14/04/2009 | Migration, International Protection and Economic Co-operation
“The situation of Iranians in Camp Ashraf in Iraq has become more than alarming. These persons must, as a matter of urgency, receive full guarantees of international protection,” said Corien Jonker (Netherlands, EPP/CD), Chair of PACE Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population. “The situation in Camp Ashraf is going from bad to worse,” said Mrs Jonker. “The Iraqi government has made it clear that it wants to close the camp and expects the people living there to return to Iran or leave to a third country."
13/04/2009 | Monitoring
“It is better to consult on sensitive issues in advance,” said Andres Herkel (Estonia, EPP/CD) and Evguenia Jivkova (Bulgaria, SOC), PACE co-rapporteurs for the monitoring of Azerbaijan, commenting on the 18 March Constitutional referendum at the end of a three-day fact-finding visit to the country (8-10 April). “We wish that the draft amendments on the Constitution had been sent to the Venice Commission well ahead of the referendum. Seeking Council of Europe expertise in advance would have allowed the adoption of legislation in line with European standards,” the co-rapporteurs pointed out.
09/04/2009 | Legal Affairs and Human Rights
“Witnesses have played, and continue to play, a key role in ending impunity for war crimes, in particular in the Balkans,” said Jean-Charles Gardetto (Monaco, EPP/CD) today, speaking at the end of a visit to The Hague. “They are absolutely indispensable if the Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) is to fulfill its mandate. In turn, the Tribunal has a long-term, moral and even legal commitment towards them. If the United Nations, and international justice as a whole, are to remain credible, there must be a residual mechanism for effectively protecting witnesses, one which will continue even after the Tribunal ceases to operate.” Mr Gardetto is currently preparing a PACE report on this topic.
09/04/2009 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
"It is time for Europe to become an area devoted to the protection and promotion of the fundamental rights of women," declared José Mendes Bota, PACE Rapporteur on "Combating violence against women: towards a Council of Europe convention", on the occasion of the first meeting of the Ad hoc Committee on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence. This committee is preparing one or several binding legal texts in this field.
08/04/2009 | Monitoring
Josette Durrieu (France, SOC) and Egidijus Vareikis (Lithuania, EPP/CD), co-rapporteurs on Moldova for PACE Monitoring Committee, who were present in Moldova to observe the elections of Sunday 5 April 2009, today called for “an end to violence and provocation” in the capital city, Chisinau. “We are concerned about the deterioration of the situation in a European country which nevertheless benefits from our attention and our support. Moldova needs to achieve political stability in the context of a democracy which will be able to assert itself only through elections, and not through violence”, they declared.
07/04/2009 | President
"We have learned with concern about the violent events which have taken place in Chisinau following the 5 April parliamentary elections in Moldova. The storming of public buildings is unacceptable and we urge a halt to any further violence on all sides. We underline at the same time the importance of securing people’s right to peaceful assembly. We call on all political leaders in the country to enter into a dialogue with a view to preventing any further violence...
07/04/2009 | President
PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig today sent a letter to the President of Italy’s Chamber of Deputies, Gianfranco Fini, and to the President of the Senate of the Republic, Renato Giuseppe Schifani, conveying the following message: "On behalf of all the members of the Parliamentary Assembly, I offer you my condolences following the tragic loss of human life caused by yesterday’s earthquake and its continuing aftershocks in the Abruzzi region."
07/04/2009 | Monitoring
In the haste to meet strenuous EU accession deadlines, some of Bulgaria’s reforms – particularly the reform of the judiciary – have undergone “cosmetic changes” which have pushed them in an undesired direction, according to a new report from PACE Monitoring Committee in the framework of “post-monitoring dialogue” with the country. In an information note posted today on the Assembly’s website, the Committee’s Chair Serhiy Holovaty (Ukraine, ALDE) named in particular the consitutional amendments and the amendments to the Judicial System Act of February 2007.
07/04/2009 | Monitoring
The effective separation of powers in Turkey, and the democratic functioning of its institutions, are “crucial for the modernisation of the Turkish state”, according to an information note from PACE's Monitoring Committee, in the framework of “post-monitoring dialogue” with the country, posted today on the Assembly’s website. Committee Chair Serhiy Holovaty (Ukraine, ALDE) said the political crisis which shook Turkey in 2007 and 2008 had highlighted the “weakness” of the country’s constitutional and legal framework, and again called for constitutional reform.
06/04/2009 | Election observation
The second round of the presidential and municipal elections in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia on Sunday met most OSCE and Council of Europe commitments and standards for democratic elections, although some of the issues identified in the first round, including credible reports of intimidation, were of increased concern, international election observers said in a statement released today.“The voting process was significantly improved from the parliamentary elections in 2008,” said Jørgen Poulsen, Member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
06/04/2009 | Election observation
Yesterday’s parliamentary elections in Moldova met many international standards and commitments, but further improvements are required to ensure an electoral process free from undue administrative interference and to increase public confidence, the IEOM said in a statement issued today. “The people of Moldova are to be congratulated on a relaxed, mainly well-run and democratic polling day. Now the new parliament needs to make the necessary improvements to Moldova’s legal framework and electoral code,” said David Wilshire, head of PACE delegation.
06/04/2009 | Monitoring
Andres Herkel (Estonia, EPP/CD) and Evguenia Jivkova (Bulgaria, SOC), co-rapporteurs for the monitoring of Azerbaijan by PACE, will make a fact-finding visit to the country on 7-11 April. They are due to meet the President of the Republic, the Speaker of the Milli Mejlis and the Foreign Affairs and Justice Ministers, as well as members of the majority and opposition parties, journalists, ambassadors and NGOs. The rapporteurs will also visit the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic.