27/01/2010 | Session
The credentials of the Albanian delegation to the Assembly, which were challenged on the opening day of the session on the grounds that it did not reflect the composition of the Albanian Parliament, were confirmed yesterday. In its opinion, the Rules Committee said it had examined the objections, but concluded the delegation was appointed in compliance with the Rules – though it also expressed the hope that “a solution will be found to end the political situation in the country which would also allow the Albanian parliament to appoint a complete delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly under normal conditions”.
27/01/2010 | Session
The credentials of the Armenian delegation to the Assembly, which were challenged on the opening day of the session on the grounds that the Armenian Parliament had “manipulated its internal rules”, were confirmed yesterday. In its opinion, the Rules Committee said it had examined the objections, but concluded the Armenian delegation was appointed in compliance with the Rules – though it added that the situation of the Armenian opposition should continue to be monitored.
27/01/2010 | President
On the occasion of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Mevlüt Çavusoglu (Turkey, EDG), PACE President, stressed that remembering was the best way to prevent a repeat of the tragedy of the Holocaust. “Under Resolution 60/7 of 2005, the United Nations General Assembly declared 27 January as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Exactly 65 years ago, on 27 January 1945, the Soviet military liberated some 7,000 prisoners remaining in the Nazi death camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau in Poland.
27/01/2010 | Session
The Middle East peace process is in the doldrums and the slow progress is causing frustration and bitterness, the Assembly today stated at the end of a debate on the situation in the Middle East. All parties must overcome distrust to get it back on track, the parliamentarians said, and recalled that neither military action nor terrorism will achieve peace. A negotiated solution agreed by both parties is the only way forward, they underlined during a debate in which participated Daniel Ayalon, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Israel, and Mohammad Shtayyeh, Minister of Public Works and Housing of the Palestinian National Authority.
26/01/2010 | Session
In a resolution adopted today, the Assembly called on Council of Europe member states which had not yet done so to sign and/or ratify the Council of Europe Convention on action against trafficking in human beings, and encouraged the European Union to accede to it. It also spoke out in favour of intensified co-operation with other international organisations, taking special care to avoid all risk of duplication between the different monitoring mechanisms.
26/01/2010 | Session
PACE has again urged all domestic stakeholders in Bosnia and Herzegovina to engage fully in a meaningful and constructive dialogue about amendments to the Constitution, in line with the recommendations of the Venice Commission, before the 2010 parliamentary elections. Based on the report by Mevlüt Çavusoglu (Turkey, EDG) and Kimmo Sasi (Finland, EPP/DC), the Assembly also suggested launching a wide discussion, with the participation of key local and international stakeholders, about the challenges the country has to face.
26/01/2010 | Session
As part of a parliamentary debate on action against trafficking in human beings and the need to promote the Council of Europe convention on trafficking, PACE's Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men organised a press conference with Nikolay Mikhaylovich Rantsev, the father of a victim of trafficking. Mr Rantsev took his case to the European Court of Human Rights and on 7 January 2010, the Court found against Cyprus and Russia. The applicant’s lawyer, Ludmila Churkina, was also present, together with Gisela Wurm (Austria, SOC), PACE rapporteur on action against trafficking, and José Mendes-Bota, Chairperson of the Committee.
26/01/2010 | Session
Strasbourg, 26.01.2010 - The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), meeting this week in plenary session in Strasbourg, today elected Guido Raimondi as judge to the European Court of Human Rights with respect to Italy. Judges are elected by PACE from a list of three candidates nominated by each State which has ratified the European Convention on Human Rights.
26/01/2010 | Session
"Close co-operation between Council of Europe, European Union and OSCE is absolutely necessary towards the globalisation of human rights", the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs highlighted the relevance of international organisations’ co-ordination, in order to strengthen fundamental rights’ protection in Europe, and especially a common governance on migrations’ policies. Franco Frattini stressed the importance of the European identity, and confirmed the country’s engagement in working for women’s rights. In the framework of the Council of Europe core-business, a final mention has been for the Italian input on the 20th anniversary of the Venice Commission and the recent Presidency of the North-South Centre in Lisbon.
26/01/2010 | Session
While emphasising the uniqueness of our common institutions and practices, the Prime Minister of Greece said that they neither could nor should be taken for granted. Media concentration, the need for greater global awareness of environmental issues and the use of diversity to create new bonds of solidarity: these are all challenges facing democracy. Greater protection of the rights of minorities and an end to conflicts are also vital to achieving a more integrated Europe. 'The world needs more Europe today, not less', he concluded.
26/01/2010 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
"Are decisions on pandemics taken on the best scientific evidence only?" was the question asked at a January public hearing of PACE's Committee on Social, Health and Family Affairs which looked into the handling of the H1N1 pandemic. The World Health Organisation's flu chief defended his...
25/01/2010 | Session
Presenting his political reform plan to the Parliamentary Assembly on 25 January, the Secretary General said the Council of Europe should be "a lighthouse for Europe" by anticipating social and political crises, and by providing solutions. He said that the reform aims to revitalise the organisation as a political and innovative body, to make it more flexible and visible, and to concentrate on high added value projects.