17/06/2009 | Monitoring
PACE co-rapporteurs Josette Durrieu (France, SOC) and Egidijus Vareikis (Lithuania, EPP/CD) for the monitoring of Moldova’s obligations and commitments, today took note of the positive changes to the Electoral Code which the Moldovan Parliament adopted on Monday and which tend in the direction of the Venice Commission’s and the Assembly’s recommendations. These changes, which were adopted by 59 out of 101 votes, the opposition having declined to associate itself with the ballot, are intended to reduce the electoral threshold from 6% to 5%, and the participation threshold from 50% plus one vote to 33% plus one vote.
16/06/2009 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
“The family should be seen as one of the essential resources for kick-starting the economic system. In that respect, legislators are able to steer social and family policies towards strengthening family cohesion while enabling families to face the challenges raised by the crisis,” Luca Volontè (Italy, EPP/CD) emphasised today at the opening of a Council of Europe Conference of Ministers responsible for Family Affairs, organised in conjunction with the Austrian Ministry of the Economy, Family and Youth.
16/06/2009 | President
"We are very concerned about some of the proposed changes to the legislation regulating non-governmental organisations and media in Azerbaijan. Amendments as proposed, which will be reportedly submitted for parliamentary decision this Friday, may create serious obstacles for the freedom of expression and normal functioning of the civil society in Azerbaijan. They may even lead to the closing of the Council of Europe School of Political Studies in Baku"...
15/06/2009 | Monitoring
Georges Colombier (France, EPP/CD) and John Prescott (United Kingdom, SOC), PACE co-rapporteurs on the monitoring of the honouring of obligations and commitments by Armenia, will be making a fact-finding visit to Yerevan on 16 and 17 June 2009, as part of the implementation of PACE Resolutions 1609 (2008), 1620 (2008) and 1643 (2009) on the functioning of democratic institutions in Armenia. The co-rapporteurs are to meet the President of the Republic Serzh Sargsyan, the President of the National Assembly Hovik Abrahamyan, the Minister for Foreign Affairs Edward Nalbandian and the Prosecutor General Aghvan Hovsepyan.
15/06/2009 | President
Lluís Maria de Puig, Président de l’ l’Assemblée parlementaire du Conseil de l’Europe (APCE), se rendra les 16 et 17 juin en visite officielle dans « l'ex-République yougoslave de Macédoine », au cours de laquelle il devrait rencontrer le Président de la République, Gorge Ivanov, le Président de l’Assemblée, Trajko Veljanoski, le Premier ministre, Nikola Gruevski, et le ministre des Affaires étrangères, Antonijo Milososki.
11/06/2009 | Migration, International Protection and Economic Co-operation
“Restitution is the optimal response to housing, land and property loss, because it allows a free choice between all three durable solutions for a refugee or internally displaced person (IDP), namely return to the original home in safety and dignity, integration at the place of displacement or resettlement,” said Jørgen Poulsen (Denmark, ALDE), who is preparing a PACE report on “Solving property issues of refugees and internally displaced persons”. He was speaking at the end of a fact-finding mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (8-10 June 2009).
11/06/2009 | Session
The biennial debate on “the state of human rights in Europe”, addresses by Irish President Mary McAleese and Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor, and debates on Belarus and Armenia are among highlights of PACE’s summer session in Strasbourg on 22-26 June. Parliamentarians are also due to decide on the creation of a “partner for democracy” status within the Assembly, aimed at the parliaments of countries neighbouring Europe, and will consider a challenge to the credentials of the Ukrainian delegation. There has also been a request for an urgent debate on the election process for the Secretary General of the Council of Europe.
10/06/2009 | Monitoring
Charles Goerens (Luxembourg, ALDE) and Andreas Gross (Switzerland, SOC), PACE co-rapporteurs for the monitoring of obligations and commitments by Serbia, are to make a fact-finding visit to Belgrade on 12 June, during which they are due to meet the President of the Republic, Boris Tadic, to discuss the authorities' practical plans to honour their remaining obligations and commitments, in the spirit of Assembly Resolution 1661 (2009). Talks are also scheduled with the members of the Serbian delegation to PACE.
09/06/2009 | Bureau
The biennial debate on “the state of human rights in Europe”, addresses by Irish President Mary McAleese and Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor, and debates on Belarus and Armenia are among highlights of PACE’s summer session in Strasbourg on 22-26 June. Parliamentarians are also due to decide on the creation of a “partner for democracy” status within the Assembly, aimed at the parliaments of countries neighbouring Europe, and will consider a challenge to the credentials of the Ukrainian delegation. There has also been a request for an urgent debate on the election process for the Secretary General of the Council of Europe.
08/06/2009 | Monitoring
Josette Durrieu (France, SOC) and Egidijus Vareikis (Lithuania, EPP/CD), PACE co-rapporteurs for the monitoring of the obligations and commitments of Moldova, are to make a fact-finding visit to Chisinau on 10 June, as part of follow-up to PACE Resolution 1666 (2009) on the functioning of democratic institutions in Moldova.
08/06/2009 | Political Affairs and Democracy
“We hope that this Infopoint will be the first significant sign of a new path in Belarus and a major change in the relations between the country and the Council of Europe,” said Andrea Rigoni (Italy, ALDE), PACE rapporteur on Belarus, at the opening ceremony of a new Information Point in Minsk. “Our greatest hope is that it will, ultimately, be able to contribute to the process of democratisation in this country and bring it into our organisation, which is the House of Democracy”.
05/06/2009 | Election observation
A PACE pre-electoral delegation visited Tirana on the eve of the parliamentary elections of 28 June 2009. The delegation stresses that the authorities have the responsibility to take all necessary measures to provide each voter with a new ID card in order to ensure that all voters will be able to fulfil their constitutional right on 28 June. The delegation also notes that the significantly improved Electoral Code, adopted in December 2008, could have a positive impact on the conduct of the democratic electoral process. However, the implementation of the Code in good faith also requires the commitment by the main political parties to respect the Code.