08/06/2004 | Culture, Science, Education and Media
From 8 to 12 June, Lord Russell-Johnston (United Kingdom, LDR), who is preparing a report on “the cultural situation of the Kurds” on behalf of the Assembly’s Committee on Culture, Science and Education, will visit cultural centres in Diyarbakir, Mardin and Hakkari, and a Kurdish language centre in Van. In Ankara he will meet Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül, Education Minister Hüseyin Çelik and the minister responsible for Turkish radio and television Beşir Atalay (to be confirmed). In Istanbul, he will visit the Kurdish Institute and the Mesopotamia Cultural Centre as well as meeting the press.
25/05/2004 | Culture, Science, Education and Media
The Italian authorities should put an end to the long-standing practice of political interference in the media and deal urgently and convincingly with the problem of conflict of interest, the Assembly’s Culture Committee said in a draft resolution made public today. In a report by Paschal Mooney (Ireland, LDR) approved last week, the committee said that Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi held “unprecedented control over the most powerful medium" in the country. The negative international image of Italy resulting from this conflict of interest could hamper the efforts of the Council of Europe in promoting independent media in the new democracies, the parliamentarians said. The report is due for debate at the Assembly’s summer session.
14/05/2004 | Culture, Science, Education and Media
Paschal Mooney (Ireland, LDR), rapporteur on the Media of the Assembly’s Committee on Culture, Science and Education, will participate as a panellist in the World Congress of the International Press Institute in Warsaw from 17 to 18 May. He will join representatives from Unesco, the OSCE and the Organization of American States on Monday 17 May for a discussion on the theme: “holding member states of international governmental organisations to their press freedom commitments”.
07/05/2004 | Culture, Science, Education and Media
Paschal Mooney (Ireland, LDR), who is preparing a report on “the possible monopolisation of the electronic media and abuse of power in Italy” for the Parliamentary Assembly, today expressed his regret over the resignation of RAI Chairperson Lucia Annunziata. He also voiced his concern about the future of public service broadcasting in Italy. “It is unacceptable that the public service broadcaster in a democracy such as Italy should be an arena for political struggles," Mr Mooney said.
29/03/2004 | Culture, Science, Education and Media
The Rapporteur of the Assembly’s Committee on Culture, Science and Education Paschal Mooney (Ireland, LDR) is currently in Rome for a study visit in order to prepare a report on the possible monopolisation of the electronic media and abuse of power in Italy. The programme of the visit(30 March - 2 April)includes, among others, meetings with the competent committees of the two chambers of the Italian parliament, with representatives of the public broadcaster RAI, journalists, as well as the Italian communication and anti-trust authorities.
19/03/2004 | Culture, Science, Education and Media
The Assembly’s Culture Committee, meeting in the French city of Lille today, has denounced the deliberate destruction of churches and mosques during the outbreak of violence in Kosovo and Serbia. “As with others, I deplore the violence and call for an immediate end to it,” said Spanish senator Lluis Maria de Puig, who chairs the committee. “I am particularly horrified that places of culture are being deliberately targeted. Hundreds of years of history are going up in flames – along with hopes for a multi-ethnic society. While the protection of human life must always come first, I appeal to UNMIK, KFOR and the Serbian authorities to do what they can to protect these buildings and their contents.” An information report by British MP Eddie O’Hara on the protection of Kosovo’s cultural heritage was adopted by the committee.
12/03/2004 | Culture, Science, Education and Media
The Sub-Committee on Science and Ethics (of the Committee on Culture, Science and Education) will hold an exchange of views in Paris on 17 March on “Parliaments and the knowledge society” with the participation of Claude Birraux, Chairman of the French Parliamentary Office for Evaluation of Scientific and Technological Options (OPECST) and Antonios Trakatellis (*), Chairman of the European Parliament Scientific and Technological Options Assessment (STOA). (*) to be confirmed
12/03/2004 | Culture, Science, Education and Media
The agenda of the meeting of the Committee on Culture, Science and Education on 18 March includes approval of an opinion prepared by Majlene Westerlund Panke, (Sweden, SOC) on the Draft Additional protocol to the Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine, on Biomedical Research, and of an information report on Kosovo’s cultural heritage. Members will discuss diaspora cultures (Eleonora Petrova-Mitevska, "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia", SOC), education for Europe (Ghiorghi Prisacaru, Romania, SOC) and religions and intercultural dialogue (André Schneider, France, EPP/CD). They will also hold an exchange of views with Gottfried Wagner, Director of the European Cultural Foundation. The next day, the committee members will visit the French city of Lille, European capital of culture 2004.