22/04/2004 | President
Assembly President said he deplored the confirmation of the conviction of Leyla Zana and three other former parliamentarians by the Ankara state security court as this conviction was to a large extent based on an unjustified interference with the applicants’ freedom to discuss issues of public concern. Mr Schieder regretted the time it had taken to have the criminal procedure against them re-opened following the Strasbourg Court’s judgment in 2001 which found the original trial to be unfair (Sadak, Zana, Dilce and Dogan judgment). He deplored the fact that despite repeated requests by the Parliamentary Assembly, the execution of the original prison sentence imposed had not been suspended and the applicants had therefore remained in prison.
21/04/2004 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
The Chair of the Assembly's Committee on Equal Opportunities for Woman and Men, Minodora Cliveti (Romania, SOC), has welcomed the gender balance reflected in the composition of the new Government of Spain. “The Prime Minister’s choice of balanced numbers of women and men for his new Cabinet shows not only his conviction that equality between the genders is a fundamental criterion for democracy but also his firm determination to change attitudes by eliminating stereotypes and prejudices. If women account for over half the European population and electorate, there is no reason why they should be underrepresented in political and public decision-making posts.
19/04/2004 | President
Peter Schieder made the following statement today: “Once again, the Government of Israel has shown its contempt for the rule of law by carrying out the extra-judicial killing of an alleged terrorist in the territories it has occupied since 1967. I condemn the assassination of Hamas leader Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi. This is not self-defence but an invitation to further violence, which cannot be in Israel’s interest. I appeal to the Israeli Knesset, which enjoys observer status with the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, to do everything in its power to ensure that the principles of human rights, democracy and the rule of law, which are the hallmarks of civilised society in general and of the Council of Europe in particular, are observed by the Israeli Government in its relations with the Palestinians.”
19/04/2004 | Political Affairs and Democracy
A Congressman has called for greater participation of the US Congress in Council of Europe activities. Speaking at the Inter-Parliamentary Forum on Transatlantic Dialogue today in London, organised by the Assembly’s Political Affairs Committee and the British parliamentary delegation, Democrat Congressman Alcee L. Hastings said: “There is an obvious need for continuous and institutionalised dialogue”. The United States has held observer status at the Council of Europe since 1996.
16/04/2004 | Political Affairs and Democracy
On 19 April, the Assembly’s Political Affairs Committee holds an inter-parliamentary forum on transatlantic dialogue, organised jointly with the United Kingdom delegation to the Assembly. Themes to be discussed include “common action and burden-sharing in the management of international crises” and “rebuilding transatlantic confidence”. Democrat and Republican members of the US Congress will attend the forum, which will be opened by British Foreign Office Minister Bill Rammell and the head of the British delegation to the Assembly Tony Lloyd. The conclusions of the forum will be used by Claudio Azzolini (Italy, EPP/CD) to prepare a report on “relations between Europe and the United States”.
16/04/2004 | Legal Affairs and Human Rights
The Assembly’s Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights is due to finalise on 21 April its opinion on draft protocol No. 14 to the European Convention on Human Rights, which amends the control system of the convention to enable the Court to cope with a massively increased workload. The draft protocol proposes the creation of more judges, allowing single judges to declare inadmissible or strike out cases, and extending the term of office of judges to a single, non-renewable nine-year term as well as allowing the Court to declare inadmissible any application where “the applicant has not suffered a significant disadvantage”. Also on the agenda are the committee’s latest moves to promote abolition of the death penalty in the United States, a Council of Europe observer state.
16/04/2004 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
Abdülkadir Ateş (Turkey, SOC), who is preparing the annual report on “the OECD and the world economy” for the Assembly’s Committee on Economic Affairs and Development, visits on 23 April the organisation’s headquarters for briefings with senior officials. The report is due to be debated by the Enlarged Assembly – involving parliamentarians from OECD countries not in the Council of Europe – during the Assembly’s October 2004 session.
16/04/2004 | President
Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly President Peter Schieder made the following statement today: “Cyprus is approaching a crucial moment in its history. On 24 April 2004, Cypriots are invited to vote on the Annan Plan in simultaneous referenda. A “Yes” vote in both communities will put an end to the division of the island and bring a united Cyprus into the European Union. A victory for the “Noes” in either part of Cyprus, or a postponement of the referendum, will mean that only the Greek Cypriots join the EU on 1 May. The news from Cyprus is conflicting.
14/04/2004 | President
On 13 April, President Peter Schieder wrote to the Speaker of the Armenian Parliament, Arthur Baghdasaryan, asking for detailed information on recent events in Armenia, including the disruption of a regular session of parliament. In his letter he expressed great concern over arrests of opposition leaders, reportedly including a member of the Armenian delegation to the Assembly, Shavarsh Kocharyan, and people attending opposition rallies, as well as over alleged ill-treatment of the media. Armenia has recently made considerable efforts to honour the obligations and commitments it undertook on joining the Council of Europe. But you are also aware of our concerns about the remaining shortcomings and the Assembly’s decision in January this year not to end the current monitoring procedure until further progress has been made in this respect, Peter Schieder says in his letter.
08/04/2004 | News
Disappeared persons and the persecution of the press in Belarus, the honouring of commitments by Turkey and Albania, and Monaco's application for membership of the Council of Europe top the agenda of the Assembly’s spring session (Strasbourg, 26-30 April 2004). Reports on the strengthening of the United Nations, on euthanasia and on the situation of European prisons and pre-trial detention centres will also be debated. There have been requests for urgent debates on the situation in Kosovo and the new Dutch policy on asylum-seekers. Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader (Tuesday 27), Netherlands Prime Minister Peter Balkenende and Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands and Chairman of the Committee of Ministers Bernard Bot (Wednesday 28), and Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev (Thursday 29) are among guest speakers.
05/04/2004 | President
Assembly President Peter Schieder today called on all Cypriots to seize the historic opportunity of the 24 April referendum to reunite the divided island of Cyprus before it joins the EU on 1 May. He urged the leaders of both communities, as well as the Greek and Turkish governments, to act with the utmost responsibility and rally all Cypriots in support of the revised UN plan. Peter Schieder expressed his full support for UN Secretary General Kofi Annan’s efforts. “This is an example of the important role the UN can play in conflict resolution,” he said.
02/04/2004 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
Michael Hancock (United Kingdom, SOC) visits Romania to assess progress in implementing the recommendations in his report on “improving the lot of abandoned children in institutions”. The Assembly’s recommendation, adopted in April 2003, calls for the closure of large, isolated or dilapidated childrens’ institutions and the restoration of childrens’ family ties where possible. Mr Hancock will meet Romanian Health Minister Ovidiu Brînzan as well as other authorities concerned with childrens’ rights.