Activities of the Assembly’s Bureau and Standing Committee (24 September 2021)
Progress report
| Doc. 15375 Add. 1
| 25 September 2021
1 Decisions of
the Bureau of 24 September 2021 requiring ratification by the Assembly
1.1 References and
transmissions to committees
The Bureau considered and approved the following references:
1.1.1 References and
transmissions to committees
- Doc. 15328, Motion for a resolution, Implementation of Recommendation
No. R(2000)13 of the Committee of Ministers and the access of “Trophy”
archives of the Russian Federation: transmission to the Committee
on Culture, Science, Education and Media for information
- Doc. 15329, Motion for a resolution, The role of political parties
in fostering diversity and inclusion: a new Charter for a non-racist
society: reference to the
Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination for report and
to the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy for opinion
- Doc. 15330, Motion for a resolution, Towards a transparency register
within the Parliamentary Assembly: reference
to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for report
- Doc. 15331, Motion for a resolution, Cases of torture and inhumane
treatments in Azerbaijani prisons: reference
to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for report
- Doc. 15332, Motion for a resolution, The need for renewed, effective
and inclusive multilateralism: reference
to the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy for report
- Doc. 15333, Motion for a resolution, Call for Famagusta’s return
to its lawful inhabitants: reference
to the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy for report
- Doc. 15334, Motion for a resolution, The ongoing worsening of the
access of Ukraine’s national minorities to education in their mother
tongues: need for a follow-up to Parliamentary Assembly Resolution 2189 (2017) and Doc. 15339, Motion for a resolution, Violation of the rights of
national minorities in Ukraine: reference
to the Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination for a single report
- Doc. 15335, Motion for a resolution, Integration of migrants and
refugees: benefits for all parties involved: reference
to the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons for report
- Doc. 15336, Motion for a resolution, European Convention on Human
Rights and national constitutions: reference
to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for report
- Doc. 15337, Motion for a resolution, The challenge of far-right
ideology to democracy and human rights in Europe: reference to the Committee on
Political Affairs and Democracy for report
- Doc. 15361, Motion for a resolution, Preventing vaccine discrimination:
reference to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for report and to the Committee
on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development for opinion
- Doc. 15373, Motion for a recommendation, Pegasus and similar spyware
and secret state surveillance: reference to the Committee on Legal
Affairs and Human Rights for report
- Doc. 15374, Motion for a resolution, Supporting a European perspective
for the Western Balkans: reference to the Committee on Political
Affairs and Democracy for report
- Doc. 15289, Motion for a resolution, Transnational repression as
a growing threat to the rule of law and human rights: reference to the Committee on
Legal Affairs and Human Rights for report
1.2 Election observation
1.2.1 Kyrgyzstan: parliamentary
elections (28 November 2021)
The Bureau decided to observe these elections and to set up
an ad hoc committee composed of 11 members (SOC-3; EPP/CD-3; EC/DA-2;
ALDE-2; UEL-1).
1.3 Election of judges
to the European Court of Human Rights
The Bureau took note of the report drawn up by the Committee
on the Election of Judges concerning the lists of candidates for
the posts of judges to the Court in respect of the Czech Republic,
the Republic of Moldova, the Russian Federation and Ukraine, including
its recommendation to reject the list in respect of Ukraine, subject
to ratification by the Assembly in the progress report (Doc. 15375 Addendum 2).
The Assembly is invited to ratify
these Bureau decisions.
2 Other decisions
by the Bureau
2.1 Fourth part-session
of 2021 (Strasbourg, 27-30 September)
2.1.1 Requests for
debates under urgent procedure
The Bureau took note of the following requests to hold debates
on:
- Draft
Second Additional Protocol to the Convention on Cybercrime on enhanced
co-operation and disclosure of electronic evidence, tabled
by the five political groups, and recalled its decision taken at the
meeting on 6 September, to recommend to the Assembly to hold this
debate and to refer the matter to the Committee on Legal Affairs
and Human Rights.
- The situation in Afghanistan:
consequences for Europe and the region, tabled by the
five political groups, and decided to recommend to the Assembly
to hold this debate and to refer the matter to the Committee on
Political Affairs and Democracy.
- Increased migration pressure
on the borders of Latvia, Lithuania and Poland with Belarus,
tabled by Mr Arkadiusz Mularczyk and 23 members of the Assembly,
and decided to recommend to the Assembly to hold this debate and
to refer the matter to the Committee on Migration, Refugees and
Displaced Persons.
2.1.2 Requests for
current affairs debates
The Bureau took note of the following requests to hold debates
on:
- The
Western Balkans between democratic challenges and European aspirations:
what role for the Council of Europe?, tabled by the five
political groups, decided to recommend to the Assembly to hold this
debate and to appoint Mr George Papandreou (Greece, SOC) as first
speaker in the debate.
- Political persecution of indigenous
peoples in Crimea by Russia, tabled by the Ukrainian
delegation, and decided to recommend to the Assembly not to hold
this debate.
- The European Court of Human
Rights judgment in Carter v. Russia and the actions taken to murder individuals
on European soil, tabled by the delegation of the United
Kingdom and took note of the withdrawal of this request.
2.1.3 Draft agenda
The Bureau updated the draft agenda. Taking into account the
agenda of the fourth part-session as well as the high number of
registered speakers, the Bureau invited the rapporteurs of the Assembly
to shorten their speaking time in the Plenary to a total of 10 minutes
(7 minutes for the presentation of the report and 3 minutes for
the reply).
2.2 References and
transmissions to committees
2.2.1 Request for an
extension
The Bureau considered and approved the following extension
of a reference:
- Doc. 14382, Motion for a resolution, The continuing need to restore
human rights and the rule of law in the North Caucasus region, Reference
4333 of 13 October 2017 – validity: 30 September 2021: extension until 31 March 2022.
2.3 Progress report
of the Bureau of the Assembly and of the Standing Committee (21
June-22 September 2021) (Rapporteur: Mr Jacques Maire (France, ALDE))
The Bureau approved the Progress report (Doc.15375).
2.4 Elections observation
2.4.1 Morocco: parliamentary
elections (8 September 2021)
The Bureau took note of the statement by the observation mission.
2.4.2 Russian Federation:
parliamentary elections (19 September 2021)
The Bureau heard an oral statement by the Head of the election
assessment mission.
2.5 Communication
The Bureau took note of the communication by the President
of the Assembly, the Secretary General and the Deputy Secretary
General of the Council of Europe.
2.6 Assembly General
Rapporteurs: stock-taking
The Bureau took note of the memorandum prepared by the Secretary
General of the Assembly, approved its conclusions:
- to invite committees to ensure
that the terms of reference of General Rapporteurs correspond to
the committee’s general mandate and do not overlap with the terms
of reference of other existing General Rapporteur;
- to invite committees to ensure that the draft terms of
reference of General Rapporteurs are linked to the provisions of
the European Convention on Human Rights, to another Council of Europe
key convention, or have an institutional or intra-institutional
role, and that they clearly spell out the added value of setting up
such a function;
- to invite committees to ensure that General Rapporteurs
do not cumulate these functions with that of chairperson of the
committee or sub-committee, and to include the mandate of General
Rapporteur amongst the limit of five rapporteurships mandates per
Assembly member;
- to invite committees to set up no more than three General
Rapporteurships;
- to extend the terms of reference of the General Rapporteur
on the budget and the intergovernmental programme to four years,
to be in line with the four-year cycle of the Council of Europe
Programme and Budget;
- to invite committees to take note of the above criteria
defined in the memorandum, and to accordingly review the terms of
reference of their General Rapporteurs, in due course for the Bureau
to reconsider them in January 2022 and, from then, regularly every
second year in January.
2.7 Issues raised
by committees
2.7.1 Committee on
Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons
The Bureau considered the draft terms of reference of a General
Rapporteur on Missing refugee and migrant children
in Europe and agreed that it did not meet the criteria
defined in the memorandum on the Assembly General Rapporteurs approved
by the Bureau.
2.8 2021 Václav Havel
Human Rights Prize
The Bureau took note of the memorandum prepared by the Secretary
General of the Assembly; invited Bureau members to propose candidatures
for the vacant seat in the Selection Panel and to submit the names
and CVs of candidates, together with the justification of fulfilment
of the required condition (“recognised moral standing in the field
of human rights”) to the Secretary General of the Assembly by 15
December 2021, in view of the Bureau taking a decision on the appointment
during the January 2022 part-session.
2.9 Institutional
representation of the Parliamentary Assembly in 2021
The Bureau approved the appointment of Ms Maria-Gabriela Horga
(Romania, EPP/CD) as member to the Group of States against Corruption
(GRECO), as proposed by the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights.
2.10 Appointment of
Assembly representatives for official activities
The Bureau approved the appointment of Mr Simon Moutquin (Belgium,
SOC) to participate in the pre-Parliamentary meeting of the Inter-Parliamentary
Union (IPU) at the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference
(COP26), on 8-9 October 2021 in Rome.
2.11 Meetings elsewhere
than Strasbourg and Paris
The Bureau authorised:
- the
Sub-Committee on External Relations of the Committee on Political
Affairs and Democracy to meet in New-York, United States, in November/December
2021;
- the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy to meet
in Chania, Crete, Greece, on 19-20 May 2022.
