25/02/2011 | Political Affairs and Democracy
Luca Volontè (Italy, EPP/CD), rapporteur on the request from the Parliament of Morocco for partner for democracy status with PACE, will make a fact-finding visit to Rabat from 1 to 3 March. Talks are scheduled with the Speaker of the House of Councillors, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the chairmen of political groups, as well as with parliamentarians in charge of relations with the Council of Europe.
20/12/2010 | Political Affairs and Democracy
Strasbourg, 20.12.2010 – The Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) rapporteur for Belarus, Sinikka Hurskainen (Finland, SOC) has expressed her deep concern at yesterday’s episodes of violence on the streets of Minsk following the presidential elections on Sunday 19 December. “I am...
15/12/2010 | Political Affairs and Democracy
In a resolution on reconciliation and political dialogue between the countries of the former Yugoslavia* adopted unanimously in Paris today, the Political Affairs Committee says it supported the efforts of the countries of the former Yugoslavia to reconcile and reconstruct a new relationship among themselves and welcomed their commitment to regional co-operation, which indicated a greater willingness to overcome the legacy of the past. It noted with satisfaction a number of positive examples of people and leaders from the region working together for change.
14/12/2010 | Political Affairs and Democracy
At a hearing in Paris on the expansion of democracy by lowering the voting age to 16, the rapporteur of the PACE Political Affairs Committee on this issue, Miloš Aligrudic (Serbia, EPP/CD), today said that lowering the voting age from 18 to 16 should be strongly encouraged as the period of adolescence was of paramount importance for the future citizen. “Those who are below 18 and wish to vote should register on Voting Registers on their own. This is aimed at solving the problems related to the turnout of young voters, and participation of the young,” the rapporteur stressed.
03/12/2010 | Political Affairs and Democracy
A ten-member PACE delegation visiting the United Nations on the occasion of the General Assembly session has held a round of meetings with leading UN officials and ambassadors to discuss topics including peacekeeping and peace-building operations, counter-terrorism and human rights, as well as regional issues such as the situation in Kosovo.*
03/12/2010 | Political Affairs and Democracy
Strasbourg, 03.12.2010 - The accession by the European Union to the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings would ensure that “the Convention’s high standards and human rights approach are uniformly applied throughout Europe”, today said the participants in the...
03/12/2010 | Political Affairs and Democracy
"Each of us has an individual political responsibility: let us not tolerate slavery. Let us not be powerless witnesses but fight against it", today said Jose Mendes Bota (Portugal, EPP/CD) at the opening of the Interparliamentary Conference 'Parliaments united against trafficking in human beings', organised in Paris by PACE's Committee on Equal Opportunities. "Trafficking in human beings affects us all as members of parliament. Victims of trafficking are powerless. We have the power to change their situation. We have the power to give them a voice", he added.
25/11/2010 | Political Affairs and Democracy
Björn von Sydow (Sweden, SOC), PACE rapporteur on the situation in Kosovo, and Chair of the PACE Political Affairs Committee, will conduct a fact-finding visit to Kosovo from 28 to 30 November 2010. The main purpose of this visit is to assess the political situation on the ground and the position of the various communities, prior to the early elections to be held on 12 December 2010.
19/11/2010 | Political Affairs and Democracy
Presenting his memorandum on reconciliation and political dialogue between the countries of the former Yugoslavia,* made public during a meeting of the Political Affairs Committee meeting in Paris yesterday, PACE rapporteur Pietro Marcenaro (Italy, SOC) pointed out that – since the committee had embarked on this report in January 2009 – the governments concerned had made many positive steps, indicating a greater willingness to overcome the legacy of the past.
19/11/2010 | Political Affairs and Democracy
During an exchange of views with representatives from Belarus, organised by the Political Affairs Committee in Paris on 18 November, parliamentarians called for visible progress in the conduct of the forthcoming Presidential elections on 19 December 2010, and in particular with regard to the freedom of the media. They took note with interest of information according to which positive developments with regard to the abolition of the death penalty might be expected in the near future.
18/11/2010 | Political Affairs and Democracy
Co-operation between PACE and the European Parliament should focus on how to create a common European space in terms of human rights, democracy and the rule of law, avoiding the creation of new borders within Europe, participants concluded at a hearing on the impact of the Lisbon Treaty on PACE and the European Parliament, organised by the PACE Political Affairs Committee in Paris today.
20/10/2010 | Political Affairs and Democracy
New forms of democracy – in which citizens can participate directly in decisions, for example – are needed to supplement traditional representative democracy if the current crisis in democracy is to be overcome, Lord Prescott (United Kingdom, SOC) has told the Forum for the Future of Democracy in Yerevan. Delivering a speech on behalf of PACE President Mevlüt Çavusoglu, Mr Prescott said there was a need for “sustained forms of interaction between people and the authorities”.