12/09/2012 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
PACE Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination will meet in Tirana on 13-14 September 2012 with on its order of business – Thursday 13 – an exchange of views with the Albanian authorities focusing on anti-discrimination law and policy; gender equality; trafficking in human beings; the situation of Roma and national minorities; prenatal sex selection; discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity.
12/09/2012 | President
“I am shocked and saddened to learn of the violent deaths of the US Ambassador in Libya and three of his colleagues,” said PACE President Jean-Claude Mignon. “Whatever the reasons, this is an unjustifiable attack on diplomats who were trying to help Libyans to build better lives. I would like to extend my wholehearted sympathies to the families of the victims, as well as the American authorities and people,” he said.
12/09/2012 | Election observation
The forthcoming parliamentary elections in Georgia, on 1 October 2012, are crucial for Georgia’s democratic development and will be a litmus test to confirm the country’s commitment to democratic values and principles, said PACE pre-electoral delegation that visited Tbilisi on 11 and 12 September 2012. It welcomed the competitive and pluralist election environment, which will give the voter a real choice between distinct alternatives on election day. However, the delegation expressed its serious concern about the increasing polarisation and antagonism in the pre-electoral environment, which is overshadowing the election campaign.
11/09/2012 | Political Affairs and Democracy
In a draft resolution “For more democratic elections” adopted today in Helsinki, PACE Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy observes that election-related violations persist in several member States – opacity of election campaign funding, misuse of administrative resources, pressure and intimidation brought to bear on candidates and voters, unequal access to the media, the electoral administration’s lack of independence, neutrality and impartiality, restrictions on the right to vote and to stand for election, vote buying, ballot box stuffing, and ineffective complaints procedures.
11/09/2012 | Political Affairs and Democracy
“The Council of Europe has contributed to the stability and security of our continent in a remarkable way notably through the prevention of conflicts and their aftercare. Today’s human rights violations are often the cause of tomorrow’s conflicts. Thus respect for human rights is a powerful instrument in conflict prevention”, Former President of Finland Tarja Halonen said today addressing in Helsinki PACE’s Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy.
11/09/2012 | Political Affairs and Democracy
“The right balance has to be struck between national interests and respect for human rights in Council of Europe member States’ foreign policies”, PACE Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy said today during its meeting in Helsinki. When foreign policy “neglects human rights for too long” and focuses solely on strategic economic and geo-political interests – it added - “human rights crises may erupt and “humanitarian interventions” become urgent and moral necessities”.
11/09/2012 | President
“I warmly welcome today’s European Parliament resolution on the illegal detention of prisoners in European countries by the CIA,” said Jean-Claude Mignon, PACE President. “It is now more than five years since Senator Dick Marty first presented to PACE credible evidence of secret CIA prisons in Poland and Romania, and the involvement of other European countries in illegal renditions...
10/09/2012 | Political Affairs and Democracy
“It becomes increasingly important to make sure that democratic institutions and processes can function well and that our commonly adopted rules are respected. One of our most important assets in difficult times is the confidence of citizens in the democratic process,” said Eero Heinäluoma, Speaker of the Finnish Parliament, in her speech at the opening of the meeting of the PACE Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy in Helsinki today.
07/09/2012 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
PACE’s Social Affairs Committee has given its full backing to a European tax on financial transactions, urging that it should cover as many countries as possible – as a first step to a global tax – and should also be levied on derivatives trading and off-exchange transactions. The committee, adopting a draft resolution based on a report by Hermine Naghdalyan (Armenia, ALDE), also said ...
07/09/2012 | Migration, International Protection and Economic Co-operation
“The latest sinking incidents – the terrible loss of life off the coast of Turkey yesterday, in which so many children died, and the news that some people are still missing after the incident off Lampedusa in the early hours of this morning – are a warning to Europe of what can happen when humanitarian tragedies are ignored, said Tineke Strik (Netherlands, SOC), who has investigated boat deaths in the Mediterranean for the PACE.
07/09/2012 | Political Affairs and Democracy
PACE Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy, which will meet on 10-11 September in Helsinki (Finland), will hold an exchange of views with the Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Erkki Tuomioja. The meeting will be opened by the Speaker of the Finnish Parliament, Eero Heinäluoma, and the Chairperson of the Finnish delegation to the PACE, Susanna Huovinen.
06/09/2012 | Election observation
A five-member PACE delegation led by Luca Volontè (Italy, EPP/CD), will carry out a pre-electoral mission to Tbilisi on 11-12 September 2012, ahead of the parliamentary elections in Georgia on 1 October 2012, to assess the electoral framework and campaign. The delegation is due to meet the President of the Republic, the Speaker of the Parliament and the Foreign Minister as well as representatives of the political parties running in the elections.