25/01/2022 | 16:13:50 Thank you very much. I think we all agree that the situation in Belarus is very concerning for a number of our member States, and this organisation has been very vocal about it. It was, as you rightly pointed out in this Parliamentary Assembly, not only with this proposal for the working group but on a number of other occasions. I was very vocal. I was vocal when it started two years ago, at the end of summer. The Committee of Ministers was also concerned about it. It is true that Belarus, on... 25/01/2022 | 16:08:38 Thank you very much. Yes, these are very serious allegations, and I share your view and the Group's view that it is neither acceptable nor legal in a democratic society to intercept the communications of actors of governments or others, even when it comes to security service matters. You mentioned it well: all member States of the Council of Europe have to take into account Article 8, the right to privacy and the judgments of the Court, especially in one of the countries you mentioned... 25/01/2022 | 15:58:39 Thank you for this too pertinent question. Let me start with the first one. We are all witnessing terrible situations, be it at sea or at the borders where people are losing lives and others are, as you said, instrumentalising traffickers or smugglers and earning big money on their very often tragic destiny. You have other UN agencies and EU agencies who are dealing with that more as they are mostly only on the subject. When it comes to the Council of Europe, what needs to be applied where... 25/01/2022 | 15:48:24 Ladies and Gentlemen, There are, of course, many other priorities that we must address. Freedom of expression, online and offline; the role of the diversity of civil society, including human rights defenders; or non-discrimination and protection of vulnerable groups, such as children, LGBTI+ people, migrants and refugees. We must also, of course, fight against human trafficking, inequality and racism, xenophobia and discrimination, but also against poverty and social injustice which have... 25/01/2022 | 15:37:52 President of the Parliamentary Assembly dear Mr Tiny KOX, Thank you very much and once again my felicitation for your post, which will also not be easy. I think we live in difficult times. State Secretary Della Vedova, Distinguished Parliamentarians, Excellencies, Ladies and gentlemen, I begin by thanking the outgoing President of the Assembly and welcoming his successor to the role. Mr Rik DAEMS has been dedicated and proactive throughout his term in office: pushing for progress on... 29/09/2021 | 16:43:22 Just very briefly, since the Committee of Ministers is not in the panel and it was actually requested to give an answer. Of course it's a responsibility of the Committee of Ministers and it will deliberate. Let me just reiterate what I stated in my speech: the Committee of Ministers is already working on that, I mentioned the working group that is set. Don't forget also that this is now the fourth presidency in a row which puts environment as the priority. I think that is telling; starting... 29/09/2021 | 15:24:08 But, the Council of Europe will not simply leave them to it. Our job is to support member States in fulfilling their obligations. That's why we have updated our manual on human rights and the environment and launched online courses on human rights and the environment. Presenting practitioners with the principles derived from case law so that they can put these two into practice and raise the quality of life for millions. Of course, laying out the case law alone is simply not enough. We must... 29/09/2021 | 15:21:01 Mr President of the Republic of Hungary, Mr President of the Parliamentary Assembly Ladies and Gentlemen, Never before has human behaviour posed such a danger to the environment. Never before have our knowledge and understanding been so extensive and our awareness of the situation so acute. Never before has it been so urgent for each of us to act. Whether we are individuals, companies, states or international organisations, we all have a responsibility to protect and care for our planet. The... 23/06/2021 | 12:30:18 Thank you very much. Now we speak about the Istanbul Convention. But let me use this opportunity to say that many of our conventions are meant to help either good governance or spreading this area of human rights, democracy and the rule of low far beyond our borders. Let me say that in cybercrime prevention it's a case in point. I'm very pleased to have heard this news that there is an observer state of the Council of Europe engaging on this important path. I think it speaks by itself. I... 23/06/2021 | 11:50:33 It is so important. No woman should have to fear for her safety and yet there are still too many women who do. We have all read or heard stories of their suffering. We all know women who have been abused: friends, colleagues, family members who sometimes trust us enough to ask for help but sometimes suffer in silence. The recent outbreak of violence during the Covid-19 lockdown tells us how fragile the gains we have made are. That is why we must move forward. Yes, there are preconceptions and...