Countering ill democracies in Europe

Motion for a resolution | Doc. 14823 | 25 January 2019

Signatories:

Ms Petra De SUTTER, Belgium, SOC ; Ms Boriana ÅBERG, Sweden, EPP/CD ; Lord Donald ANDERSON, United Kingdom, SOC ; Mr Goran BEUS RICHEMBERGH, Croatia, ALDE ; Ms Maryvonne BLONDIN, France, SOC ; Ms Maria Elena BOSCHI, Italy, SOC ; Ms Klotilda BUSHKA, Albania, SOC ; Mr Algirdas BUTKEVIČIUS, Lithuania, SOC ; Mr Ahmet Ünal ÇEVİKÖZ, Turkey, SOC ; Ms Tamar CHUGOSHVILI, Georgia, SOC ; Mr Vernon COAKER, United Kingdom, SOC ; Mr Constantinos EFSTATHIOU, Cyprus, SOC ; Mr Yunus EMRE, Turkey, SOC ; Mr Piero FASSINO, Italy, SOC ; Lord George FOULKES, United Kingdom, SOC ; Ms Sabina GLASOVAC, Croatia, SOC ; Ms Zita GURMAI, Hungary, SOC ; Mr Domagoj HAJDUKOVIĆ, Croatia, SOC ; Ms Gabriela HEINRICH, Germany, SOC ; Ms Gyde JENSEN, Germany, ALDE ; Mr Mogens JENSEN, Denmark, SOC ; Mr Haluk KOÇ, Turkey, SOC ; Mr Christophe LACROIX, Belgium, SOC ; Mr Miroslav NENUTIL, Czech Republic, SOC ; Mr Joseph O'REILLY, Ireland, EPP/CD ; Ms Carina OHLSSON, Sweden, SOC ; Mr Andrea ORLANDO, Italy, SOC ; Mr Roberto RAMPI, Italy, SOC ; Ms Azadeh ROJHAN GUSTAFSSON, Sweden, SOC ; Ms Selin SAYEK BÖKE, Turkey, SOC ; Mr Axel SCHÄFER, Germany, SOC ; Mr Predrag SEKULIĆ, Montenegro, SOC ; Mr Virendra SHARMA, United Kingdom, SOC ; Ms Petra STIENEN, Netherlands, ALDE ; Ms Tineke STRIK, Netherlands, SOC ; Lord Don TOUHIG, United Kingdom, SOC ; Mr Mart van de VEN, Netherlands, ALDE ; Mr Martin WHITFIELD, United Kingdom, SOC

This motion has not been discussed in the Assembly and commits only those who have signed it.

Ill democracies are on the rise in the Council of Europe region. These are countries in which the government, through abusing its majority, manipulates legislative norms and impedes the functioning of democratic institutions, and threatens the independence of democratic pillars.

Ill democracies follow a path of eroding human rights and undermining the rule of law and the balance of powers. The afore-mentioned trends are not restricted to so called new democracies but can potentially affect any Council of Europe member State. The monitoring and post-monitoring procedures efficiently address these issues in a number of countries but it is also important to develop a set of clear norms and criteria to counter negative practices currently spreading across Europe.

In order to protect the human rights and the rule of law in the member States, the Parliamentary Assembly should resolve to carefully investigate these trends and propose recommendations and practical measures to counter the above-mentioned problems by all the competent bodies of the Council of Europe and the member States.