08/10/2004 | News
There is “a dangerous crisis” developing in democracy characterised by low turnout, voter apathy and a lack of respect for politicians, PACE said today. The Assembly called for periodic reports into “the state of democratic development” of Council of Europe member and observer states – which would include concepts such as the degree of transparency of government action, the accountability of decision-making bodies and the degree of influence of different groups in society. It also gave its backing to the conclusions of a three-year Council of Europe integrated project on “making democratic institutions work”, and called for action at the coming Third Summit on strengthening democratic development.
08/10/2004 | Session
The Assembly pledged this morning to take part in a campaign in 2006 to combat domestic violence against women in Europe. The problem of domestic violence extends to all member states of the Council of Europe and is currently undergoing a worrying escalation, the parliamentarians said. It should cease to be a taboo subject and be regarded instead as a national political priority, not least for attention at the Council's coming Third Summit. The Assembly regretted that the Committee of Ministers had not heeded its September 2002 call for a European campaign, aimed at better protection for victims and criminal penalties for perpetrators, and reiterated its request.
08/10/2004 | News
Following the bomb blasts that hit Egyptian Red Sea resorts last night, killing at least 19 people, Peter Schieder, President of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly, made the following statement: “On behalf of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe I strongly condemn these horrific attacks. I extend my deepest condolences to the families of the victims as well us my solidarity with the injured and with the Egyptian authorities. There is still no evidence on the identity of the perpetrators, but whoever the authors are, they are nothing but criminals moved by the sole aim of killing innocent people. Speaking on behalf of more than 800 million Europeans, our Assembly said two days ago that no cause can justify terrorism and that every act of terror – regardless of the reasons given for it – must be considered “a crime against humanity” and should be utterly rejected as a means of achieving political ends.”
08/10/2004 | News
European governments should add a European dimension to school curricula and should encourage municipalities and civil society to discuss Europe in all its diversity, PACE said today at the end of a debate on the last day of the session. The parliamentarians also called for a European treaty on education for democratic citizenship and human rights. Governments should also decide at the coming Third Summit to make education for Europe a "major element" of the Council of Europe's future work, they said.
08/10/2004 | News
This morning the Assembly called on member states to take the necessary steps to combat the decline and ageing of the European population. It called for the creation of a more conducive environment for the elderly, including, for example, better protection for their social and human rights, measures to keep the younger elderly in the work force and adjustments to pre-pension schemes. The PACE also called for the introduction of better childcare facilities, to enable women to achieve a better balance between work and family life. Also, more should be done to involve fathers in the business of childrearing.
08/10/2004 | President
“The case for sparing the life of the cold-blooded murderers of Beslan, Moscow, Madrid, and elsewhere is neither easy nor a popular one to make. But the Council of Europe is opposed to the death penalty in all its forms, even for the most appalling criminals of this world. Human rights apply to every one of us, without exception”, was the message of Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly President Peter Schieder to participants in the 2nd World Congress against the death penalty, which took place in Montreal from 6 to 9 October.
07/10/2004 | Session
PACE holds today a joint debate on the political, human rights and humanitarian situation in the Chechen Republic. Three reports will be discussed. The Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, Alvaro Gil-Robles, will address the Chamber following his recent visit to the Russian Federation and Chechnya in particular. There will also be a speech by the President of Chechnya, Alu Alkhanov.
07/10/2004 | News
PACE today agreed to proceed with the establishment of a Round Table to organise an exchange of views with political parties and politicians from the Chechen Republic and the federal authorities of Russia in order to follow developments regarding human rights, democracy and the rule of law in the Republic, but decided that those “who refuse to recognise the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation, and who declare terrorism a method to achieve goals” cannot be participants. PACE was holding a joint debate on three separate reports on the political, human rights and humanitarian situations in the Republic, with the participation of Chechen President Alu Alkhanov.
07/10/2004 | News
Participating in the debate this morning, the President of the Chechen Republic, Alu Alkhanov, said that the situation in Chechnya was improving, although it was difficult to know if the policy of stabilisation would succeed. President Alkhanov thanked the Council of Europe for its work in the Republic, and said that the authorities welcomed any initiative which would consolidate Chechen society and bring the people involved in the conflict closer together.
07/10/2004 | News
The Commissioner for Human Rights presented the conclusions of his recent visit to the Chechen Republic during the debate on the situation in Chechnya. He announced that he would work with the Federal and Chechen authorities on three key areas over the next six months: preventing and resolving cases of forced disappearances as an absolute priority, reinforcing the role of civil society and combating anti-Chechen sentiment in the rest of the Russian Federation.
07/10/2004 | News
Relations between the Assembly and the Armenian authorities continue to be characterized by excellent co-operation and the Armenian authorities have committed themselves to a series of reforms, PACE said today. Taking stock of the implementation of the last two Resolutions on Armenia adopted by the Assembly in 2004, the parliamentarians said that a number of delicate issues remain. They recalled that speedy progress is still awaited, notably concerning the revision of the Code of Criminal Procedure, improving conditions of detention, developments in the media sector, the duration of alternative civilian service, the registration of the association of Jehovah’s Witnesses, the administrative code and the law on demonstrations.
07/10/2004 | News
Member states which have ratified the Kyoto Protocol should swiftly implement it, and those which have not yet ratified it should do so as soon as possible, PACE said at the end of a debate on global warming this afternoon. Describing this as “one of the most serious challenges to the sustainable development of our planet”, the parliamentarians also called on European governments to think about giving tax breaks to promote renewable energy, developing public transport and hybrid vehicles, limiting air transport by taxing fuel, building more energy-efficient houses and – above all – raising public awareness of the problem of global warming.