25/06/2024 | Session
Faced with democratic backsliding in Europe, marked by the weakening of the separation and balance of powers and the restriction of freedoms, PACE today called on member States to “adopt participatory and deliberative democracy processes at national, regional and local level”, by providing in...
25/06/2024 | Session
Taking on board the views, expectations and concerns of young people “is an essential pre-condition to ensure the good functioning of democracy”, PACE stressed today – but regrettably, it added, “young people are under-represented in parliaments and do not engage sufficiently with traditional...
25/06/2024 | Session
PACE President Theodoros Rousopoulos has announced the result of the first round of the election for the Secretary General of the Council of Europe. The results are as follows: Total number of members voting: 241Number of blank or invalid ballots: 1Number of valid votes cast: 240Absolute majority...
25/06/2024 | Session
The rapporteur of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on The detention of Julian Assange and its chilling effects on human rights, Sunna Ævarsdóttir (Iceland, SOC), has welcomed the news of the release of Julian Assange from prison. “I am relieved to be finally able to say...
25/06/2024 | Session
“Your strong and timely political recommendation to the Committee of Ministers to expel Russia was groundbreaking and – for many of us – brought back faith in our common institutions,” said Gabrielius Landsbergis, President of the Committee of Ministers and Minister of Foreign Affairs of...
25/06/2024 | Session
"The art of resolving disputes through peaceful means of de-escalation and of peacemaking seems to have become lost. Wars never stay contained, they spill over borders and into future generations fostering cycles of grievances and hatred if their causes remain unaddressed. And yet, despite our...
25/06/2024 | Session
Adopting a resolution today based on the report by Petra Bayr (Austria, SOC), PACE strongly condemned the frequent attacks perpetrated against women human rights defenders, and called for an end to impunity for perpetrators of violence. The resolution emphasises that women human rights defenders...
25/06/2024 | Session
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) today elected Alain Berset (Switzerland) as Secretary General of the Council of Europe for a five-year term beginning on 18 September 2024. In the second round of the election, Mr Berset obtained 114 votes, a majority of the votes cast...
25/06/2024 | Session
PACE has warned against the gradual erosion of the right to seek asylum, which will eventually lead to “chaos and suffering”, and urged the Council of Europe’s 46 member states to avoid resorting to “policies of deterrence” to dissuade migrants and asylum-seekers from travelling to Europe. In a...
24/06/2024 | Session
The Parliamentary Assembly today marked the 75th anniversary of the Council of Europe at a ceremony during which the President of the National Council of Austria, Wolfgang Sobotka, directed a chamber orchestra in a performance of the Ode to Joy, and addressed the parliamentarians, meeting in...
24/06/2024 | Session
The first Vigdís Prize for Women’s Empowerment has been awarded to the Irida Women’s Center in Greece, a grassroots NGO which works for positive change in the lives of women experiencing poverty, social exclusion and gender-based violence. The 60,000-euro annual prize, awarded jointly by PACE and...
24/06/2024 | Session
"On the occasion of the 2024 PACE summer session, we are celebrating here in Strasbourg the 75th anniversary of the creation of the Council of Europe. On 10 August 1949, during the first session of our Assembly, only one woman was accredited as a Representative. Today, I am proud to be the...