CPT)
25. On 27 January 2012, the Bureau endorsed the recommendation
of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights and decided to
transmit the lists of candidates for the CPT in respect of Latvia
and Montenegro to the Committee of Ministers.
2.9 Youth Assembly
2012
26. On 27 January 2012, the Bureau approved the holding
of the Youth Assembly 2012 on 5-7 October 2012 and took note of
a memorandum prepared by the Secretariat on the instructions of
the President of the Assembly.
2.10 World Forum on
Democracy (5-11 October 2012)
27. On 8 March 2012, the Bureau constituted an ad hoc
committee to participate in the Forum composed of up to 20 members
of the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy, as well as
up to 5 members of each of the following committees: Committee on
Legal Affairs and Human Rights; Committee on Social Affairs, Health
and Sustainable Development; Committee on Migration, Refugees and
Displaced Persons; Committee on Culture, Science, Education and
Media; Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination.
28. Furthermore, the Bureau took note that the President of the
Assembly would participate in the opening of the Forum and that
members of the Assembly would be involved in the thematic workshops
and debates.
2.11 Composition of
the Monitoring Committee and the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities
and Institutional Affairs
2.11.1 Monitoring Committee:
29. On 27 January 2012, the Bureau nominated members
of this committee, which were subsequently ratified by the Standing
Committee: on the basis of proposals by the political groups, the
Bureau nominated Mr Ghiletchi (EPP/CD) to replace Mr Mignon (EPP/CD),
Mr Schennach (SOC) to replace Mr Strässer (SOC); Mr Chaloupka (EDG),
Mr Lebedev (EDG), and Baroness Nicholson (ALDE), for vacant seats.
30. On 8 March 2012, the Bureau nominated Ms Schuster (Germany,
ALDE), Ms Maury Pasquier (Switzerland, SOC) and Mr Pochinok (Russian
Federation, EDG) to fill vacant seats. These nominations were subsequently
ratified by the Standing Committee.
2.11.2 Committee on Rules
of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs:
31. On 27 January 2012, on the basis of proposals by
the political groups, the Bureau nominated Mr Mahoux (SOC) for a
vacant seat and Mr Leyden (ALDE) and Ms Naghdalyan (ALDE) for vacant
seats. These nominations were subsequently ratified by the Standing
Committee.
2.12 Meetings elsewhere
than in Strasbourg and Paris
32. On 27 January 2012, the Bureau authorised the following
meetings to be held elsewhere than in Strasbourg and Paris;
- Sub-Committee on the Europe
Prize (of the Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development),
29 March 2012, Berlin;
- Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons,
29-30 March 2012, Brussels;
- Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media, 29
May 2012, Romania.
2.13 Appointment of
Assembly representatives for official activities
33. During the reference period, the Bureau approved
the appointment of the following members to represent the Assembly
at official events:
- Mr Gardetto
(Monaco, EPP/CD), Joint 79th Rose-Roth and Special Mediterranean
Group Seminar, 11-13 April 2012, Marseille (France).
- Mr Connarty (United Kingdom, SOC), International Session
of the European Youth Parliament, Istanbul (Turkey), 23 March –
1 April 2012;
- Ms Acketoft (Sweden, ALDE), Conference on “Combating discrimination
on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity across Europe:
Sharing knowledge and moving forward”, Strasbourg, 27 March 2012;
- Mr Mota Amaral (Portugal, EPP/CD), North-South Prize Ceremony
of the Council of Europe, Lisbon, 27 March 2012 (at no cost for
the Assembly).
2.14 Institutional representation
of the Parliamentary Assembly in 2012
34. The Bureau appointed the following Assembly representatives:
i European
Commission for Democracy through Law – Venice Commission: Mr Çavuşoğlu
(EDG) appointed by the President, Mr Holovaty (ALDE, Committee on
Legal Affairs and Human Rights); and as substitute Mr Mahoux (SOC,
Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights);
ii Council for Democratic Elections (of
the Venice Commission): Ms Durrieu (SOC, Committee on
Political Affairs and Democracy), Mr Gross (SOC, Committee on Legal
Affairs and Human Rights) and Mrs Woldseth (EDG, Monitoring Committee)
and as a substitute: Ms de Pourbaix-Lundin (EPP/CD, Monitoring Committee);
iii European Centre for Global
Interdependence and Solidarity – North-South
Centre: Sir Roger Gale (EDG, Committee on Culture, Science,
Education and Media) and Ms Blondin (SOC, Committee on Social Affairs,
Health and Sustainable Development) and as a substitute: Mr Costa
Neves (EPP/CD, Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media);
iv European Commission against
Racism and Intolerance (ECRI): Ms Huovinen (SOC, Committee
on Political Affairs and Democracy), Mr Cilevičs (SOC, Committee
on Equality and Non-discrimination) and Mr Schneider (EPP/CD, Committee
on Culture, Science, Education and Media) and as substitutes Ms Postanjyan
(EPP/CD, Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media) and
Mr Hancock (ALDE, Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy);
v Steering Board of the Forum
for the Future of Democracy: Chairperson of the Committee
on Political Affairs and Democracy or the Chairperson or a member
of the Ad Hoc Committee (according to availability);
vi Group of States against Corruption
– GRECO: Mr Heald (EDG, Committee on Legal Affairs and
Human Rights) and as substitute Ms de Pourbaix-Lundin (EPP/CD, Committee
on Legal Affairs and Human Rights) ;
vii European Commission for the
Efficiency of Justice – CEPEJ:
Mr Gaudy Nagy (NR, Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights);
viii Council of Europe Committee
for Works of Art: Ms Marland-Militello (EPP/CD, Committee
on Culture, Science, Education and Media) and Mr Lidell-Grainger
(EDG, Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media).
2.15 Other business
35. During the reference period, the Bureau approved
a statement on the situation in Syria and a “Declaration for International
Women’s Day 2012: democracy and gender equality one and the same
struggle”.
3 Activities of the
Standing Committee (Paris, 9 March 2012)
36. On 9 March 2012, the Standing Committee held a current
affairs debate on “The deterioration of the situation of imprisoned
politicians in Ukraine” with Mr Volontè as the introductory speaker
and adopted a statement on this subject. It also adopted a statement
on the situation in Syria.
37. On 9 March 2012, the Standing Committee held an exchange of
views with Mr Etienne Apaire, President of the Council of Europe
Co-operation Group to Combat Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking
in Drugs (Pompidou Group).
38. Following debates, the Standing Committee adopted, on behalf
of the Assembly, the texts appearing in the attached list (Appendix
II), which are available on the Assembly website. It ratified the
references as listed in paragraph 21of this report.
39. It ratified the credentials of new members of the Assembly
submitted by the delegations of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,
Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, the Russian Federation
and Spain, and approved the changes in the composition of Assembly
committees (as contained in paragraphs 29-30).
40. The Standing Committee ratified the terms of reference of
five general rapporteurs listed in paragraph 5 of this report.
41. The Standing Committee took note of the report of the Ad hoc
Committee of the Bureau on “Observation of the early parliamentary
elections in Kazakhstan (15 January 2012)”.
4 Decisions of the
Bureau requiring ratification by the Assembly
4.1 Dates of Assembly
part-sessions (2014-2016)
42. On 8 March 2012, the Bureau approved the memorandum
prepared by the Secretariat of the Assembly and approved the following
dates:
- 2014:
27-31 January; 7-11 April; 23-27 June; 29 September – 3 October
- 2015: 26-30 January;
20-24 April; 22-26 June; 28 September – 2 October
- 2016: 25-29 January;
18-22 April; 20-24 June; 3-7 October
43. The Assembly is now requested to ratify these dates.
Appendix 1 – Terms of reference
of General Rapporteurs
1. Committee on Equality
and Non-Discrimination
1.1. General
Rapporteur on violence against women
In pursuance of Rule 49.7 of the Rules of Procedure, "Committees
may appoint one or more general rapporteurs whose terms of reference
and term of office they shall determine beforehand. The terms of reference
shall be submitted to the Bureau for approval and its decision shall
be subject to ratification by the Assembly",
the Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination decided,
at its meeting of 24 January 2011, to adopt the following terms
of reference:
Denomination: general
rapporteur on violence against women
Term of office: one
year renewable, subject to a maximum of three years
Subject: it is the
duty of the general rapporteur on violence against women to intervene
in the area of violence against women, in all its different forms,
including domestic violence, particularly as regards the prevention
of violence against women, assistance to the victims, prosecution
of the perpetrators and integrated policies.
Responsibilities: the
general rapporteur will contribute to raising awareness on the phenomenon
of violence against women, following relevant developments in Council
of Europe member states and promoting the Council of Europe Convention
on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic
violence. He or she shall report periodically to the committee on
the information collected and the action taken.
The general rapporteur on violence against women will also
ensure the political co-ordination of the PACE Network of contact
parliamentarians committed to combating violence against women.
In addition, the role of the general rapporteur on violence
against women is to:
- follow
activities and maintain working relations with relevant Council
of Europe intergovernmental bodies dealing with violence against
women, including those which may be set up in the context of the;
- follow activities and maintain working relations with
external bodies and institutions active in the same area, be they
governmental or non-governmental organisations;
- represent the committee on behalf of the Assembly vis-à-vis
the Committee of the Parties of the Council of Europe Convention
on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic
violence, once it is set up;
- follow up Assembly Resolution 1635 and Recommendation
1847 (2008) on Combating violence against women; Resolution 1852
(2011) on Psychological violence; Resolution 1853 (2011) on Protection
orders for victims of domestic violence and Resolution 1861 (2012)
on Promoting the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and
combating violence against women and domestic violence.
1.2. General
rapporteur on the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender
people (LGBTs)
In pursuance of Rule 49.7 of the Rules of Procedure, "Committees
may appoint one or more general rapporteurs whose terms of reference
and term of office they shall determine beforehand. The terms of reference
shall be submitted to the Bureau for approval and its decision shall
be subject to ratification by the Assembly", the Committee on Equality
and Non-Discrimination decided, at its meeting of 26 January 2012,
to adopt the following terms of reference:
Denomination: general
rapporteur on the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender
people (LGBTs)
Term of office: one
year renewable, subject to a maximum of three years
Subject: it is the
duty of the general rapporteur on LGBT rights to intervene in the
area of the protection and the promotion of the rights of LGBT people,
particularly on issues related to discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation
and gender identity. He or she shall report periodically to the
committee on the information collected and the action taken.
Responsibilities:
The role of the general rapporteur is to:
- follow activities and maintain
working relations with the Office of the Council of Europe Commissioner on
Human Rights, the Committee of Ministers and the European Court
of Human Rights;
- follow activities and maintain working relations with
national parliaments, the European Parliament, the Office of the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Fundamental
Rights Agency and the European Commission;
- follow up on relevant resolutions and recommendations
of the Parliamentary Assembly, such as Resolution 1728 and Recommendation
1915 (2010) on “Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and
gender identity”, Recommendation 1635 (2003) on “Lesbians and gays
in sport”, Recommendation 1470 (2000) on “Situation of gays and
lesbians and their partners in respect of asylum and immigration in
the member states of the Council of Europe”, Recommendation 1474
(2000) on the “Situation of lesbians and gays in Council of Europe
member states”, also taking into consideration Recommendation (2010)5
of the Committee of Ministers to member states on measures to combat
discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity.
2. Committee
on Culture, Science, Education and Media
2.1. General
Rapporteur on Science and Technology Impact Assessment
In pursuance of Rule 49.7 of the Rules of Procedure, "Committees
may appoint one or more general rapporteurs whose terms of reference
and term of office they shall determine beforehand. The terms of reference
shall be submitted to the Bureau for approval and its decision shall
be subject to ratification by the Assembly", the Committee on Culture,
Science, Education and Mediadecided,
at its meeting of 23 January 2012, to adopt the following terms
of reference:
Denomination: general
rapporteur on Science and Technology Impact Assessment
Term of office: one
year renewable, subject to a maximum of three yearsNote
Subject: it is the
duty of the general rapporteur on Science and Technology Impact
Assessment to consider and intervene on issues relating to the ethics
of scientific and technological developments as well as to the impact
of such developments. He or she shall report periodically to the
committee on the information collected and the action taken.
Responsibilities:
The role of the general rapporteur is to:
- follow activities of other Assembly
committees and liaise with rapporteurs dealing with scientific and technological
matters from other perspectives such as their social, economic,
health and environmental impact;
- represent the committee on behalf of the Assembly vis-à-vis
the Committee on Bioethics (DH-BIO);
- follow activities and maintain working relations with
the European Parliamentary Technology Assessment (EPTA) Network,
seeking to give visibility to the work of the Assembly, and advise
the Committee on emerging issues and relevant work of the EPTA partners;
- follow activities and maintain working relations with
national parliaments as well as with relevant international, intergovernmental,
inter-parliamentary or other organisations Note;
- follow up and promote relevant Assembly resolutions and
recommendations in its domain of work.
3. Committee
on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
3.1. General
Rapporteur on Children
Denomination: general
rapporteur on children
Term of office: one
year renewable, subject to a maximum of three years
Subject:: It is the
duty of the general rapporteur on children to intervene in the area
of children’s rights, particularly concerning issues of child protection,
child development and child participation in different contexts (educational
institutions, family, leisure, others). He or she shall report periodically
to the committee on the information collected and the action taken.
Responsibilities:
The role of the general rapporteur is to:
- systematically follow activities
and maintain working relations with the Children’s Rights Division
and the expert and advisory groups coordinated by it, as well as
with the Thematic Rapporteur on Children (TC-Enf) of the Committee
of Ministers,
- follow activities related to children’s rights undertaken
by bodies of the intergovernmental sector, by the Congress of Local
and Regional Authorities, or by the Commissioner of Human Rights,
- follow activities and maintain working relations with
bodies and agencies of the United Nations (Unicef in particular)
and the European Commission and Parliament, with the Interparliamentary
Union, and with the international non-governmental organisations
working in this field (Save the Children, ECPAT and others),
- represent the committee on behalf of the Assembly vis-à-vis
any of the above mentioned expert and advisory groups if appropriate,
as well as the Committee of the Parties of the Council of Europe Convention
on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual
Abuse (Lanzarote Convention),
- in particular follow up Resolution 1762 (2010) and Recommendation
1939 (2010) on Children without parental care: urgent need for action,
Recommendation 1934 (2010) on Child abuse in institutions: ensuring
full protection of the victims, and 1980 (2011) and Recommendation
1834 (2011) on Combating “child abuse images” through committed,
transversal and internationally co-ordinated action, andcontinue topromote
the Assembly's decisions which appear in these texts.
3.2. General
Rapporteur on Local and Regional Authorities
Denomination: general
rapporteur on local and regional authorities
Term of office: one
year renewable, subject to a maximum of three years
Subject:: It is the
duty of the general rapporteur on local and regional authorities
to intervene in the area of local and regional democracy, particularly
concerning issues of good governance at local and regional level, citizen
participation, local and regional finances and human rights at local
level. He or she shall report periodically to the committee on the
information collected and the action taken.
Responsibilities:
The role of the general rapporteur is to:
- systematically follow activities
and maintain working relations with the European Committee on Local and
Regional Democracy (CDLR), the Rapporteur Group on Democracy (GR-DEM),
and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities,
- follow activities by the European Commission and Parliament,
and where appropriate follow and maintain working relations with
European and national associations of local and regional authorities,
- represent the committee on behalf of the Assembly vis-à-vis
any of the above mentioned bodies where appropriate.
Appendix 2 – Texts adopted
by the Standing Committee (Paris, 9 March 2012)
On 9 March 2012, the Standing Committee adopted
the following texts:
|
Resolution 1865 (2012)
|
The Council of Europe
and the Eastern Partnership of the European Union
|
|
Resolution 1866 (2012)
Recommendation
1994 (2012)
|
An additional protocol
to the European Convention on Human Rights on national minorities
|
|
Resolution 1867(2012)
|
The situation of the
Greek citizens of Turkish descent in Rhodes and Kos
|
|
Resolution 1868 (2012)
Recommendation
1995 (2012)
|
International Convention
for the Protection of all Persons from Enforced Disappearance
|
|
Resolution 1869 (2012)
|
The environmental impact
of sunken shipwrecks
|
|
Resolution 1870 (2012)
|
The need for independent
and credible expert assessments
|
|
Resolution 1871 (2012)
|
Self-evaluation by Europe’s
national parliaments: procedural guidelines to improve the quality
of parliamentary work
|
Appendix 3 - Guidelines for
the observation of elections by the Parliamentary Assembly
Bearing in mind the objectives and the political
nature of the Parliamentary Assembly’s observation missions as well
as the problems deriving from the past co-operation arrangements
with other international institutions, the following guidelines
were adopted by the Bureau of the Assembly on 24 May 2004 and updated
by the Bureau on 7 October 2005, 16 November 2006, 23 May 2007,
8 October 2010 and 27 January 2012.
A. Elections
to be observed
1. For the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of
Europe, the observation of elections plays an important role in
the assessment of the overall political situation of the country
in question. In practical terms this entails the systematic observation
of elections in any state whose parliament has requested or enjoys
special guest status, partner for democracy status, which has applied
for membership, or is subject to the monitoring procedure.
2. Observation of parliamentaryand
presidential elections as well as of referenda in an applicant State
or a State under the monitoring procedure should be aninalienable right of the Assembly.
A State’s lack of cooperation with the Assembly, itsrefusal to accept an election observation
mission from the Assembly should give rise to a debate at the part-session
or Standing Committee meeting following the elections in question.
It may result in sanctions, such asa
freezing of the application procedure or the challenge of the credentials
of the national delegation concerned on the basis of Rule 8.2.b.(lack
of cooperation under the Assembly’s monitoring procedure).
3. The Bureau may also decide to observe parliamentary and/or
presidential elections, as well as referenda, in a State that is
subject to the post-monitoring dialogue.
4. The observation of regional and local elections is the responsibility
ofthe Congress of Local and
Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe (the Congress). If
the Assembly receives an invitation to observe such elections and
the Bureau decides to observe them, the Assembly ad hoc committee
shall cooperate with the election observation mission the Congress
may deploy. A report on these elections by the Congress, sent to the
President, should be referred, on a Bureau’s proposal, to the Monitoring
Committee.
5. The Bureau of the Assembly may decide to observe elections
in other States when exceptional circumstances have been brought
to its attention.
B. Elections
as a process
1. In conducting election observations, the Assembly
shall proceed from the understanding that an election is not a one-off
exercise, but rather a continuous process involving several stages,
all of which need to be analysed in order to assess an election.
The timeline, below, based on various Venice Commission documents, shall
serve as an aid in the assessment process.
2. The process starts with the elaboration of electoral legislation.
The quality of that legislation is a major, although not the unique
criterion to assess an election.
3. Electoral legislation should not be subject to constant change.
According to Venice Commission recommendations, “the fundamental
elements of electoral law…should not be open to amendment less than one
year ahead of an election, or should be written in a constitution
or at a level higher than ordinary law.”
Note In certain
circumstances, exceptions to the one year rule could be accepted,
namely where there is a need to rectify, through legislation, unforeseen
problems or to provide redress to violations of internationally
recognised rights where they had been built into the electoral law.
4. The second stage starts with the date when an election is
called. That date, in normal circumstances involving regular elections,
should be reasonably distant from the voting day to allow all political
stakeholders to prepare for an electoral contest.
5. The third stage starts with the opening of the electoral campaign.
6. The fourth stage is the voting day proper, and the vote counting.
7. The next stage is the declaration of results of an election,
followed by a complaints period stage.
C. Regarding
observation and co-operation in the field
1. Considering the role played by OSCE/ODIHR in the
field, the Assembly should stress the political objectives of its
participation in the observation process: full respect of Council
of Europe values and standards. This should be possible thanks to
the Assembly’s comparative assets such as the high political level
of its delegations and the experience of its members.
2. Practical assistance to Assembly delegations to observe the
elections, particularly the organisation of the programme for the
observation mission, should be provided by the national parliament,
in order to supplement properly the programme for short-term observers
organised by OSCE/ODIHR.
3. Co-operation with OSCE/ODIHR and other international organisations
will be continuous during the observation process in order to ensure,
in so far as possible, that assessments of the elections do not
differ. However, if, after the election, a joint final assessment
cannot be achieved in the framework of the IEOM, the Assembly’s
ad hoc committee reserves itself the right, to hold -if necessary-
its own press conference and issue a separate press releasecontaining its own assessment.
In this respect, it is essential that the Assembly’s ad hoc committee,
when organising briefings, invites the OSCE/ODIHR. Reciprocity is
expected in briefings organised by OSCE/ODIHR.
4. Members of the ad hoc committee will refrain from engaging
in public statements or press conferences which could contradict
or conflict with the final assessment made by the ad hoc committee.
D. Regarding
the practical organisation of the observation
1. On the basis of past experience, the following rules
will be applied:
i the Assembly
will observe elections mentioned in Section A above (any refusal
to send an invitation will constitute an evaluation criterion in
itself);
ii the Assembly observers will receive accreditation from
the Central Electoral Commission; the national parliament concerned
will be responsible for facilitating the issuing of this accreditation;
iii the ad hoc Committees will cover a geographical area of
the country which is as wide as possible when observing elections.
Members of the ad hoc Committee must be ready to accept deployment
beyond the capital city of the country in which the elections are
observed;
iv the membership of ad hoc committees for elections will
vary between 5 and 40 members and include any already appointed
rapporteurs of the Political Affairs Committee, Committee on Legal
Affairs and Human Rights and the Monitoring Committee for the country
concerned; in special cases the Bureau can decide to increase this
number. The composition of the ad hoc committees is determined according
to an appointment system taking into account the numerical size
of the political groups on the understanding that each political
group should be represented;
v while rapporteurs for the monitoring of, or post-monitoring
dialogue with, a given country should be encouraged to join an ad
hoc committee to observe an election in that country, they should
not be appointed chairpersons thereof. This is to ensure a distinction
between election observation as such and monitoring and post-monitoring
dialogue in the context of which the findings of an ad hoc committee
are followed up;
vi the Chairmanship of the ad hoc committees shall rotate
between political groups to ensure, generally, an overall political
balance over a 12-month period;
vii a standard programme will be established for observation
missions: three days for political meetings (organised by the national
parliament), one day for the elections themselves (with cars, guides
and interpreters paid for by the Assembly), one day for evaluation/assessment
and the press conference;
viii where the Bureau deems it necessary, a pre-electoral and/or
a post-electoral 5-member cross-party mission may be dispatched;
ix to enhance the mission’s public profile, the ad hoc committees
will be referred to as “delegations” headed by a “leader of the
delegation” appointed by the Bureau;
x while every effort should be made to ensure a political
balance of ad hoc committees to observe elections, in the event
when some political groups fail to come up with candidates while
others put forward more candidacies than they are entitled to, the
principle of a political equilibrium may be foregone in the interests
of having a strong PACE presence during election observation. In
such circumstances, a notification by the Secretary General of the
Parliamentary Assembly will suffice;
xi political groups should bear it in mind that any appointment
to an ad hoc committee to observe elections should aim to ensure
the principle of gender balance of such a committee. Political groups
should endeavour to include, in the list of representatives appointed,
members of the under-represented sex in the same percentage as is
present in the group;
xii members of the ad hoc committees will abstain from engaging
in public activities which could interfere in the electoral process;
xiii political groups should bear it in mind that any appointment
to an ad hoc committee should respect fair geographical representation
and be based on the candidate’s express capability, language-wise,
to meaningfully participate in the work of the mission, in particular,
given that on the spot the Council of Europe only provides interpretation
to and from English or French. It should be pointed out that English is
the de facto working language of the OSCE/ODHIR election observation
mission;
xiv members of an ad hoc committee are encouraged to plan
their travel arrangement in a way that would allow them at least
to participate in the ad hoc committee debriefing on the morning
following the elections. It is understood that those members who
are unable to attend the debriefing in the capital because they
were deployed outside it may report their conclusions by phone;
xv members of the ad hoc committee should be aware that as
far as the funding of their participation in the work of the ad
hoc committee is concerned, Article 38 of the Statute of the Council
of Europe shall apply (“Each member shall
bear the expenses of its own representation in the Committee of
Ministers and in the Parliamentary Assembly”).
E. Conflict
of interest
1. All candidates for membership of an ad hoc committee,
at the time of putting forward their candidacy, shall make a written
declaration of any actual or potential economic, commercial, financial
or other interests on a professional, personal or family level in
connection with the country concerned by the election observation. They
shall also declare any substantial gift or benefit in kind, including
payment of travel costs, received from the country concerned.
2. Such declarations shall be made available to the Bureau when
it approves the composition of an ad hoc committee.
3. Provisions stipulated in the Code of Conduct for rapporteurs
of the Parliamentary Assembly (Resolution 1799 (2011)) shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to chairpersons
and members of ad hoc committees;
4. The Bureau shall consider any behaviour allegedly in breach
of paragraphs 18 and 20 above.
F. Form
of Election Observation by PACE
1. The observation of elections by PACE can take place
in one of the following three forms upon decision of the Bureau.
i Election
Observation Missions. These take the form of an ad hoc
Committee set up for this purpose. The size may vary from 5 to 40
members, Committees are composed on the basis of proposals by the Political
Groups taking into account the D’Hondt rule. The Chairperson of
the ad hoc Committee is appointed by the Bureau of the Assembly.
Chairmanship rotates between political groups. PACE Election Observation
Missions issue a statement of their findings immediately following
the elections, where applicable in the framework of an IEOM. The
Chairperson of the ad hoc Committee drafts a report on the Election
Observation Missions which is submitted to the Bureau and subsequently
to the Assembly as part of the progress report of the Bureau. A
pre-electoral mission shall be conducted following a Bureau’s decision.
ii Election Assessment Missions.
These take the form of an ad hoc Committee specifically set up for
this purpose. Election Assessment Missions are normally composed
of five members, but never less than three members, in order to
guarantee a minimum political and geographical balance of the ad
hoc Committee. The Chairperson of the ad hoc Committee is appointed
by the Bureau. Chairmanship rotates between political groups. The
ad hoc Committee will report its findings in the form of a memorandum
by its Chairperson to the Bureau. No pre-electoral mission will
be conducted.
iii Presence on the Occasion of
Election of Assembly members during and/or just before
an election without a formal observation or assessment of it. Accordingly,
the Bureau does not set up an ad hoc Committee but decides on the
dates of the mission. These missions are normally composed of the country
rapporteur(s) of the Monitoring or Political Affairs Committee.
In exceptional cases, the Bureau can appoint one of its members
to participate in these missions. This mission will report their
findings in the form of a memorandum to the Bureau.
2. Election Observation Missions for which less than five members
are identified shall be considered as Election Assessment Missions.
In the event that three members cannot be identified for an assessment mission,
the mission shall be cancelled. Time allowing, the possibility of
ensuring a presence could then be considered by the Bureau of the
Assembly.
