12/11/2010 | Standing Committee
In a resolution adopted today, the Assembly called on member states to combat the harmful effects of noise and light pollution. It advocated measures with a view to "introducing threshold values for noise and light […], imposing penalties and establishing maximum reference values for noise in connection with the WHO guidelines”.
12/11/2010 | Standing Committee
PACE's Standing Committee has demanded "immediate action" to save endangered languages in Europe, including raising awareness of them, encouraging their transmission to younger generations, and ensuring they are taught using new information technologies, if necessary.
12/11/2010 | Standing Committee
PACE President Mevlut Cavusoglu has pledged the Assembly's full support for the priorities of the new Turkish Chairmanship of the Council of Europe, particularly its work to address the current challenges of multicultural societies. During an exchange of views with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu at a meeting of PACE's Standing Committee in Antalya, the President said the Assembly had "a wealth of ideas and concrete proposals" to contribute on this topic.
11/11/2010 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
Experts negotiating a forthcoming Council of Europe treaty to combat violence against women and domestic violence are “four-fifths” of the way through their work and the convention could be ready before the end of Turkey’s six-month chairmanship of the Council of Europe, parliamentarians were told today during a meeting in Antalya. PACE’s Sub-committee on domestic violence was meeting ahead of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (25 November) to take stock of progress since the end of the Council of Europe’s campaign against domestic violence, which ended two years ago.
10/11/2010 | President
In his speech on the occasion of the handing over of the Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers from “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” to Turkey, PACE President Mevlüt Çavusoglu welcomed the priorities of the Turkish Chairmanship. He added that they went in the same direction as those of PACE.
10/11/2010 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
The Social, Health and Family Affairs Committee of the PACE will be holding a hearing in Paris on 15 November on “Combating poverty”, in connection with the preparation of a report on this subject by Luca Volontè (Italy, EPP/CD). The discussion will provide an overview of poverty in Europe and efforts to combat it and will establish a link between poverty and social exclusion. The specific case of child poverty will be considered.
08/11/2010 | Election observation
Yesterday’s parliamentary elections in Azerbaijan were characterised by a peaceful atmosphere and all opposition parties participated in the political process, but the conduct of these elections overall was not sufficient to constitute meaningful progress in the democratic development of the country, international observers said in a statement issued today. “In a welcome departure from the past, the run-up to the elections and election day were peaceful and not marred by violent incidents...,” said Paul Wille, head of the delegation of the PACE.
08/11/2010 | Culture, Science, Education and Media
The PACE Committee on Culture, Science and Education meeting in Paris, called for renewed efforts by European governments to reduce acts of violence in schools throughout Europe. Alarmed by “attacks by pupils with or without weapons, bullying and harassment among pupils, acts of hostility and even aggression by pupils against teachers,” the committee unanimously adopted a draft resolution which, as proposed by the rapporteur, Gvozden Srecko Flego (Croatia, SOC), sets out a range of guiding principles.
05/11/2010 | Standing Committee
PACE Standing Committee will meet in Antalya on Friday 12 November 2010 as Turkey takes over the chairmanship of the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers. PACE President Mevlüt Çavusoglu will open the meeting, followed by welcome addresses from Deputy Speaker of the Turkish Grand National Assembly Sadik Yakut and the Governor of Antalya Ahmet Altiparmak. The parliamentarians will then hold an exchange of views with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, who is chairing the Council of Europe’s executive body for six months from 10 November 2010.
04/11/2010 | Election observation
A 30-member delegation of PACE, led by Paul Wille (Belgium, ALDE), will be in Azerbaijan from 5 to 8 November to observe the holding of the parliamentary elections, alongside observers from the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, the European Parliament and the OSCE’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR).
04/11/2010 | President
PACE President Mevlüt Çavusoglu has written to the Speaker of the Cyprus House of Representatives Marios Garoyian expressing surprise at his reported suggestion that he was “misled” over the President’s planned visit to the northern part of the island. Mr Çavusoglu was in Cyprus from 31 October to 2 November.
03/11/2010 | President
“I wish to add my voice to those calling on Iran not to execute Sakineh Mohammadi-Ashtiani,” PACE President Mevlüt Çavusoglu said today in a statement. “While fears of an immediate execution now seem to have lessened, I am deeply concerned that her life remains under threat.” “I note Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki’s reported statement today that a final verdict in Ashtiani’s case has not yet been reached, and once again appeal for her release.”