22/06/2022 | 18:21:16 Chair, dear colleagues, First of all, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all rapporteurs who have examined a sensitive issue both for the Ukrainian people, Ukraine and every member of our European family. I would also like to thank every European citizen for standing shoulder to shoulder with us and lending your hands to the Ukrainian people. The Russian war on Ukraine is the biggest armed clash in Europe after the Second World War. The unbearable ordeal Ukrainian people are... 20/06/2022 | 17:07:19 (Undelivered speech, Rules of Procedure Art. 31.2) Dear colleagues! I really appreciate Mr. Jallow’s timely report dealing with the issue of fighting racism and xenophobia in European societies. Indeed, the role of political parties in promoting diversity and inclusion cannot be overestimated. It’s political parties that formulate their ideologies and enact certain legislation and policies when they come to power. Leaders of political parties often act as role models — both good and bad... 27/04/2022 | 20:23:03 (Undelivered speech, Rules of Procedure Art. 31.2) The Russian war on Ukraine is the biggest armed clash in Europe after World War II and it has a number of consequences on local, regional and global level. The unbearable ordeal Ukrainian people are going through is primarily taking its tragic toll on people’s lives. Men, women and most tragically children are killed and suffering in this terrifying war affair. Many humanitarian corridors are blocked, and people are on the edge of survival... 15/03/2022 | 19:32:30 Dear colleagues, Having invaded Ukraine, the Russian Federation unleashed their largest war in Europe since World War II. I know –- and my friend Ms Saranda BOGUJEVCI has told us a lot and everyone who was there – there were other wars, but this one is the biggest one. We are all witness to a catastrophe on a planetary basis – let's not underestimate it, it's not a continental one. Caused by Russian aggression against Ukraine, as a result of large-scale military attacks in almost all regions... 26/01/2022 | 11:25:22 Dear President, dear colleagues, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to rapporteur Lord George FOULKES who presented a comprehensive overview of the football industry through the prism of core values and human rights standards. Football has a universal appeal across our troubled world and its diverse cultures. Generating emotional intensity and involving the charged audience in intriguing performance, football also plays an important social function, unifying all. Under growing... 27/09/2021 | 19:13:59 Mr President, dear colleagues. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to rapporteur Mr Tiny KOX, who presented a comprehensive overview of the scope of the rights and privileges enshrined in basic Council of Europe documents related to the issue of the Parliamentary immunity. Immunity rules, both at the national and international levels, are closely linked to democratic architecture, the separation of powers, the concept of representation, and the rule of law and fundamental rights... 22/06/2021 | 11:11:18 I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the rapporteur Mr Roberto RAMPI who carried out a complete and broad-ranging examination on a matter of increasing need to establish a wide right to know in the member states of the Council of Europe. Indeed a citizen's real possibility of making conscious choices depends on obtaining timely, pluralist and reliable information. Media components play an important role for safeguarding the right to know. I fully share the position of the... 28/01/2020 | 19:18:05 Thank you, Chair, Dear colleagues, The first of all I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the rapporteur Lord George FOULKES, who presented an overview of negative developments that undermine the media ecosystem in the member states of the Council of Europe. As Thomas Jefferson once said, "the only security of all is in a free press". Journalists are our important friends who helped to build an open-minded society and, as a mirror, tell us about the reality we may fail to notice... 10/04/2019 | 16:09:17 I express my sincere gratitude to both rapporteurs, who carried out a broad-ranging examination of the increasing propagation of hate speech and intolerance around the world. The rise of the hate speech phenomenon deepens divisions at the level of the individual, communities, states and inter-state relations. In everyday life, hate speech incites violence against certain groups in the population or pushes psychologically vulnerable people to commit suicide. When hate speech is emerging as an...