17/07/2009 | President
PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig today ended a two-day official visit to Italy, during which he met the President of the Republic Giorgio Napolitano, the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Gianfranco Fini (photo), the Vice-President of the Senate Vannino Chiti, the Minister for Relations with the Regions Raffaele Fitto, and the members of the Italian delegation to PACE. Mr de Puig also had a meeting at the Vatican with the Secretary for Relations with States, Dominique Mamberti.
13/07/2009 | President
PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig today ended an official visit to Italy on 16 and 17 July, during which he met the President of the Republic Giorgio Napolitano, the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Gianfranco Fini (photo), the Vice-President of the Senate Vannino Chiti, the Minister for Relations with the Regions Raffaele Fitto, and the members of the Italian delegation to PACE. Mr de Puig also had a meeting at the Vatican with the Secretary for Relations with States, Dominique Mamberti.
06/07/2009 | President
“The founding mission of the Council of Europe, namely to build peace and create a common area governed by the rule of law, democracy and human rights, is far from complete,” declared PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig, speaking today at the opening of the 4th Summer University for Democracy. “The Council of Europe must project its human rights values beyond Europe’s borders, and a new phase has begun with the creation of a new ‘partner for democracy’ status with PACE, in order to strengthen co-operation with the countries of the southern Mediterranean, Central Asia and the Middle East,” added Mr de Puig.
02/07/2009 | President
PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig has expressed deep concern about the death sentence passed on a young man in Belarus on 29 June. "The death penalty is a flagrant violation of human rights. It does not serve, but denies justice. No crime could justify it. This is why the Assembly asked its Bureau on 23 June not to lift the suspension of the Belarus Parliament's special guest status until such time as a moratorium on executions has been introduced by the appropriate Belarus authorities," he said.
17/06/2009 | President
During a two-day official visit to “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” ending today, PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig said that since its declaration of independence and subsequent accession to the Council of Europe in 1995, the country had made steady progress on the path of strengthening its democratic institutions, affirming the principles of rule of law and effectively protecting human rights and national minorities. “However, ‘the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia’ still has issues to face in the process of consolidating its democratic institutions. The confidence of all political players in the parliamentary process must be bolstered,” said PACE President.
16/06/2009 | President
"We are very concerned about some of the proposed changes to the legislation regulating non-governmental organisations and media in Azerbaijan. Amendments as proposed, which will be reportedly submitted for parliamentary decision this Friday, may create serious obstacles for the freedom of expression and normal functioning of the civil society in Azerbaijan. They may even lead to the closing of the Council of Europe School of Political Studies in Baku"...
15/06/2009 | President
Lluís Maria de Puig, Président de l’ l’Assemblée parlementaire du Conseil de l’Europe (APCE), se rendra les 16 et 17 juin en visite officielle dans « l'ex-République yougoslave de Macédoine », au cours de laquelle il devrait rencontrer le Président de la République, Gorge Ivanov, le Président de l’Assemblée, Trajko Veljanoski, le Premier ministre, Nikola Gruevski, et le ministre des Affaires étrangères, Antonijo Milososki.
04/06/2009 | President
PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig yesterday completed an official three-day tour of Tunisia during which he outlined to the Tunisian authorities the "partner for democracy” status, which is due to be debated in the Assembly at the next part-session and will cover countries including the southern Mediterranean ones.
29/05/2009 | President
PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig, will make an official visit to Tunisia from 1 to 3 June, where he is to meet the Prime Minister and also the Minister of Justice and Human rights, the Minister of Women, Family, Children and the Elderly Affairs, as well as the Minister of Youth, Sport and Physical education. Talks are also scheduled with the Speaker of the House of deputies, and the Speaker of the House of Councillors.
25/05/2009 | President
During a visit to Algeria, Lluís Maria de Puig confirmed to the Algerian authorities that the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and, more particularly, he personally as President of PACE, were determined to strengthen parliamentary relations with the countries on the southern shores of the Mediterranean, starting with the Maghreb. He pointed out that a debate on the establishment of a “Partner for democracy” status with the Parliamentary Assembly (Doc. 11913) was scheduled to take place in Strasbourg on 26 June.
18/05/2009 | President
Beyond the creation of a common democratic and legal area, one of the Council of Europe’s major achievements, “we should think about new ways that will enable the Organisation to assert itself more in the member countries and on the international scene,” said PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig in Helsinki at the ceremony commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Council of Europe and the 20th anniversary of Finland’s accession to the Organisation. “I therefore welcome the reflection launched in our Assembly concerning a need for a broader interpretation of human rights."
15/05/2009 | President
Strasbourg, 15.05.2009 – A concrete proposal to inscribe “the right to a healthy environment” into the European system of human rights protection is to be debated in September by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), its President announced yesterday. Addressing the Nevsky...