21/08/2008 | Political Affairs and Democracy
“I express my great satisfaction at the release of two more political prisoners in Belarus,” said PACE rapporteur Andrea Rigoni commenting on the release of Andrei Kim and Syarhei Parsyukevich, soon after the liberation of opposition leader Alexander Kozulin. “This second wave of releases builds on that which took place earlier this year. But I call on the Belarusian authorities this time to avoid any steps backwards: there must be no more political prisoners."
20/08/2008 | Monitoring
Luc Van den Brande (Belgium, EPP/CD), one of the co-rapporteurs of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on the monitoring of the obligations and commitments by Russia, will travel to Moscow today to collect information and discuss with the authorities their views on the conflict in Georgia. During his visit from 20 to 22 August, he is scheduled to meet with high level political representatives of the State Duma and the Council of the Federation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Emergency Situations, as well as the Russian parliamentary delegation to the Assembly.
18/08/2008 | Monitoring
"I would like to express my great satisfaction and relief at the liberation of Alexander Kozulin – who should never have been detained in the first place" said Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) Rapporteur on Belarus, Andrea Rigoni (Italy, ALDE) today, commenting on the liberation of former presidential candidate Alexander Kozulin.
18/08/2008 | President
"Mr Kozulin, once the most prominent political prisoner in Belarus, is now a free man once more. I welcome his unconditional liberation and I express my sympathy for the suffering he has undergone during these years" said Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) President Lluís Maria de Puig commenting today on the release of Alexander Kozulin, opposition candidate in the 2006 presidential contest.
18/08/2008 | Monitoring
Mátyás Eörsi (Hungary, ALDE) and Kastriot Islami (Albania, SOC), PACE Rapporteurs on the monitoring of the obligations and commitments by Georgia, will travel to Tbilisi next week to collect information on the ground and discuss the situation at the highest political level.
13/08/2008 | President
The President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Lluís Maria de Puig, expressed hope as he welcomed the acceptance by Georgia and Russia, both of which are member states of the Organisation and parties to the European Convention on Human Rights, of the ceasefire demanded by the international community. He said that PACE was awaiting the definitive ending of the state of war and the withdrawal of all troops, as announced by both governments, as well as free access to humanitarian aid.
13/08/2008 | President
Mátyás Eörsi (Hungary, ALDE) attended the memorial service for Lord Russell-Johnston, which took place on 11 August in Inverness Cathedral. On this occasion, he delivered a speech on behalf of PACE President, Lluís Maria de Puig.
11/08/2008 | President
PACE President, Lluís Maria de Puig, has expressed deep concern about the large-scale military operations taking place between two Council of Europe member states, Georgia and Russia. According to Mr de Puig, the declaration of a state of war in Georgia unfortunately marks a new step in the current conflict in South Ossetia. He deplored the large numbers of casualties that had resulted from the recent clashes and expressed anxiety about Russian military action which far exceeded Russia's responsibilities under its peacekeeping mandate.
08/08/2008 | President
On the opening day of the Beijing Olympics, PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig said that the Games offered China a unique opportunity to promote respect for fundamental freedoms in the country. He drew attention on this occasion to the resolution adopted by the Assembly on 26 June 2008, which encourages China to implement far-reaching reforms regarding respect for human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
08/08/2008 | President
On behalf of PACE, its President, Lluís Maria de Puig, has issued an urgent call for an immediate end to all violence in South Ossetia. "I appeal for calm and call on all the parties to do everything in their power to prevent any further violence", said the President. Saying that he was deeply worried about this worsening of the conflict, he deplored the large number of civilian casualties.
30/07/2008 | President
PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig today welcomed the decision of Turkey’s Constitutional Court not to apply the extreme measure of closing down the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party, but regretted its decision to partially deprive it of state aid. “Such a sanction risks introducing an element of discrimination with regard to a party which plays a key role on the Turkish political scene,” the President said. “Turkey can now regain political stability and step up urgently-needed economic and political reforms, including the elaboration of an altogether new, civilian constitution, in line with repeated Assembly calls. The Council of Europe, in particular through its Venice Commission, stands ready to help the Turkish government in such an endeavour.”
28/07/2008 | President
At the end of a two-day visit to Armenia on 23 and 24 July, PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig said he was heartened that the highest authorities, including the President of Armenia, clearly expressed their political will to fully implement PACE Resolutions 1609 and 1620. However, these promises should now be followed by clear and concrete measures that the authorities are serious about their compliance with the requirements of the Assembly, declared the President of PACE. This is especially important with respect to the independent inquiry into the events on 1 and 2 March as well as the release of persons detained in relation to these events.