18/10/2004 | President
During his official visit to Romania (17-19 October) Assembly President Peter Schieder met with the President, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the President of the Senate. He also attended a ceremony at the National School for Political and Administration Studies (NSPAS), during which he was awarded the degree of Doctor Honoris Causa. Peter Schieder stressed that it was no exaggeration to say that the enlightened and high level education that NSPAS have dispensed to its future leaders has helped to shape the transition of Romanian society from the darkest days of dictatorial rule to an era of the highest democratic standards, respect for human rights, and the rule of law - the essential values enshrined in the Statute of the Council of Europe.
18/10/2004 | News
"The right to protection of health is also part of the Council of Europe acquis. The right to sexual and reproductive health implies, that people are able to enjoy a mutually satisfying and safe relationship, free from coercion or violence, without fear of Sexually Transmitted Infections, including HIV/Aids or unwanted pregnancies", Christine Mc Cafferty (United Kingdom, SOC) said at the International Parliamentarians’ Conference on the Implementation of the Cairo Programme of Action. "Many Council of Europe member states have very high standards of sexual and reproductive health, taking into account indicators such as contraceptive use, HIV/AIDS prevalence, abortion rates, maternal and child morbidity and mortality rates. Their experiences can serve as a useful example to other member states as, unfortunately, there is enormous disparity of standards between member States and even within member States", she stressed.
15/10/2004 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
Victims of a forced marriage and a “marriage of convenience” related their experiences to European parliamentarians at a hearing on forced marriages and child marriages in Antwerp, Belgium, on Monday 18 October 2004. The hearing was organised by the Sub-committee on violence against women of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).
14/10/2004 | News
On 18-19 October, PACE welcomes over 130 parliamentarians and ministers from 90 countries in Strasbourg, to discuss ways of mobilising funds and influencing national laws and policies on population and reproductive health. The second International Parliamentarians’ Conference on Implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action* is being organised by the Inter-European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development (IEPFPD) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Marcel Glesener, Vice-President of the PACE and Chairman of the Social, Health and Family Affairs Committee, and Terry Davis, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, addressed the participants at the opening of the Conference. Members of the PACE’s Sub-Committee on Population, and Social, Health and Family Affairs Committee will also be attending.
14/10/2004 | Monitoring
David Atkinson (United Kingdom, EDG) and Rudolf Bindig (Germany, SOC), who are preparing a report on Russia’s honouring of its obligations and commitments, today ended a six-day visit to Yekaterinburg in the Sverdlovsk Oblast and Kazan in Tatarstan. In both cities they met the heads of government, local parliamentarians, judges, prosecutors and lawyers as well as representatives of political parties, national minorities, religious organisations and the media. Their report is due for debate by the Assembly in mid-2005.
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 | 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.