30/09/2013 | Session
The Assembly today elected, at the opening of its Autumn 2013 Session, two new Vice-Presidents: Sandro Gozi (Italy, NR) and Philippe Mahoux (Belgium, SOC).
30/09/2013 | Session
The voting rights of the Icelandic delegation to PACE have been suspended until at least one woman is appointed to the delegation as a Representative, in line with a decision taken by the Assembly at its last session.
30/09/2013 | Session
The first ever Václav Havel Human Rights Prize – which honours outstanding civil society action in defence of human rights – has been awarded to Belarusian human rights activist Ales Bialiatski.
30/09/2013 | Session
According to PACE, the parliamentary elections of 23 June 2013 in Albania were competitive, with active citizen participation throughout the campaign and complete respect for fundamental freedoms.
30/09/2013 | Session
Edward Nalbandian, Foreign Minister of Armenia, today presented a communication from the Committee of Ministers which he chairs, to the Parliamentary Assembly and answered questions from delegates.
05/09/2013 | Session
The Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy meeting today in Paris decided to submit a request for an urgent debate on the situation in Syria to be held during the Autumn session in Strasbourg (30 September-4 October).
28/06/2013 | Session
Strasbourg, 28.06.2013 – Draft Protocol No. 16 to the European Convention on Human Rights may be adopted by the Committee of Ministers and opened for signature and ratification as presently drafted, according to the Parliamentary Assembly. The opinion adopted today by PACE, on the basis of the...
28/06/2013 | Session
PACE has said broad abuse-of-office laws for politicians are “problematic” and should be abolished or redrafted to limit their scope, while special procedures to impeach ministers should be in line with basic rule of law principles and applied with “extra caution and restraint”. The Assembly was adopting a resolution on “Keeping political and criminal responsibility separate” based on a report by Pieter Omtzigt (Netherlands, EPP/CD).
27/06/2013 | Session
PACE has deplored “recent cases of excessive use of force to disperse demonstrators” and reiterated its call on authorities to ensure that police action, where necessary, remains proportionate. Following an urgent debate on “Popular protest and challenges to freedom of assembly, media and speech”, based on a report by Arcadio Díaz Tejera (Spain, SOC), the Assembly...
27/06/2013 | Session
“Wherever laws prevent LGBT people from marching for their rights or teachers from explaining to a young gay man or woman that he or she is as good as the next person, wherever two men or two women cannot kiss in public without putting themselves at risk, human rights take a backward step,” declared Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, France’s minister for women’s rights.
27/06/2013 | Session
“Some states filter Internet content, others violate laws and use private data, which they justify with arguments of a security nature, such as the fight against terrorism. They stifle freedom of expression by trying to control everything and restricting or preventing what they cannot control”, said Gvozden Srećko Flego (Croatia, SOC) introducing the current affairs debate on state interference with privacy on the Internet.
27/06/2013 | Session
PACE proposed today that co-operation with the authorities of “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” be stepped up and expanded, in particular through the opening of a Council of Europe office in Skopje to encourage the country to pursue its democratisation efforts.