25/01/2011 | Session
PACE meeting this week in plenary session in Strasbourg, today elected Paulo Sérgio Pinto de Albuquerque as judge to the European Court of Human Rights in respect of Portugal. Mr de Albuquerque, having obtained an absolute majority of votes cast, is elected a judge of the European Court of Human Rights for a term of office of nine years starting after 5 February 2011.
25/01/2011 | Session
Expressing concern at the decline in member states’ commitment to the Council of Europe, PACE has suggested holding a summit “to give the Organisation fresh political impetus, make its member states more responsible towards it and, if need be, redefine its current role”. In a resolution adopted today, based on the report by Jean-Claude Mignon (France, EPP/CD) on follow-up to reform of the Council of Europe, members of the Assembly reiterated their support for the first wave of measures introduced by the Secretary General.
24/01/2011 | Session
On adopting its final agenda at the opening of the 2011 Winter Session (24-28 January), the Parliamentary Assembly decided to hold three urgent debates on Thursday 27 January. The subjects will be the recent violence against Christians in the Middle East, the situation in Belarus in the aftermath of the presidential election and the situation in Tunisia. The Assembly has also decided to hold a current affairs debate on the functioning of democracy in Hungary.
24/01/2011 | Session
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) today re-elected Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu as its President. PACE also elected its Vice-Presidents
24/01/2011 | Session
Following the adoption of its agenda this morning, PACE will debate the report by Dick Marty (Switzerland, ALDE) on “Inhuman treatment of people and illicit trafficking in human organs in Kosovo” on Tuesday 25 January at 10 a.m., instead of at 3 p.m. as originally foreseen. Mr Marty will give a press conference at 4.30 p.m. (Room 1, Palais de l’Europe).
24/01/2011 | Session
In his opening speech today at the January PACE session, the President of the Assembly Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu regretted that in some member states, confrontations between the government and the opposition were seriously hampering the functioning of democratic institutions. “People must not die as a result of political struggles. This is clearly unacceptable,” the President said, referring to the situation in Albania, where existing tensions degenerated last week, resulting in the deaths of several persons.
24/01/2011 | Session
PACE President Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and the chairs of the five political groups today paid tribute to Mateo Sorinas, on the eve of his retirement, for his 33 years of outstanding work in the Secretariat of the Parliamentary Assembly, and in particular for the last five years spent as PACE Secretary General.
24/01/2011 | Session
The credentials of the PACE delegations from Montenegro, San Marino and Serbia were challenged on the opening day of the Assembly’s plenary session in Strasbourg on the grounds that they do not contain at least one Representative who is a member of “the under-represented sex”, as required by the Rules.
24/01/2011 | Session
PACE President Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu issued a strong condemnation of today’s bomb blast at Moscow’s main airport as members of the Assembly – currently in session in Strasbourg – stood in silence for a minute to remember the victims. “On behalf of the Assembly, I would like to express my shock and horror at the news of today’s bombling, which has – according to reports – killed at least 31 people and injured more than 100 more. It seems that a suicide bomber may have been involved,” the President said in a statement to the Assembly.
24/01/2011 | Session
In his speech to the parliamentary Assembly today, the Secretary General highlighted the pivotal role of the Council of Europe and the relevance of its ongoing reform, aiming at political action on a pan-European level. "A cold wind is blowing over Europe", he said.
24/01/2011 | Session
Addressing the Parliamentary Assembly, Ahmet Davutoglu, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Turkey and Chairman of the Committee of Ministers, stressed his support to the reform process initiated by the Secretary General, recalling his country’s commitment as Chair of the Committee of Ministers 'to put the Council of Europe back on the international scene as an innovative, more flexible and visible organisation.'
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.