4.1 with respect to Albania: the
Assembly welcomes the continued progress in honouring its obligations
and commitments to the Council of Europe, especially with regard
to the reform of the justice system, including the vetting of all
judges and prosecutors, with a view to ensuring its independence
and efficacity. With regard to fighting the persistent corruption
and influence of organised crime in the country, the Assembly welcomes
the tangible results achieved by the Specialised Structure for Anti-Corruption
and Organised Crime, including with regard to high-level cases.
It is now important that these first tangible results become a non-reversible
trend. The removal of Albania from the so-called grey list of the
Financial Action Task Force is a significant development in this
regard. The Assembly regrets that, despite some improvement, the
political environment in Albania is still very polarised and fragmented, which
undermines parliamentary oversight and the proper functioning of
the system of checks and balances in the country. While recognising
Albania’s multicultural society and history of interreligious dialogue
and tolerance, the Assembly is concerned that, more than five years
after the adoption of the Law on the Protection of National Minorities
in the Republic of Albania three essential by-laws have not yet
been adopted, which impedes the implementation of this law and weakens
the protection of minorities in the country. The Assembly urges
the authorities to adopt without further delay these by-laws, which
should fully adhere to the requirements under the Framework Convention
for the Protection of National Minorities (ETS No. 157). In addition,
referring to its
Opinion
189 (1995), the Assembly calls on the Albanian authorities
to sign and ratify the European Charter for Regional or Minority
Languages (ETS No. 148);
4.2 with respect to Armenia: the Assembly commends the actions
of the authorities and the solidarity of the population in receiving
more than 100 000 refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh and calls on Council of
Europe member States to give their full support to Armenia to help
it tackle this enormous challenge. The Assembly welcomes the continuation
of democratic reforms and specifically the improvement of the electoral
framework. It calls on the authorities to strengthen media freedom
and independence, and to continue the reform of the judiciary and
the efforts to fight corruption. The Assembly urges both the majority
and the opposition to refrain from hate speech and stigmatisation,
and to contribute to the establishment of a genuine democratic culture
based on the recognition by political opponents of each other’s
legitimacy;
4.3 with respect to Azerbaijan: while welcoming the recent
reform of the Judicial Legal Council, the Assembly regrets that
the concerns with regard to the rule of law, pluralist democracy
and human rights remain unaddressed. It is seriously concerned about
the human rights situation in the country, in particular with regard
to the independence of the judiciary, freedom of expression, media
freedom and freedom of association. Allegations of politically motivated
arrests and detentions, as well as allegations of torture and ill-treatment
by law-enforcement officials and poor detention conditions, are
of concern in this context. Recalling
Resolution 2494 (2023), the Assembly
urges the authorities to fully and swiftly implement the judgments
of the European Court of Human Rights, in particular those revealing
structural or complex problems, some of which have not been resolved
for over ten years. It also invites the authorities to implement
without delay the outstanding recommendations of the European Commission for
Democracy through Law (Venice Commission), in particular those concerning
the legislative framework on political parties and media. As regards
the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, the Assembly reiterates its recommendations
included in
Resolution
2517 (2023) and
Resolution
2508 (2023). The Assembly is also monitoring the situation
concerning the Armenian prisoners of war, civilians and other captives,
as well as all detained representatives of Nagorno-Karabakh currently
held in Azerbaijan, and calls upon Azerbaijan to immediately release
all detainees;
4.4 with respect to Bosnia and Herzegovina: the Assembly welcomes
the swift formation of all levels of government following the last
elections. It also welcomes the adoption of important reforms in
spite of the persistence of serious challenges to the authority
and legitimacy of the State institutions. The Assembly reiterates
its call for constitutional and electoral reforms with the purpose
of eliminating discrimination based on ethnic affiliation, in line
with the requirements of the European Convention on Human Rights
(ETS No. 5). It considers that additional reforms are urgently needed
to improve the rule of law, the independence of the judiciary and
the fight against corruption. In this regard, the Assembly is deeply
concerned by recent steps taken at entity level that negatively
affect the freedom of journalists and freedom of association;
4.5 with respect to Georgia: the Assembly welcomes the continuing
reforms by the country to honour its accession commitments and membership
obligations to the Council of Europe. In that respect, it welcomes
the recent European Council decision to grant Georgia European Union
candidate status, which is a clear recognition of its long-standing
aspirations. The Assembly welcomes that Mr Levan Ioseliani, a former
member, was appointed as the new ombudsperson by the Georgian Parliament
on the basis of a consensus between the ruling majority and the
opposition. Nevertheless, it remains deeply concerned about the
continuing extreme polarisation of the political environment that
is permeating all levels of society. This is negatively affecting
the implementation of the reforms that are essential for the democratic
consolidation of the country. The Assembly urges the ruling majority,
as well as other political forces in Georgia, to refrain from any
action that could increase the tensions and polarisation in the country.
It reiterates its call in
Resolution
2438 (2022) for a holistic reform of the judiciary with
a view to ensuring its genuine independence and impartiality. In
that respect, it regrets that the recent changes to the Law on Common
Courts, despite implementing some improvements, do not reform the
High Council of Justice, whose functioning is a key obstacle to
the independence of the judiciary, and in the view of the Venice
Commission do not amount to a holistic reform in the sense intended
by the Assembly. The Assembly takes note of the urgent opinion of
the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization
for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE/ODIHR), requested
by the Georgian Ombudsperson, on the draft amendments to the Law
on Assemblies and Demonstrations and, in line with that opinion,
urges the Georgian authorities to withdraw the draft amendments.
The Assembly reiterates its full support for Georgia’s sovereignty
and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised
borders and deplores and condemns the recent killing of a Georgian
citizen by Russian occupation forces;
4.6 with respect to Hungary: with reference to
Resolution 2460 (2022),
the Assembly reiterates its call on the Hungarian authorities to
address the serious questions regarding the functioning of democratic
institutions in the country as a result of the cumulative effect
of measures that negatively affect the independence of the judiciary,
the situation of the media and the transparency and accountability
of State institutions. It takes note of the judicial reform, adopted
after consultation with the European Commission in May 2023, with
the objective of addressing some of these concerns. The Assembly
notes that the “state of danger” was further extended until 23 May
2024 and reiterates its position that the use of special legal orders
must be restricted to what is strictly necessary and proportionate
and must be limited in time. The Assembly calls on the Hungarian
Parliament to postpone the consideration of the legislative package
on “defence of sovereignty” until an opinion has been issued by
the Venice Commission and to fully address any of the commission’s
concerns and recommendations, both in letter and in spirit;
4.7 with respect to the Republic of Moldova: with reference
to
Resolution 2484 (2023),
the Assembly welcomes the commitment of the Moldovan authorities
to European integration and the programme of ambitious reforms,
especially with regard to the judiciary and the fight against corruption
and “State capture”. It reiterates its position that, in order to
ensure the necessary wide support for, and acceptance of, the reforms
by the Moldovan society, it is essential that these reforms be implemented,
and persons appointed, in accordance with legal provisions and Council
of Europe standards and based on an inclusive bipartisan consultation
process. The Assembly welcomes the conclusion of the pre-vetting process
for the Superior Council of Magistracy and the Superior Council
of Prosecutors and the decision to extend this procedure to all
judges and prosecutors in high-level positions. At the same time,
it urges the authorities to ensure that the principle of non-retroactivity
is reintroduced into the law that governs this procedure. The Assembly
takes note of the amendments to the electoral legislation that introduce the
possibility to ban, for five years, members of the executive body
and members who hold an elected office in political parties that
have been declared unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court.
It considers that such restrictions affect the right to stand for
elections as enshrined in Article 3 of Protocol No. 1 to the Convention
for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ETS
No. 9) and should therefore be very strictly limited to clearly
defined legal grounds, with the possibility of judicial review.
It urges the Moldovan authorities to fully address the Venice Commission
recommendations in this respect, well before the next elections
take place. In this context, the Assembly takes note of the conclusions
of the joint observation mission of the Congress of Local and Regional
Authorities of the Council of Europe, the OSCE/ODIHR and the European
Parliament for the first round of the local elections in the Republic
of Moldova on 5 November 2023, according to which interference from
abroad and restrictive measures imposed due to national security
concerns negatively affected the election process;
4.8 with respect to Poland: the Assembly continues to express
its concern with regard to the respect for the rule of law in the
country and the deep polarisation between the opposition and the
ruling majority, which has permeated many levels of Polish society
and is affecting the functioning of the democratic institutions.
The Assembly calls upon the Polish authorities to unconditionally
implement the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights in
the cases of
Xero Flor w Polsce sp. z
o.o. v. Poland (4907/18),
Reczkovicz
v. Poland (43447/19) and
Dolińska-Ficek
and Ozimek v. Poland (49868/19 and 57511/19). In this
respect, it reiterates its call for the reform of the National Council
of the Judiciary with the objective of re-establishing its independence
from the executive, the absence of which is undermining the legitimacy
of the judicial system in the country. The Assembly expresses its
concern about the adoption of the Law “On the State Commission to
investigate Russian Influence on the Internal Security of the Republic
of Poland in the period of 2007-2022” which, according to the Venice
Commission, is fundamentally flawed and could lead to serious violations
of human rights and rule of law standards and norms. The Assembly
notes that, while its members have been appointed, the State commission
is not yet functioning and urges the authorities to disband it and
abrogate this law without delay. The Assembly reiterates its position
expressed in
Resolution
2513 (2023) on the abuse of Pegasus spyware for political purposes
and urges the Polish authorities to address its recommendations
without delay;
4.9 with respect to Serbia: the Assembly welcomes the ongoing
reform aimed at depoliticising the judiciary and encourages the
authorities to adopt, according to a fixed time schedule, the secondary legislation
for its implementation, in line with the Venice Commission’s recommendations.
The Assembly also welcomes the progress in the implementation of
the recommendations of the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO)
concerning prevention of corruption in respect of members of parliament, judges
and prosecutors. It encourages the authorities to adopt an anti-corruption
strategy and address the deficiencies in corruption prevention among
persons with senior executive functions and the police. It urges
the authorities to take further measures to combat organised crime
and to show a genuine commitment to investigating and adjudicating
war crimes cases. The Assembly takes note that pre-term parliamentary
elections were called for 17 December 2023. In this respect, it
is concerned about the frequent organisation of early elections
at short intervals and urges the authorities to adopt further amendments
to the electoral legislation in order to address long-standing issues
identified by the Venice Commission and the OSCE/ODIHR. With regard
to freedom of expression, the Assembly remains concerned about attacks
and smear campaigns against independent journalists and media outlets, human
rights defenders and civil society activists, and in particular
about the increasing number of strategic lawsuits against public
participation (SLAPPs). The Assembly calls on the authorities to intensify
their efforts to combat all forms of violence against women. It
expects the Serbian authorities to continue the peaceful dialogue
with Kosovo
Note with
a view to solving all outstanding issues;
4.10 with respect to Türkiye: the Assembly reiterates its extreme
concern, expressed in
Resolution 2518
(2023), about the continued incarceration of Mr Osman
Kavala and exhorts the authorities to release him without delay.
The Assembly equally reiterates the concerns expressed in
Resolution 2459 (2022) regarding
the ongoing crackdown on members of the political opposition and
civil society, the attempt to close the Peoples’ Democratic Party
(HDP) and the restrictions on freedom of expression and media freedom,
and the over-broad interpretation of anti-terror legislation. It
calls on the authorities to carry out, without delay and in line
with the recommendations of the Venice Commission, the necessary reforms
to restore an effective system of checks and balances and to ensure
the full independence of the judiciary and freedom of expression.
The Assembly furthermore calls on the authorities to address the
concerns about the electoral framework and to ensure the necessary
conditions for free and fair local elections in 2024. It calls on
the Turkish authorities to put an end to all forms of reprisals
against politicians, lawyers, journalists and civil society activists,
and to ensure a conducive environment for all civil society actors.
Recalling its
Resolution
2494 (2023), the Assembly calls on the authorities to implement
the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights fully and speedily,
in particular those relating to structural or complex problems which
have not been resolved for over ten years;
4.11 with respect to Ukraine: the Assembly commends the unabated
efforts by the Ukrainian authorities, and indeed the whole of society,
to ensure the functioning of the democratic and rule of law institutions
in the country, in spite of the challenging situation presented
by the ongoing military aggression by the Russian Federation. It
welcomes Ukraine’s ambitious reform agenda and progress in its implementation
with a view to honouring its obligations and commitments to the
Council of Europe and achieving its goal of European Union membership.
The Assembly notes and welcomes the close co-operation developed
with the Council of Europe, and especially the Venice Commission,
in the drafting of these reforms. It acknowledges the efforts by
the Ukrainian authorities to fight the endemic corruption in the
country. Fully subscribing to the conclusions of the Venice Commission
in its opinion on the Law of Ukraine “On Preventing Threats to National
Security Associated with Excessive Influence by Persons Who Wield
Significant Economic and Political Weight in Public Life (Oligarchs)”,
the Assembly welcomes the announcement that the authorities have
now put the implementation of this law on hold and calls upon the
authorities to withdraw it altogether in favour of a systemic approach
of strengthening existing tools and mechanisms, as recommended by
the Venice Commission. With regard to the ongoing efforts by the
authorities to strengthen the independence and efficiency of the
justice system, the Assembly welcomes the adoption of a reformed
appointment procedure for Constitutional Court judges in which the
international community plays a significant role. The Assembly acknowledges the
diverse and multi-ethnic Ukrainian society and its strong multicultural
traditions. It therefore welcomes the adoption of the Law on National
Minorities (Communities) of Ukraine and the subsequent amendments
to address Venice Commission recommendations. However, it regrets
that not all key recommendations were addressed and urges the authorities
to revise, as foreseen in the law on minorities and the laws on
the State language, media and education, in full compliance with
international standards and in close consultation with the Venice
Commission and minorities concerned.
