22/06/2010 Session
In a recommendation adopted today, the Assembly advocates greater Council of Europe involvement in Kosovo* beside other international partners such as EULEX and OSCE. The parliamentarians feel that a larger commitment by the Organisation could help “raising standards in the field of democracy, human rights and the rule of law”, and enable the population of Kosovo to enjoy an equivalent level of rights as that upheld by the Council of Europe.
According to the text adopted on the basis of the report by Björn von Sydow (Sweden, SOC), “the poor respect for the rule of law affects the everyday lives of all persons in Kosovo, irrespective of the community they belong to, and undermines their trust in the political system.” Despite the reforms being made to the administration and the judiciary, much remains to be done to enhance the democratic functioning of the institutions and ensure a level of governance which would bring Kosovo into line with Council of Europe standards.
Consequently, the Organisation should “broaden the range of its activities in Kosovo” and demonstrate flexibility and imagination in finding formulas to apply its monitoring mechanisms to Kosovo while respecting its current policy of status-neutrality.
The Assembly for its part decided “to initiate a dialogue with representatives of the political forces elected to the Kosovo Assembly on issues of common interest, while taking into account the legitimate interests and concerns of Serbia”.
*All references to Kosovo, whether to the territory, institutions or population, shall be understood in full compliance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 and without prejudice to the status of Kosovo.