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.
05/06/2009 | Monitoring
The PACE Monitoring Committee, meeting in Paris today, has adopted its contribution to the debate on the state of human rights in Europe to be held by the Assembly on 24 June, during its forthcoming plenary session in Strasbourg. The text contains conclusions drawn from the specific reports on the eleven States currently subject to a monitoring procedure (Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Russian Federation, Serbia and Ukraine) and the three subject to post-monitoring dialogue (Bulgaria, Turkey and "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia").
04/06/2009 | President
PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig yesterday completed an official three-day tour of Tunisia during which he outlined to the Tunisian authorities the "partner for democracy” status, which is due to be debated in the Assembly at the next part-session and will cover countries including the southern Mediterranean ones.
03/06/2009 | Election observation
A four-member PACE delegation, led by Corien Jonker (Netherlands, EPP/CD), will carry out a pre-electoral mission to Tirana on 4-5 June, ahead of the parliamentary elections to be held in Albania on 28 June 2009. The delegation is due to meet with the Prime Minister Sali Berisha, the Speaker of Parliament Jozefina Topalli, the Foreign Affairs Minister Lulezim Basha, the Interior Minister Bujar Nishani and the heads of the political parties taking part in the elections.
29/05/2009 | President
PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig, will make an official visit to Tunisia from 1 to 3 June, where he is to meet the Prime Minister and also the Minister of Justice and Human rights, the Minister of Women, Family, Children and the Elderly Affairs, as well as the Minister of Youth, Sport and Physical education. Talks are also scheduled with the Speaker of the House of deputies, and the Speaker of the House of Councillors.
29/05/2009 | Legal Affairs and Human Rights
Christos Pourgourides (Cyprus, EPP/CD), PACE rapporteur on the implementation of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights, has ended a two-day visit to Sofia (28-29 May 2009) with a call for greater domestic parliamentary supervision to ensure Bulgaria implements the Court’s judgments.