16/04/2009 | Monitoring
Josette Durrieu (France, SOC) and Egidijus Vareikis (Lithuania, EPP/CD), co-rapporteurs on Moldova for the Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), have sent letters to the Presidents of the Republic and the Parliament of Moldova requesting full information about the sequence of events that followed the elections on Sunday 5 April 2009.
15/04/2009 | Monitoring
“We welcome the work undertaken in the fields of legal and electoral reform in Ukraine, but it is now time that the different concept papers and draft laws are harmonised, adopted and implemented,” said PACE two co-rapporteurs on Ukraine, Renate Wohlwend (Liechtenstein, EPP/CD) and Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger (Germany, ALDE), speaking at the end of their visit to Kiev from 5 to 8 April 2009. The co-rapporteurs welcomed that the opinion of the Venice Commission, the Council of Europe’s group of independent legal experts, is regularly sought during the preparation of these laws, but stressed that its recommendations should then be reflected in the draft laws that are debated and ultimately adopted by Parliament.
13/04/2009 | Monitoring
“It is better to consult on sensitive issues in advance,” said Andres Herkel (Estonia, EPP/CD) and Evguenia Jivkova (Bulgaria, SOC), PACE co-rapporteurs for the monitoring of Azerbaijan, commenting on the 18 March Constitutional referendum at the end of a three-day fact-finding visit to the country (8-10 April). “We wish that the draft amendments on the Constitution had been sent to the Venice Commission well ahead of the referendum. Seeking Council of Europe expertise in advance would have allowed the adoption of legislation in line with European standards,” the co-rapporteurs pointed out.
08/04/2009 | Monitoring
Josette Durrieu (France, SOC) and Egidijus Vareikis (Lithuania, EPP/CD), co-rapporteurs on Moldova for PACE Monitoring Committee, who were present in Moldova to observe the elections of Sunday 5 April 2009, today called for “an end to violence and provocation” in the capital city, Chisinau. “We are concerned about the deterioration of the situation in a European country which nevertheless benefits from our attention and our support. Moldova needs to achieve political stability in the context of a democracy which will be able to assert itself only through elections, and not through violence”, they declared.
07/04/2009 | Monitoring
In the haste to meet strenuous EU accession deadlines, some of Bulgaria’s reforms – particularly the reform of the judiciary – have undergone “cosmetic changes” which have pushed them in an undesired direction, according to a new report from PACE Monitoring Committee in the framework of “post-monitoring dialogue” with the country. In an information note posted today on the Assembly’s website, the Committee’s Chair Serhiy Holovaty (Ukraine, ALDE) named in particular the consitutional amendments and the amendments to the Judicial System Act of February 2007.
07/04/2009 | Monitoring
The effective separation of powers in Turkey, and the democratic functioning of its institutions, are “crucial for the modernisation of the Turkish state”, according to an information note from PACE's Monitoring Committee, in the framework of “post-monitoring dialogue” with the country, posted today on the Assembly’s website. Committee Chair Serhiy Holovaty (Ukraine, ALDE) said the political crisis which shook Turkey in 2007 and 2008 had highlighted the “weakness” of the country’s constitutional and legal framework, and again called for constitutional reform.
06/04/2009 | Monitoring
Andres Herkel (Estonia, EPP/CD) and Evguenia Jivkova (Bulgaria, SOC), co-rapporteurs for the monitoring of Azerbaijan by PACE, will make a fact-finding visit to the country on 7-11 April. They are due to meet the President of the Republic, the Speaker of the Milli Mejlis and the Foreign Affairs and Justice Ministers, as well as members of the majority and opposition parties, journalists, ambassadors and NGOs. The rapporteurs will also visit the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic.
02/04/2009 | Monitoring
PACE's monitoring co-rapporteurs on Ukraine, Renate Wohlwend (Liechtenstein, EPP/CD) and Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger (Germany, ALDE), will make a fact-finding visit to the country from 6 to 7 April to discuss, among other things, constitutional and electoral reform, the reform of the judiciary and current political developments.
02/04/2009 | Monitoring
PACE's monitoring co-rapporteurs for Armenia, Georges Colombier (France, EPP/CD) and John Prescott (United Kingdom, SOC), have welcomed the adoption of amendments to Articles 300 and 225 of the Armenian criminal code, which they said were "a clear improvement to the Law", and should have a considerable effect on the cases concerning those deprived of their freedom in relation to the events of 1 and 2 March 2008. However, they stressed that it is the application of these amendments that will ultimately count.
31/03/2009 | Monitoring
Russia has made “measurable progress” in several areas in fulfilling its obligations to the Council of Europe, but this is “less important than we had hoped for and expected after a nearly five-year period”, especially on some key commitments, according to a new assessment by PACE monitoring co-rapporteurs. In an information note made public during a two-day meeting of the Assembly’s Monitoring Committee in Valencia (30-31 March), Luc van den Brande (Belgium EPP/CD) and Theodoros Pangalos (Greece, SOC) said the current state of the monitoring procedure was “both complex and ambiguous”, a situation compounded by the consequences of the August 2008 war between Russia and Georgia.
30/03/2009 | Monitoring
“It is essential for Georgia that the planned protest rallies on 9 April 2009 take place in a calm and peaceful manner without violence or provocations. This is in the best interest of the country and we trust that both sides will show restraint in this respect,” said the two Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) co-rapporteurs for Georgia, Mátyás Eörsi (Hungary, ALDE) and Kastriot Islami (Albania, SOC), and the end of their fact-finding visit to the country.
25/03/2009 | Monitoring
Mátyás Eörsi (Hungary, ALDE) and Kastriot Islami (Albania, SOC), co-rapporteurs on Georgia for PACE Monitoring Committee, today began a fact-finding visit to Tbilisi, finishing on Thursday evening, to take stock of Georgia’s compliance with its obligations and commitments to the Council of Europe. Talks are scheduled, among others, with President Mikheil Saakashvili, Prime Minister Nika Gilauri, Justice Minister Zurab Adeishvili, Foreign Minister Grigol Vashadze and the Deputy Speaker of Parliament Mikheil Machavariani, as well as with members of the Georgian delegation to the Assembly.