23/02/2011 | Monitoring
“In spite of some progress, reforms in many areas are still outstanding,” said Anne Brasseur (Luxembourg, ALDE) following her post-monitoring visit to the Principality of Monaco on 21 and 22 February 2011. “I was pleased to note the major progress made in the areas of justice and of combating money-laundering. However, the reform of the judiciary and the revision of the Penal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure still have to follow," she said.
18/02/2011 | Monitoring
Anne Brasseur (Luxembourg, ALDE), PACE Rapporteur for post-monitoring dialogue with Monaco, will be visiting the Principality on 21 and 22 February on a fact-finding mission. Meetings are scheduled with the Head of State HSH Prince Albert II, the President of the National Council Jean-François Robillon, the Minister of State and head of government H.E. Michel Roger, the Government Minister for External Relations José Badia, the Government Minister for the Interior Paul Masseron, and the Government Minister for Health and Social Affairs Stéphane Valeri.
03/02/2011 | Monitoring
PACE co-rapporteurs for the monitoring of Albania, Jaakko Laakso (Finland, UEL) and Thomáš Jirsa (Czech Republic, EDG), have urged all parties to find a negotiated solution to the current political crisis in Albania, and to refrain from any action that could further escalate the already tense situation. “This crisis is doing lasting damage to Albania’s democratic institutions and is endangering the very stability of the country,” said the two co-rapporteurs.
03/02/2011 | Monitoring
Joseph Debono Grech (Malta, SOC) and Pedro Agramunt (Spain, EPP/CD), PACE co-rapporteurs on the honouring of obligations and commitments by Azerbaijan, have completed a three-day visit to the country (1-3 February 2011), during which they studied the current political situation following the elections and discussed the state of the Assembly’s monitoring procedure with the authorities, political parties and civil society.
28/01/2011 | Monitoring
Joseph Debono Grech (Malta, SOC) and Pedro Agramunt (Spain, EPP/CD), PACE co-rapporteurs on the honouring of obligations and commitments by Azerbaijan, will be making a fact-finding visit to that country on 1-3 February. In Baku, talks are scheduled with the President of the Republic, the Speaker of Parliament, the Ministers of Justice and National Security, the Prosecutor General and the Chairman of the Central Electoral Commission.
18/01/2011 | Monitoring
"We should not argue about the past any more - we need to discuss the future. The cornerstone of building the future is of course a lasting political settlement of the conflict in conformity with international law and guaranteeing security and the freedoms and rights of the populations concerned. Until this lasting settlement is found, the conflict will continue to compromise both the stability and the economic development of the whole region," declared PACE President Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu at the opening of a hearing on the current situation with regard to “the consequences of the war between Georgia and Russia”.
17/01/2011 | Monitoring
PACE co-rapporteurs for Ukraine Mailis Reps (ALDE, Estonia) and Marietta Pourbaix–Lundin (EPP/CD, Sweden), welcomed today’s adoption by the Verkhovna Rada of the Law on Access to Public Information. “The adoption of this law, which was called for by the Assembly, takes into account recommendations made by the international community and civil society, and will increase the transparency of governance and will be an important tool in the fight against corruption”, they said.
13/01/2011 | Monitoring
“The implementation of reforms by Turkey will be closely monitored,” said Josette Durrieu (France, SOC), PACE rapporteur for the post-monitoring dialogue with Turkey, at the end of her initial fact-finding visit to Turkey from 8 to 12 January 2011. "There are positive trends and real progress has been made. However, there are still major problems with regard to the length of detention on remand and court proceedings, the functioning of the judicial system, freedom of expression and the execution of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights...
17/12/2010 | Monitoring
"Undoubtedly, Serbia has made significant progress in many areas and is heading towards the full completion of its commitments. However, some key issues remain unsolved or incomplete such as the reform of the justice system, the revision of the electoral law, the elimination of the party-administered system and blank resignations, as well as full compliance with the laws on freedom of speech, association etc...
22/11/2010 | Monitoring
The Parliamentary Assembly’s two co-rapporteurs for the monitoring of Azerbaijan, Pedro Agramunt (Spain, EPP/CD) and Joseph Debono Grech (Malta, SOC), have welcomed the release by the Azerbaijani authorities of the two bloggers Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli. "This is an important step forward and a clear sign that the Azerbaijani authorities are willing to resolve the issues that have hindered their co-operation with the Council of Europe. We hope that we can soon welcome further progress on other outstanding issues," they said.
16/11/2010 | Monitoring
PACE Monitoring Committee today appointed Marietta de Pourbaix-Lundin (Sweden, EPP/CD) as new co-rapporteur for the monitoring of Ukraine. She is replacing Renate Wohlwend (Liechtenstein, EPP/CD), whose term expires in line with the provisions of Resolution 1710 (2010).
12/10/2010 | Monitoring
The Chair of PACE’s Monitoring Committee Dick Marty (Switzerland, ALDE) has proposed a full day of high-level hearings to break what he called the “deadlock” on dealing with the consequences of the war between Georgia and Russia. “Confrontation must give way to dialogue,” said Mr Marty in a note made public this week outlining the plan.