12/04/2017 Session
Strasbourg, 12.04.2017 - The functioning of democratic institutions in Turkey will take centre-stage at the Spring plenary part-session of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) to be held in Strasbourg from 24 to 28 April 2017. Other highlights on the agenda include debates on the situation of human rights in the North Caucasus, the increased income inequalities and the protection of refugee women from gender-based violence.
His Majesty the King of Spain and the President of the Hellenic Republic, Prokopis Pavlopoulos, will be addressing the Assembly. The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Niels Muiznieks, will present his annual activity report 2016. Thorbjørn Jagland, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, will answer questions from parliamentarians, and Ioannis Kasoulides, the Cypriot Foreign Minister, will be speaking in the context of the Cypriot Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers.
Other highlights of the session will be the debates on ‘25 years of the CPT, achievements and improvements needed', ‘Abusive use of the Interpol system: the need for more stringent legal safeguards' and ‘The protection of the rights of parents and children belonging to religious minorities'.
There have also been requests for an urgent debate on ‘Political consequences of the new Israeli Settlement Regulation Law' and for a current affairs debate on ‘European values under threat: addressing rising populism, xenophobia, antisemitism and Islamophobia in Europe'.
The Assembly will decide its final agenda on the opening day of the session.
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Monday 24 April
• Statement by the President
• Election of the Vice-Presidents of the Assembly in respect of the Republic of Moldova and Romania
• Progress report of the Bureau and the Standing Committee
• Communication from the Committee of Ministers presented by Ioannis Kasoulides, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Cyprus, Chairperson of the Committee of Ministers
• Free debate
Tuesday 25 April
• The functioning of democratic institutions in Turkey
• Questions to Thorbjørn Jagland, Secretary General of the Council of Europe
• Human rights in the North Caucasus: what follow-up to Resolution 1738 (2010)?
• Fighting income inequality as a means of fostering social cohesion and economic development
Wednesday 26 April
• Protecting refugee women from gender-based violence
• Address by Prokopis Pavlopoulos, President of the Hellenic Republic
• Annual activity report 2016 by Nils Muiznieks, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights
• 25 years of the CPT: achievements and areas for improvement
• Abusive use of the Interpol system: the need for more stringent legal safeguards
Thursday 27 April
• Possible debate under urgent procedure or current affairs debate
• Address by His Majesty the King of Spain
• The protection of the rights of parents and children belonging to religious minorities
• Possible ways to improve the funding of emergency refugee situations
Friday 28 April
• Technological convergence, artificial intelligence and human rights
• Progress report (continued)
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Practical information
Live web stream: the session is streamed live on PACE’s website.
Twitter: #PACEspring2017
Press conferences will be announced on the spot. They are streamed live over the web.
Audiovisual Facilities: for TV planning units, videos in broadcast quality summing up PACE highlights can be downloaded for free. Contact: [email protected]
Press accreditation: Directorate of communication, please fill in the form
Further details: see the Assembly's website.
Contact: PACE Communication Division, tel. +33 3 88 41 31 93; [email protected]