11/05/2020 | Monitoring
PACE’s co-rapporteurs on the functioning of democratic institutions in Poland, Pieter Omtzigt (Netherlands, EPP/CD) and Azadeh Rojhan Gustafsson (Sweden, SOC), have taken note of the de facto last-minute cancellation of the Presidential election in Poland, due to take place on 10 May 2020. While...
11/05/2020 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
With violence against women increasing during the COVID-19 lockdown, parliamentarians and experts from across the international community came together in an online conversation on Europe Day (5 May) to urge governments to tackle this “dramatic situation” by fully implementing the measures laid...
09/05/2020 | President
“Life after the Corona crisis will be different – but our rights and freedoms should stay the same,” said PACE President Rik Daems in a special video message to mark the Schuman Declaration (9 May) and the forthcoming 70th anniversary of the European Convention on Human Rights. “In the Council of...
07/05/2020 | Political Affairs and Democracy
Two PACE rapporteurs have called on national policy-makers and international institutions to “act in a concerted manner now in order to beat both the virus and the crisis”, urging a strong political response which stabilises economies while protecting the vulnerable. In a joint statement...
07/05/2020 | Bureau
At its meeting on 7 May, the Bureau approved a memorandum on arrangements for the conduct of remote committee meetings, introducing supplementary working methods on a temporary basis in response to the exceptional situation of COVID-19. The organisation and holding of such meetings must guarantee...
05/05/2020 | Political Affairs and Democracy
“PACE‘s support for democracy, human rights and the rule of law in Kosovo* holds strong in these challenging times,” said PACE Rapporteur Peter BEYER (Germany, EPP/CD). “The people of Kosovo* have been hit hard by the current Coronavirus crisis, as are many others around the world. My sympathy...
05/05/2020 | Migration, International Protection and Economic Co-operation
“It is an outstanding effort during the current pandemic that Greece transferred several hundred vulnerable migrants from island camps to Athens on 4 May. I wish to praise Greece for this humanitarian act, at a moment when Greece will begin to chair the Committee of Ministers,” declared Fabien...
04/05/2020 | President
“The Council of Europe was born on the ashes of World War Two, thanks to brave people who, in a spirit of sacrifice, resisted tyranny and oppression to affirm the values of democracy, human rights and the rule of law,” said Rik Daems, the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of...
30/04/2020 | Legal Affairs and Human Rights
In two videos released today on the Assembly’s YouTube channel, Boriss Cilevics (Latvia, SOC), chairperson of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights, and Vladimir Vardanyan (Armenia, EPP/CD), chairperson of the Sub-committee on Human Rights, discuss the impact of COVID-19 on human rights...
30/04/2020 | President
On the occasion of World Press Freedom Day on 3 May, Rik Daems, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), has recalled the vital role of journalists and the media in a democratic society. “In the age of misinformation and propaganda, professional and reliable...
30/04/2020 | Bureau
At its meeting on 30 April, the Bureau decided to postpone its part-session scheduled to be held in Strasbourg on 22-26 June to a later date, but before the October part-session. A decision on the date is expected to be taken by the Bureau at its meeting in June. The Bureau also approved a...
27/04/2020 | Standing Committee
The Standing Committee (*) of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) will meet by videoconference on Thursday 30 April 2020. PACE President Rik Daems will make an opening speech. The Chairpersons of the five political groups (SOC, EPP/CD, ALDE, EC/DA, UEL) have tabled a...