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‘An excellent example of parliamentary diplomacy’

12/04/2013 | News

The heads of the parliamentary arms of the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Council of Europe have hailed the dynamic co-operation which exists between the two bodies, describing it as “an excellent example of parliamentary diplomacy”.

PACE delegation attends St Petersburg conference on role of parliamentary organisations

10/04/2013 | News

A PACE delegation, headed by its President Jean-Claude Mignon, will participate in a parliamentary conference in St Petersburg on 12 April on “The role of parliamentary organisations in building a Europe without dividing lines”.

13/12/2012 | News

Jean-Claude Mignon: young people should be encouraged to take part in politics

24/09/2012 | News

“Young people have unprecedented access to information but this information does not necessarily give them any real say and will not always enable them to join existing associations or political bodies. Young people should therefore be encouraged to take part in politics,” said Jean-Claude Mignon, PACE President, speaking today in Saint Petersburg at the opening of the 9th Council of Europe Conference of Ministers responsible for Youth.

Europe needs youth to grow and prosper, Luca Volontè recalls in St Petersburg

22/09/2012 | News

“Policies for young people and investment in human capital must not be considered as social expenditure but as medium- and long-term investment in the growth of individual countries and the European continent. Europe needs youth to grow and prosper. This might seem obvious, but the short-term policies unfortunately predominate today in a great many of European countries,” Luca Volontè (Italy, EPP/CD) stressed today on the occasion of the Youth Event on Young people’s access to rights: development of innovative youth policies organised in St. Petersburg.

EU accession to the European Convention on Human Rights: ‘the momentum must not be lost’ says joint...

19/06/2012 | News

Strasbourg, 19.06.2012 – A joint informal body of members of the European Parliament and Council of Europe parliamentarians has welcomed the prospect of talks resuming on EU accession to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Last week the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe...

Match-fixing: PACE calls for mechanisms to combat a ‘problem posing a threat to public order’

25/04/2012 | News

Expressing its concern at the scale of manipulation of sports results, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) today called for the adoption of mechanisms to limit the risk of match-fixing, illegal betting and other forms of corruption. This problem and the illicit profits from sports betting are "jeopardising public order and the rule of law".

Belarus: PACE ad hoc committee calls for the release of those imprisoned in the aftermath of the 2010...

07/10/2011 | News

In a report declassified today, a PACE ad hoc committee retraces the events of 19 December 2010, following the presidential election in Belarus, which gave rise to violent repression of a protest movement and led to the arrest of 600 people.

European Democrat Group elects new leader

24/01/2011 | News

British Conservative MP Robert Walter was today unanimously elected as the new Chairman of the European Democrat Group (EDG), currently the third largest of the five political groups in the Parliamentary Assembly. The Vice-Chairpersons are Konstantin Kosachev (Russian Federation) and Karin Woldseth (Norway). “It is a great honour for me to be entrusted with this difficult but challenging task,” Mr Walter said.

Terrorism should be combated by means that fully respect human rights

16/12/2010 | News

“All Council of Europe member states are under the obligation to protect the public against terrorist attacks […] and all perpetrators of terrorist acts, but also the instigators and organisers, must be held to account for their actions,” today stressed PACE Vice-President Andres Herkel (Estonia, EPP/CD), speaking on behalf of the PACE President at the opening of a conference on the prevention of terrorism held by the Council of Europe in Istanbul.

PACE Legal Affairs Committee calls for swift action in nine countries

17/11/2010 | News

Unanimously adopting its 7th report on the implementation of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights today during a meeting in Paris, PACE Legal Affairs Committee has urged nine countries where major structural problems have led to many repeat violations – Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Moldova, Poland, Romania, the Russian Federation, Turkey and Ukraine – to take swift action.

Parliamentary Assembly President welcomes the abolition of the death penalty in Ukraine

03/12/2009 | News

STRASBOURG, 05.01.2000 - "The decision of the Ukrainian Constitutional Court that the death penalty is unconstitutional and can therefore no longer be applied, is a welcome step forward in the honouring of Ukraine's obligations and commitments as a member state of the Council of Europe. I trust that this decision will soon be followed by the formal ratification of Protocol 6 to the European Human Rights Convention concerning the abolition of the death penalty," said Lord RUSSELL-JOHNSTON, President of the COUNCIL OF EUROPE Parliamentary Assembly.