17/09/2012 | President
"The crisis in Europe and worldwide is not just financial and economic, but also a crisis of democracy". While any crisis entails upheaval and suffering, however, it also brings "an opportunity to call things into question, to decide on the necessary priorities and to search actively for solutions" according to Jean-Claude Mignon, President of the PACE, when he made the opening speech today at the European Conference of Presidents of Parliaments.
17/09/2012 | President
"While most participants agreed that representative democracy is not in crisis in itself, we all agree that it is one of the main victims of the economic and financial crisis. But the current situation should rather be seen as an opportunity to bring the institutions of representative democracy closer to our citizens", PACE President Jean-Claude Mignon said today presenting the conclusions of the European Conference of Presidents of Parliament.
16/09/2012 | President
"We follow with great concern the violent protests that have flared up across the Middle East, triggered by the circulation of an Islamophobic film, and we wish to support and spread Pope Benedict XVI’s call for renewed Muslim-Christian co-operation in the Middle East; we underline that all religions can live together without hatred, respecting the beliefs of each, to build together a free and humane society," said Jean-Claude Mignon, PACE President, and his predecessor Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, former PACE President and member of the Turkish delegation to PACE.
12/09/2012 | President
“I am shocked and saddened to learn of the violent deaths of the US Ambassador in Libya and three of his colleagues,” said PACE President Jean-Claude Mignon. “Whatever the reasons, this is an unjustifiable attack on diplomats who were trying to help Libyans to build better lives. I would like to extend my wholehearted sympathies to the families of the victims, as well as the American authorities and people,” he said.
11/09/2012 | President
“I warmly welcome today’s European Parliament resolution on the illegal detention of prisoners in European countries by the CIA,” said Jean-Claude Mignon, PACE President. “It is now more than five years since Senator Dick Marty first presented to PACE credible evidence of secret CIA prisons in Poland and Romania, and the involvement of other European countries in illegal renditions...
05/09/2012 | President
"I join the international condemnation of the ‘glorification’ of the terrible crime which Mr Safarov has committed, and for which he has been condemned by a court in a Council of Europe member state," PACE President Jean-Claude Mignon said today. "His liberation is unacceptable, and I am extremely disappointed by the abusive use of a Council of Europe legal instrument in this affair."
29/08/2012 | President
PACE President Jean-Claude Mignon, and the co-rapporteurs for Ukraine, Mailis Reps (Estonia, ALDE) and Marietta de Pourbaix-Lundin (Sweden, EPP/CD), expressed their deep disappointment with the Court of Cassation rejection of the appeal by Yulia Tymoshenko against her conviction to seven years in prison in the so-called gas case. “The Assembly has stated on several occasions that her conviction in the gas case amounts to the criminalisation of normal political decision-making...” they said.
21/08/2012 | President
“I take note of the decision of the Constitutional Court regarding the referendum on the dismissal of the Romanian President. All institutions and political players in Romania must abide by this decision,” today said PACE President Jean-Claude Mignon. “Once again, I call on all politicians to exercise wisdom and overcome their differences to ensure that cohabitation takes place under the best possible conditions,” he added.
17/08/2012 | President
PACE President Jean-Claude Mignon today voiced his concern at the two-year prison sentence handed down in Russia to three activists of the ‘Pussy Riot’ group. “In a democracy, the right to freedom of expression may be subject to conditions intended inter alia to protect morals and the rights of others. However, the penalties imposed must be proportionate to the seriousness of the offence. Bearing in mind the standards of the Council of Europe, a two-year prison sentence for the alleged acts is patently disproportionate,” the President said.
06/08/2012 | President
The President of the Assembly, Jean-Claude Mignon, today conveyed his message of support to the judges of the country’s Constitutional Court. “The role of the Constitutional Court is to guarantee respect for the Constitution and the laws, which is essential for the institutions to function democratically. It is thus crucial to safeguard its independence, and any political intrusion into its proceedings is unacceptable,” he said.
30/07/2012 | President
"I note the results of the referendum. I now call on all players in Romanian politics to overcome their differences and agree to work together to meet the major challenges which lie ahead of Romania in the coming weeks and months, showing the mutual respect without which democracy would be just a set of formal rules. I also urge them to safeguard the independence of the judiciary, which is vital to the establishment and strengthening of the rule of law," said PACE President after yesterday's referendum on dismissal of the President of Romania.
19/07/2012 | President
At the end of a fact-finding visit to Romania on 18 and 19 July 2012, a delegation consisting of the PACE President, Jean-Claude Mignon, together with Andreas Gross, Chairperson of the Socialist Group (SOC), and Anne Brasseur, Chairperson of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), today issued the following statement: “We are concerned at the haste with which profound political changes affecting the functioning of institutions in Romania have taken place without at the same time any true consideration or political debate..."