01/11/2024 | President
“As times change, we must recognize that our achievements are never guaranteed, and that we must therefore remain steadfast in upholding the values that guide us and continue to fight for them”, PACE President Theodoros Rousopoulos said in Athens at a ceremony marking 50 years since the re...
30/10/2024 | Legal Affairs and Human Rights
On the occasion of the International Day of Political Prisoners, PACE General Rapporteur for political prisoners, Thórhildur Sunna Ævarsdóttir (Iceland, SOC), made the following statement: “Imprisoning people for expressing themselves is a lethal weapon against democracy. Criminalising dissent is...
28/10/2024 | Election observation
The early parliamentary elections held on 27 October in Bulgaria were competitive and professionally managed by the election administration, however the persistently low voter turnout underscored a deep-seated lack of trust among the electorate in the country’s political leadership, a delegation...
27/10/2024 | Election observation
While voters were offered a choice between 18 candidate lists and candidates could generally campaign freely, Georgia’s parliamentary elections were marred by entrenched polarization and concerns over recently adopted legislation and its impact on fundamental freedoms and civil society, as well...
25/10/2024 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
On the eve of the Intersex awareness day (26 October), PACE General Rapporteur on the rights of LGBTI people Béatrice Fresko-Rolfo (Monaco, ALDE) made the following statement: “The rights of intersex persons are not yet fully protected in Europe. They are frequently left out from policy-making...
24/10/2024 | President
PACE President Theodoros Rousopoulos, in the third episode of his new series of vodcasts posted today, talks to the current President of the European Court of Human Rights Dr Marko Bošnjak about the work of the Court, how judges are elected and how they deal with the many cases coming before them...
24/10/2024 | President
Addressing the 3rd Parliamentary Summit of the International Crimea Platform in Riga today, PACE President Theodoros Rousopoulos highlighted the Assembly’s range of proposals since April 2022 calling for the establishment of “a comprehensive system of justice for the crimes committed by Russia in...
22/10/2024 | Legal Affairs and Human Rights
A PACE committee has proposed a number of ways to increase the Assembly’s exchanges with civil society, whose role in a democracy should be “celebrated and protected”, while also introducing a code of conduct to ensure that any exchanges with what it terms “interest representatives” – or...
22/10/2024 | President
Speaking at a meeting on “The Council of Europe and Artificial Intelligence: A World in Transition”, organised in Kalamata (Greece) on 18 October by the Chamber of Messinia, in co-operation with the Region of Peloponnese and the Municipality of Kalamata, PACE President Theodoros Rousopoulos...
22/10/2024 | Migration, International Protection and Economic Co-operation
The report presented by Paul Gavan (Ireland, UEL) to the Migration Committee, meeting in Ljubljana on 16-17 October, highlights the importance of a European approach of migration, not limited to Italy alone, despite the substantial number of individuals arriving in Europe through Italy. It...
21/10/2024 | Election observation
Moldova’s 20 October presidential election and constitutional referendum were well-managed, and contestants campaigned freely in an environment characterized by concerns over illicit foreign interference and active disinformation efforts. While this affected the integrity of the process...
21/10/2024 | Migration, International Protection and Economic Co-operation
In-depth discussions on how Council of Europe member states should balance their right to protect their borders while respecting fully their international human rights obligations were the focus of a series of exchanges of view during a meeting of PACE’s Committee on Migration, Refugees and...