19/01/2012 | President
In learning yesterday that Giuseppe Vedovato had died at the age of 99, Mevlüt Cavusoglu, President of the PACE, paid tribute to the former President of the Assembly: “I was deeply saddened to hear that Giuseppe Vedovato had passed away. My thoughts are with his family at this difficult time. He was a fervent European and one of the greatest allies the Council of Europe has ever had in upholding its values. He was a member of our Assembly for 22 years and finally its President from 1972 to 1975, “the first Mediterranean President”, as he liked to call himself.
17/01/2012 | Political Affairs and Democracy
Björn von Sydow (Sweden, SOC), Chairperson of the Political Affairs Committee of the PACE will pay a fact-finding visit to Belgrade on 19-20 January, in the framework of the preparation of his report on the situation in Kosovo. During his visit, he is due to meet the Speaker of the Parliament Slavica Djukić Dejanović, Prime Minister Mirko Cvetković, First Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Ivica Dačić, and Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremić, as well as the Minister for Kosovo and Metohija Goran Bogdanović.
16/01/2012 | Election observation
Notwithstanding the government’s stated ambition to strengthen Kazakhstan’s democratic processes and conduct elections in line with international standards, yesterday’s early parliamentary vote still did not meet fundamental principles of democratic elections, international observers concluded in a statement issued today. The elections were well administered at the technical level.
16/01/2012 | Election observation
A seven-member delegation from PACE is to make a “post-electoral visit” to Russia on 20 and 21 January. The delegation – made up of one member from each of the Assembly’s five political groups as well as the two rapporteurs for the monitoring of Russia – will be visiting the country on the eve of the Assembly’s winter plenary session in Strasbourg (23-27 January), where a report on the observation of Russia’s parliamentary elections is due to be discussed.
13/01/2012 | Election observation
A PACE delegation led by Andreas Gross (Switzerland, SOC) will travel to Tunis on 16 and 17 January. The President of the Venice Commission – the Council of Europe's group of independent legal experts – will also join the delegation. The purpose of this visit is to assess the scope for strengthening PACE’s institutional relations with the new Constituent National Assembly and with other Tunisian institutions and partners, following the elections of 23 October 2011.
12/01/2012 | Session
Speeches by British Prime Minister David Cameron and Finnish President Tarja Halonen will be among the highlights of the PACE winter session to be held in Strasbourg from 23 to 27 January 2012. Statements will also be made during the session by British Minister for Europe David Lidington, representing the Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers; Georgian Foreign Minister Grigol Vashadze; United Nations Under-Secretary-General Michelle Bachelet; and UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova.
12/01/2012 | President
The President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), on an official visit to Turkey, has expressed warm appreciation to the Turkish authorities for their generous treatment of Syrians fleeing the violence in their country. Speaking at the end of a visit to refugee camps in Turkey’s Hatay region, which borders Syria, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said: “The Turkish response to the Syrian refugee crisis has been swift, efficient and generous. The camps that have been set up are of a high standard, providing shelter and warmth in the depths of winter to a traumatised population.”
12/01/2012 | Monitoring
John Prescott (United Kingdom, SOC) and Axel Fischer (Germany, EPP/CD), PACE co-rapporteurs for the monitoring of Armenia, will make a fact-finding visit to Yerevan on 16-17 January. Talks are scheduled with the President of the Republic Serzh Sargsyan, the President of he National Assembly Samvel Nikoyan, the Foreign Affairs minister Edward Nalbandyan and the Justice minister Hrayr Tovmasyan, as well as with the Chairperson of the Central Election Commission Tigran Mukuchyan.
10/01/2012 | President
Addressing the Turkish Grand National Assembly today in Ankara, PACE President, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, praised the reform process undertaken by the Turkish authorities, and welcomed the importance given to a comprehensive constitutional reform.
09/01/2012 | President
PACE President Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu will make an official visit to Turkey from 9 to 13 January 2012. In Ankara (9-10 January), he will meet the President and Prime Minister, the Speaker of the Grand National Assembly and the heads of the main political parties, as well as the Foreign Affairs and Justice Ministers. He will deliver a speech to the General Assembly of the Grand National Assembly, and will visit the tomb of Atatürk.
04/01/2012 | President
Speaking as two of the five suspected murderers of London teenager Stephen Lawrence are sentenced, Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly President Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has welcomed that justice has seen the light after 18 years in one of Europe’s most notorious racist hate crimes.
03/01/2012 | Legal Affairs and Human Rights
Christoph Strässer (Germany, SOC), PACE rapporteur on “revisiting the issue of political prisoners”, has welcomed the recent liberation of Mehman Mammadov, Jabbar Savalan and Nizami Shamuradov as part of the traditional end-of-year amnesty. “I warmly welcome the liberation of these three persons, who were included in the provisional list of alleged political prisoners which I am currently studying. This is obviously a step in the right direction,” said Mr Strässer.