01/06/2010 | Migration, International Protection and Economic Co-operation
The Chair of PACE’s Migration Committee has challenged European states never to detain children in the context of migration. Issuing the call during a major conference on Human Rights and Migration which ended today in Lisbon, John Greenway (United Kingdom, EDG) said: “Let’s be clear: when it comes to migration, children should never be put in detention. Full stop.”
01/06/2010 | Political Affairs and Democracy
Discussing today a report by Andreas Gross (Switzerland, SOC) on democracy in Europe: crisis and perspectives, the Political Affairs Committee concluded that the world economic crisis had accentuated symptoms of crisis of democracy: lack of necessary regulation and political control over financial interests, highly centralised executive decision-making, concentration of power and money, disinterest in the current institutionalised procedures of democracy...
01/06/2010 | Political Affairs and Democracy
Discussing a report by Björn von Sydow (Sweden, SOC) on the situation in Kosovo[1] and the role of the Council of Europe, PACE Political Affairs Committee, meeting in Paris today, expressed its concern about the poor respect for the rule of law in Kosovo affecting the everyday lives of all persons, irrespective of the community they belong to, and their trust in the political system.
31/05/2010 | President
Council of Europe Committee of Ministers Chair Antonio Miloshoski and Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly President Mevlüt Çavusoglu have condemned the terrorist attack on the Iskenderun Naval Base in Turkey, and expressed their deep sadness at the loss of life it caused. "The Council of Europe condemns terrorism in any form, which is an affront to the values we defend. Terrorism targets the right to live in dignity and security, and thus goes against all Council of Europe values," they said in a joint statement.
31/05/2010 | President
“I am deeply shocked to learn that civilians who were attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza have lost their lives or been severely injured,” the PACE President Mevlüt Çavusoglu said in a statement, reacting to last night’s interception by Israel of an aid convoy to Gaza. “This should never happen, whatever the reason. I condemn this action by Israeli forces and deplore the disproportionate use of force employed."
31/05/2010 | Legal Affairs and Human Rights
The situation in the North Caucasus region, particularly the Chechen Republic, Ingushetia and Dagestan, is currently “the most serious and delicate situation” from the angle of protecting human rights and affirming the rule of law in the whole geographic area covered by the Council of Europe, as stressed by the text adopted this morning by PACE Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights, on the basis of the report drawn up by Dick Marty (Switzerland, ALDE). The unanimously adopted draft resolution paints a dark picture, particularly in the Chechen Republic, where the current authorities continue to nurture “a climate of pervading fear”.
31/05/2010 | Monitoring
Renate Wohlwend (Liechtenstein, EPP/CD) and Mailis Reps (Estonia, ALDE), the co-rapporteurs for the monitoring of Ukraine, will make a fact-finding visit to Ukraine from 31 May to 4 June 2010. They will discuss the policy priorities and reform programme of the new government, as well as recent developments concerning media freedom, and the establishment of an agreed roadmap for adoption by the Verkhovna Rada of the reforms needed to bring Ukraine into line with its Council of Europe obligations and commitments.
28/05/2010 | President
PACE President Mevlüt Çavusoglu has called for a political culture which values diversity. “Even if democracy means that the views of the majority prevail, there should be a balance which ensures fair treatment of minorities and avoids any abuse of a dominant position,” he said, addressing delegates at the Third Forum of the UN Alliance of Civilisations in Rio. Cultural diversity and dialogue between cultures were a priority for the Council of Europe, the president said.
28/05/2010 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
“Food production is due to double by 2050 but it is difficult to see how there can be any more land on which to grow crops”, said Yann Fichet, Director of Institutional and Industrial Affairs at Monsanto-France, addressing the members of the PACE Committee on the Environment at a hearing on genetically modified organisms (GMOs), in preparation for a report on this question by Jean-François Le Grand (France, EPP/CD).
28/05/2010 | Legal Affairs and Human Rights
PACE's Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights is due to approve a report by Dick Marty (Switzerland, ALDE) on "Legal remedies for human rights violations in the North Caucasus region" during a meeting of the committee in Paris on Monday 31 May. The report – which becomes public if approved by the committee – is due to be debated by the Parliamentary Assembly on Tuesday 22 June during its summer plenary session (21-25 June 2010).
28/05/2010 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
The PACE Committee on the Environment today noted that although there has been a significant decrease in the surface area covered by forests in developing countries, in Europe such surface areas are increasing as a “result of a serious scientific approach to reforestation”. With the aim of securing the sustainable use of forests, the Committee this morning adopted a draft resolution calling on European states to use forests in a way “not exceeding their capacity for regeneration” and in line with “good management and conservation of forest biodiversity”.
28/05/2010 | President
Extremists who abuse Islam should not be invoked to justify a negative approach to Islam and Muslims in general, PACE President Mevlüt Çavusoglu has said, speaking at a roundtable on Islamophobia co-organised by the UN Alliance of Civilisations, the Organisation of the Islamic Conference and the Council of Europe ahead of the Third Forum of the UN Alliance of Civilisations in Rio. Yet Muslims should also be the first to condemn “political extremism under the cover of Islam” and work to transmit core European values within their communities, he said, by highlighting their compatibility with Islam as a religion.