04/10/2005 | News
“Ten years have passed since Moldova became a fully-fledged European democracy as a member of the Council of Europe, but much still remains to be done,” declared Marian Lupu, Speaker of the Moldovan Parliament, addressing the PACE. In the short time that it has been in existence, the new Moldovan Parliament has passed a raft of laws of vital importance for democracy, but the process of legislative reform is not over yet, he said. Welcoming Mr Lupu, President van der Linden recalled the achievements of the Moldovan economy during Mr Lupu’s stint as Minister for Economic Affairs and said that the Council of Europe expected the Parliament to be equally successful when it came to adopting European standards.
04/10/2005 | News
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), meeting in plenary in Strasbourg, today unanimously elected Mateo Sorinas Balfegó as Secretary General of the Assembly for a five-year term, beginning on 1 February 2006. Mr Sorinas was born in Tarragona (Spain) on 13 March 1946. After obtaining a master’s degree in physical sciences from Complutense University, Madrid in 1968, he worked as a teacher in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, where he was a member of the executive committee of the Teachers’ Union.
04/10/2005 | News
The Secretary General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, addressing PACE today, called for "structured co-operation" between the Council of Europe and the OIC to promote understanding between cultures and religions, which he described as "the most pressing issue of our time". Extremism went against the spirit of Islamic values, Mr Ihsanoglu stressed, pointing out that Islamic civilisation in the past fourteen centuries had stood for human rights, justice, tolerance and compassion.
03/10/2005 | News
"The New Neighbourhood Policy should be a great opportunity for the Council of Europe. By sharing our many years of experience and our unrivalled expertise, we can further enhance our co-operation with the European Union by contributing to the development, implementation and assessment of its external policies," PACE President René van der Linden said today in his opening speech to the PACE autumn session in Strasbourg.
23/09/2005 | News
Intercultural and inter-religious dialogue will be one of the main issues discussed at the autumn session (3-7 October 2005) of the PACE. “Education and religion” will be the theme of a debate on Tuesday 4 October in which Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, Secretary General of the Islamic Conference, will take part, while a debate on “Women and religion” in Europe will include a statement by Asma Jahangir, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief. On the same day, an address by the Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs and Co-operation, Miguel Angel Moratinos, will concern, among other things, the United Nations plan for an Alliance of Civilisations.
01/08/2005 | News
"The statement by the IRA to henceforth renounce violence is a major step forward toward a peaceful solution to the Northern Ireland conflict and is to be warmly welcomed by all those who believe in the primacy of peace and an orderly political process," PACE President René van der Linden stated today. "We must now hope that this commitment will be honoured by the IRA in its entirety and met with the necessary trust and positive response by all those involved in the peace process, leading as soon as possible to the restoration of devolved government in the province," he concluded.
23/07/2005 | News
The PACE President today expressed his consternation following the bomb attacks in the Egyptian resort of Sharm al-Sheikh. René van der Linden expressed, on behalf of all the members of the Parliamentary Assembly, his condoleances and solidarity with the families of the victims and injured. "This new criminal act, a week after the attacks in London, reminds us once again that terrorism has no boundaries and that it is therefore necessary to increase international co-operation to combat terrorism. The Parliamentary Assembly will continue to help combating terrorism and promoting intercultural dialogue, including with countries situated beyond European borders", he said.
11/07/2005 | News
"The year 2005 has seen the 60th anniversary of the end of the war which brought into being the shared commitment of all civilised peoples that 'never again' should we see such inhumanity towards our fellow human beings", said Council of Europe leaders in a joint statement. "Today sees the 10th anniversary of the massacre in Srebrenica – a stark reminder that our commitment to eradicate such inhumanity has not yet been fulfilled. We ask – how, in only one generation, can we have forgotten that when humanity is sacrificed for power or greed, all is lost, we are all lost? What happened in the region of Srebrenica in 1995 was a crime against our common humanity."
30/06/2005 | News
A seminar for senior advisers from the parliaments of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia – the third in a series – ended in Strasbourg yesterday. The seminar, organised by PACE’s Directorate of Interparliamentary Relations at the initiative of its Secretary General Bruno Haller, was devoted to “exchanging experience of co-operation in education and culture”. Topics covered included higher education policies and research, language policy, history teaching and cultural and natural heritage and youth and sport.
27/06/2005 | News
A three-member, cross-party delegation from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) visited Bulgaria from 24 to 26 June to make an assessment of the 25 June parliamentary election, without carrying out a full-scale election observation mission. “Bulgaria has made a lot of progress in carrying out democratic elections since it became part of the Council of Europe thirteen years ago,” said Gülsün Bilgehan, a member of the delegation, but regretted that these elections also witnessed the lowest voter turnout in Bulgaria in fifteen years (53.5%). The parliamentarians –Gülsün Bilgehan (Turkey, SOC), Igor Chernyshenko (Russia, EDG) and Alexander Fomenko (Russia, UEL) – met representatives of the different political parties represented in parliament as well as election officials and NGOs before visiting polling stations on the day of the vote.
24/06/2005 | News
PACE today called on Council of Europe member States and observers to grant local electoral rights to all their citizens (nationals), without imposing residency requirements. The adopted text on Abolition of restrictions on the right to vote, the Assembly states that all legal residents are normally obliged to pay local taxes and their lives are directly affected by the decisions of local authorities. Therefore, “the right to vote and to stand as candidates in local elections should be granted to all residents regardless of their nationality or ethnic origin.”
24/06/2005 | News
European governments need to put more money into mental health services to ensure quicker and easier access for most people, and involve patients, their families and practitioners more, according to PACE. In a resolution adopted today, the parliamentarians said care provided in the community – rather than in institutions – can often mean a better quality of life for patients, but only if sufficient resources are transferred to make it work. PACE also encouraged the use of multi-disciplinary care teams and a broad range of treatments.