10/03/2008 | Monitoring
John Prescott (United Kingdom, SOC), PACE rapporteur on the Armenian elections, today welcomed the lifting of two provisions of the State of Emergency declaration by the Armenian authorities following his visit to Armenia last week. “I especially welcome the lifting of the suspension of the activities of political parties and NGOs, which I specifically called for during my visit. I now call upon the authorities to lift the remaining provisions of the declaration of the State of Emergency, especially those that limit the freedom of the media.
10/03/2008 | Monitoring
John Prescott (United Kingdom, SOC), PACE rapporteur on the Armenian elections, has called upon all sides to show restraint, respect and avoid any precipitate action that could make matters worse, following two days of meetings with all relevant parties in Yerevan. "This is essential if we are to move to a genuine and open dialogue,” said Mr Prescott. “I am convinced that a solution can be found to the present difficulties. This requires the recognition by all of the authority of the Constitutional Court and its ruling on the outcome of the Presidential election", he said.
07/03/2008 | President
PACE President, Lluís Maria de Puig, today firmly condemned the assassination of a former municipal councillor from Mondragon, and offered his condolences to the victim’s family. “Anyone seeking to destabilise democratic institutions in Spain, in an attempt to influence the general election result, is making a mistake. When the Spanish people vote on Sunday, they will be demonstrating their faith in the democratic process”, the PACE President said.
07/03/2008 | President
Ján Kubiš, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic and Chairman of the Committee of Ministers, Lluís Maria de Puig, President of the Parliamentary Assembly, Terry Davis, Secretary General, and Halvdan Skard, President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, declared: “We are determined to end the silence and indifference which keeps so many women across Europe imprisoned in the horror of daily violence, isolation and despair. Our two-year campaign is succeeding in changing some laws and regulations, but this is not enough.
07/03/2008 | Legal Affairs and Human Rights
Speaking in Paris today, Louis-Georges Tin, founder of IDAHO (International Day against Homophobia), recalled a time when Jews had no right to associate, express their views or marry as they wished. Wondering whether this was anti-Semitism, he said that he felt that it was. He was addressing the members of the PACE Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights during a hearing on freedom of expression and assembly for LGBT in Council of Europe member states and on legal recognition of same-sex partnerships.
05/03/2008 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
“The majority of perpetrators of domestic violence are men, and since it is largely men who still hold positions of power in society, they have an important role to play in combating this crime,” said Belgian singer Axelle Red, introducing a Brussels lunch-debate yesterday on the role of men in fighting domestic violence. The event, in the framework of the Council of Europe campaign to combat domestic violence against women, was organised at the Madariaga European Foundation to mark International Women’s Day on 8 March.
05/03/2008 | Legal Affairs and Human Rights
A parliamentary hearing on “the legal recognition of same-sex partnerships”, organised by PACE Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights will take place in Paris on Friday 7 March 2008. The hearing, involving parliamentarians, academics and representatives of the International Lesbian and Gay Association ILGA Europe, will also focus on freedom of assembly and expression for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered persons in the 47 Council of Europe member states.
05/03/2008 | Monitoring
At the request of the President of the Parliamentary Assembly, John Prescott (United Kingdom, SOC) will return to Armenia on 6 and 7 March 2008 in order to assess the post-electoral situation on the spot and explore avenues to defuse the current political crisis and promote dialogue. Mr Prescott headed a group of parliamentarians from the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) which observed the Presidential election in Armenia on 19 February 2008.
03/03/2008 | President
“I appeal for calm in Yerevan, and I call on all sides to do everything in their power to prevent further violence,” said PACE President Lluís Maria de Puig, reacting to events in the Armenian capital. “I deeply regret the deaths and injuries that have already occurred, and repeat that the authorities must show the utmost restraint and respect the principle of proportionality. The state of emergency that has been declared is an extreme measure and should be lifted as soon as possible: round-ups of peaceful demonstrators and gagging the media is not the response of real democrats to differing views."
03/03/2008 | Election observation
"The result of the Presidential elections held on 2 March 2008 in the Russian Federation is a reflection of the will of an electorate whose democratic potential was, unfortunately, not tapped," concluded a 22-member delegation from the PACE headed by Andreas Gross (Switzerland, SOC). "In the elections, which had more the character of a plebiscite on the last eight years in this country, the people of Russia voted for the stability and continuity associated with the incumbent President and the candidate promoted by him."
27/02/2008 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
In the presence of the singer Axelle Red, and as part of the “Mardis de l’Europe” initiative, the Madariaga European Foundation for the College of Europe is to host a luncheon debate on 4 March, from 12 to 2 pm, at its headquarters in Brussels (87 Rue Royale). PACE parliamentarians taking part in the event, on the eve of International Women's Day, will share their experience of mobilising male parliamentarians to fight domestic violence.
25/02/2008 | Political Affairs and Democracy
"I am deeply saddened by the passing of Irina Kozulina, after a long and consuming illness against which she fought bravely," said Andrea Rigoni (Italy, ALDE), PACE Rapporteur on the Situation in Belarus, commenting the death of the wife of political prisoner Alexander Kozulin. He called on the Belarus authorities to release Mr Kozulin in time to attend his wife's funeral.