Progress report of the Bureau of the Assembly and of the Standing Committee (2 October 2009-25 January 2010)
Progress report
| Doc. 12126 Part I
| 23 January 2010
A. Introduction
1. The Bureau met on 2 October
in Strasbourg, on 19 November in Bern and on 14 December in Paris.
The Standing Committee met on 20 November in Bern.
B. Functioning
of the Assembly
I. Progress Report
of the Bureau of the Assembly and of the Standing Committee (2 October 2009-25
January 2010)
2. On 19 November, the Bureau
appointed Mr de Puig (Spain, SOC) as rapporteur.
II. Follow-up
to the 2009 Fourth ordinary part-Session of the Assembly (Strasbourg, 28 September-2
October 2009)
3. On 2 October, the Bureau:
i Resolution 1683 (2009) “The war between Georgia and Russia: one year after”:
in accordance with paragraph 13, referred the follow-up to this
resolution to the Monitoring Committee for report;
ii Resolution
1687 (2009) “Reconsideration on substantive grounds of previously
ratified credentials of the Russian delegation (Rule 9 of the Rules
of Procedure of the Assembly)”: in accordance with paragraph 8,
asked the Monitoring Committee to present the Bureau with proposals
as to the implementation of this paragraph;
iii Resolution
1689 (2009) “The future of the Council of Europe in the light of
its 60 years of experience”: referred paragraphs 28.8 and 28.11
of the resolution to the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities
and Institutional Affairs to be taken into account when considering
proposals for changes to the Rules of Procedure;
Note
iv Follow-up to the current affairs debate on “Current affairs
debate: The situation of human rights defenders in the North Caucasus
region”: referred this matter to the Committee on Legal Affairs
and Human Rights to be taken into account in the preparation of
the report on the “legal remedies for human rights violations in
the North Caucasus Region”.
III. Standing
Committee (Bern, 20 November 2009)
i. Draft agenda
4. On 2 October, the Bureau took
note of the draft agenda.
5. On 19 November, the Bureau took note of the changes made to
the draft agenda.
ii. Meeting of the Standing Committee
6. On 20 November, the Standing
Committee:
a heard a welcome address
by Mrs Chiara Simoneschi-Cortesi, President of the National Council
of the Swiss Confederation;
b held an exchange of views with Mrs Micheline Calmy-Rey,
Federal Councillor, Head of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign
Affairs, Chairperson of the Committee of Ministers of the Council
of Europe;
c held an exchange of views with Mr João Soares, President
of the Parliamentary Assembly of the OSCE;
d ratified the credentials of new members of the Assembly
submitted by the delegations of Belgium, Denmark, Greece, Norway
and “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”;
e ratified the changes in the composition of Assembly committees
in respect of the delegations of Armenia, Belgium, Denmark, Greece,
Norway, Spain, “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” and Turkey, and
in the composition of the Committee on the Honouring of Obligations
and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring
Committee) with regard to the SOC political group, as well as of
the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional
Affairs with regard to the ALDE political group;
f took note of the draft agenda of the first part-session
of the Assembly (25-29 January 2010);
g adopted a Declaration addressed to the Parties to the
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change meeting in
Copenhagen (7-18 December 2009) (see the Assembly website);
h postponed consideration of the following reports:
- Freedom of religion and other
human rights for non-Muslim minorities in Turkey and for the Muslim
minority in Thrace (Eastern Greece) (Doc. 11860);
- 15 years since the International Conference on Population
and Development Programme of Action (Doc. 11992);
- The social impact of the economic crisis (Doc. 12026).
IV. Adopted texts
7. On 20 November, the Standing
Committee adopted, on behalf of the Assembly, the following texts:
Recommendation
1889 (2009): Improving the quality and consistency of asylum decisions
in the Council of Europe member states
Recommendation
1890 (2009): Engaging European diasporas: the need for governmental
and intergovernmental responses
Recommendation
1891 (2009: Migrant women: at particular risk from domestic violence
Recommendation
1892 (2009): The contribution of the Council of Europe in the development
of the European Higher Education Area
Recommendation
1893 (2009): The future of the European Centre for Global Interdependence
and Solidarity («North-South Centre»)
Resolution 1695
(2009): Improving the quality and consistency of asylum decisions
in the Council of Europe member states
Resolution 1696
(2009): Engaging European diasporas: the need for governmental
and intergovernmental responses
Resolution 1697
(2009): Migrant women: at particular risk from domestic violence
Resolution 1698
(2009): Amendments of various provisions of the Parliamentary
Assembly’s Rules of Procedure
Resolution 1699
(2009): Procedural implications of Assembly Resolution 1600 (2008) on “The Council of Europe and its observer states: the
current situation and a way forward” and related Assembly texts
V. Resolution 1698 (2009) “Amendment of various provisions of the Parliamentary
Assembly’s Rules of Procedure”
8. On 14 December, the Bureau,
in accordance with paragraph 7, asked the Secretariat to prepare
an amended version of the “Guidelines for the observation of elections
by the Parliamentary Assembly”.
VI. Resolution 1699 (2009) “Procedural implications of Parliamentary Assembly Resolution 1600 (2008) on the Council of Europe and its observer states – the
current situation and a way forward, and related Assembly texts”
9. On 14 December, the Bureau
in accordance with paragraph 8, asked the Secretary General of the Assembly
to transmit this text to parliamentary observer delegations.
VII. 1st ordinary
part-Session of 2010 (Strasbourg, 25-29 January 2010)
i. Draft agenda
10. On 2 October, the Bureau held
a first exchange of views on the preliminary draft agenda and gave
its provisional approval on the understanding that the document
could be subject to modifications.
11. On 19 November, the Bureau drew up the preliminary draft agenda
for the part-session and decided to reconsider this item at its
next meeting;
12. On 14 December, the Bureau drew up the draft agenda.
ii. Requests for urgent debate:
13. On 14 December, the Bureau:
a “Faked Pandemics – a threat for
health” (submitted by the Social, Health and Family Affairs Committee): decided
to recommend to the Assembly not to hold a debate under urgent procedure
on this matter;
b declared itself to be in favour of the holding of a debate
under urgent procedure on the consequences of the world financial
crisis, subject to a formal request for such a debate be submitted.
VIII. References
and transmissions to committees
14. On, 2 October, the Bureau approved
the following references and modifications of references, which were
ratified the same day by the Assembly:
i. references to committees
a. Doc. 11973, Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Boswell and
others, Human rights and fight against terrorism, to the Committee
on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for
report and to the Political Affairs Committee for opinion
b. Doc. 11975, Motion for a resolution presented by Mrs Coleiro-Preca
and others, The challenges faced by small national economies, to
the Committee on Economic Affairs and Development forreport
c. Doc. 11976, Motion for a resolution presented by Mrs Bemelmans-Videc
and others, Ad hoc judges: a problem for the legitimacy of the European
Court of Human Rights, to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human
Rights for report and to the
Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men for opinion
d. Doc. 11978, Motion for a recommendation presented by Mrs Jonker
and others, Preventing harm to refugees and migrants in extradition
and expulsion cases: Rule 39 indications by the European Court of
Human Rights, to the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population for report and to the Committee
on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for
opinion
e. Doc. 11979, Motion for a resolution presented by Mrs Jonker and
others, The impact of the global economic crisis on migration in
Europe, to the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population for report and to the Committee
on Economic Affairs and Development for
opinion
f. Doc. 11981, Motion for a recommendation presented by Mrs Marland-Militello
and others, The right of everyone to take part in cultural life,
to the Committee on Culture, Science and Education for report
g. Doc. 11982, Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Lotman and
others, Population transfer as a human rights violation, to the
Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for
report and to the Committee on Migration, Refugees and
Population for opinion
h. Doc. 11983, Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Lotman and
others, Need to assess progress in implementation of the Bern Convention,
to the Committee on the Environment, Agriculture and Local and Regional
Affairs for report at the Standing Committee
i. Doc. 11984, Motion for a recommendation presented by Mr Kaikkonen
and others, Convention on Youth Rights, Committee on Culture, Science
and Education for report
j. Doc. 12021, Motion for a recommendation presented by Mrs Rihter
and others, Privacy and the management of private information on
the Internet and other online media, to the Committee on Culture, Science
and Education for report
k. Doc. 12022, Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Cilevičs and
others, The Declaration of Principles on Equality and activities
of the Council of Europe, to the Committee on Legal Affairs and
Human Rights for report
l. Doc. 12023, Motion for a resolution presented by Mrs McCafferty
and others, Promoting volunteering in Europe as engine of democratic
citizenship and social inclusion, to the Social, Health and Family
Affairs Committee for report
m. Follow-up to current affairs debate, The situation of human
rights defenders and the increasing violence in the North Caucasus
region of the Russian Federation, to the Committee on Legal Affairs
and Human Rights to take it into account
in the preparation of the report on “Legal remedies for human rights
violations in the North-Caucasus region”
n. Bureau decision, Follow-up to Resolution 1683 (2009) on the war between Georgia and Russia: one year after,
to the Committee on the Honouring of Obligations and Commitments
by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring Committee) for report
o. Bureau decision, Paragraphs 28.8 and 28.11 of Resolution 1689 (2009) on The future of the Council of Europe in the light
of its 60 years of experience, to the Committee on Rules of Procedure,
Immunities and Institutional Affairs for
modification of the Rules of ProcedureNote
ii. no further action
a. Doc. 11946, Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Lecoq and others,
The human rights situation in Western Sahara, no
further action
iii. modification of a reference
a. Doc. 11558, Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Margelov and
others, Islam, Islamism and Islamophobia in Europe, to the Committee
on Culture, Science and Education for
report, to the Political Affairs Committee for opinion and to the Committee
on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men for
opinion
15. On 20 November, the Standing
Committee approved the following references and modifications to references:
i. references to committees
a. Doc. 12049, Motion for a recommendation presented by Mrs Marin
and others, Preventing natural disasters, to the Committee on the
Environment, Agriculture and Local and Regional Affairs for report at the Standing Committee
b. Draft Protocol amending the Convention on Mutual Administrative
Assistance in Tax Matters (ETS No. 127)Note, Request for an opinion by the Committee
of Ministers, to the Committee on Economic Affairs and Development for report
c. Doc. 11922, Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Agramunt and
others, The definition of political prisoners, to the Committee
on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for
report
d. Doc. 11897, Motion for a recommendation presented by Mr Frunda
and others, Drafting an additional protocol to the European Convention
for Human Rights: basic standards for national minorities, to the Committee
on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for
report
e. Doc. 11903, Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Gross and others,The
inadmissibility of restrictions on freedom of movement as punishment
for political positions, to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for report
ii. transmission for information
a. Doc. 12036, Motion for a resolution presented by Mrs Keleş and
others, Implementation of the fundamental principle of the rule
of law, to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for information
b. Doc. 12047, Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Volonte' and
others, Combating selective abortion, to the Social, Health and
Family Affairs Committee and to the Committee on Equal Opportunities
for Women and Men for information
c. Doc. 12048, Motion for a resolution presented by Mrs Marin and
others, The milk crisis and its impact on farming, to the Committee
on the Environment, Agriculture and Local and Regional Affairs for information
iii. modification of a reference
a. Bureau decision, Situation in Belarus, to the Political
Affairs Committee for report and
to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for opinion
IX. Parliamentary
Assembly Human Rights Prize
16. On 19 November, the Bureau
changed the regulations for the Prize (see Appendix I).
X. Debate on
the state of democracy in Europe in June 2010
17. On 2 October, the Bureau asked
the Political Affairs Committee to submit proposals for themes for
this debate.
18. On 14 December, the Bureau noted its agreement in principle
with the proposal made by the Political Affairs Committee on the
theme “extra-institutional sources of power in the democratic system”
to be the subject of a joint debate with the report on “the economic
crisis and the legitimacy of democracy in Europe”.
XI. The consequences
of the war between Georgia and Russia
i. Ad hoc Committee of the Bureau
on promoting dialogue between the Georgian and Russian Assembly delegations
19. On 14 December, the Bureau
was informed by the President of his intention to consult the Georgian
and Russian delegations to the Assembly prior to the January 2010
part-session regarding the continuation of the work of this committee.
ii. Committee on the Honouring
of Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe
(Monitoring Committee)
20. On 14 December, the Bureau
was informed by the Chairperson of the Monitoring Committee on the follow-up
given to this issue as well as the intention of the committee to
present a report during the April 2010 part-session.
XII. Credentials
21. On 2 October, following a discussion
concerning the debates regarding the credentials of the Moldovan and
Russian delegations and in accordance with Rule 66 of the Rules
of Procedure, the Bureau asked the Committee on Rules of Procedure,
Immunities and Institutional Affairs to consider the possibility
of revising Rules 6 to 9 of the Assembly’s Rules of Procedure.
XIII. Code of
conduct for rapporteurs on the honouring of obligations and commitments
by member states of the Council of Europe
22. On 2 October, the Bureau asked
the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs
to examine the possibility of incorporating elements from this code
of conduct into the Assembly’s Rules of Procedure.
XIV. Ad Hoc Committee
on the implementation of Resolution
1416 (2005) on the conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh region dealt
with by the OSCE Minsk Conference
23. On 14 December, the Bureau
held an exchange of views with regard to the continuation of the
work of this committee and decided to return to this question at
one of its meetings during the part-session of January 2010.
XV. Composition
of the Monitoring Committee and the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities
and Institutional Affairs
24. On 2 October, the Bureau approved
the list of members as proposed by political groups for ratification by
the Assembly.
25. On 19 November, the Bureau approved the changes in the list
of members of each committee.
XVI. Meetings
elsewhere than in Strasbourg and Paris
26. On 2 October, the Bureau authorised
the following meetings:
a Political
Affairs Committee, Brussels (Belgium), 17 November 2009;
b Sub-committee on Migration (of the Committee on Migration,
Refugees and Population), Antalya (Turkey), 12-13 November 2009;
c Sub-committee on Sustainable Development (of the Committee
on the Environment, Agriculture and Local and Regional Affairs),
Copenhagen (Denmark), 15-16 December 2009;
d Committee on Economic Affairs and Development, London
(United Kingdom), 21-22 January 2010;
27. On 19 November, the Bureau authorised the Committee on Rules
of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs to meet in London
on 7 December 2009.
XVII. Modification
of the rule on meetings of Committees and Sub-Committees of the
Assembly elsewhere than in Strasbourg or Paris
28. On 19 November, the Bureau
held an exchange of views on this issue and decided to come back
to this item at its next meeting.
XVIII. Appointments
of Assembly representatives for official activities
29. On 2 October, in reply to formal
invitations, the Bureau took the following decisions:
a Mr Mota Amaral (Portugal, EPP/CD):
Seminar organised by the European Association of Former Members
of Parliament of the Member States of the Council of Europe, Lisbon
(Portugal), 22-25 October 2009 (at no cost to the Assembly);
b Mr Çavuşoğlu (Turkey, EDG): Fourth plenary session of
the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean, Istanbul (Turkey),
23-24 October 2009 (at no cost to the Assembly);
c Mrs Ohlsson (Sweden, SOC), Nordic Council, Pre-session
conference on climate change policies, Stockholm (Sweden) 26 October
2009 (at no cost to the Assembly);
d Mr Badré (France, ALDE), Awareness-raising seminar on
the activities of the Council of Europe, Rabat (Morocco), 26-27
October 2009;
e Earl of Dundee (United Kingdom, EDG), International Summit
on Transnational Crime, Paris (France), 12-13 November 2009;
f Mr Korkeaoja (Finland, ALDE), parliamentary meeting preceding
the World Summit on Food Security, Rome (Italy), 13 November 2009;
g Mr Sudarenkov (Russian Federation, SOC), 34th PABSEC
Plenary Session, Moscow (Russian Federation), 23-24 November 2009
(at no cost to the Assembly).
30. On 19 November, in reply to formal invitations, the Bureau
took the following decisions:
a Mr Zingeris
(Lithuania, EPP/CD): 28th session of
the Baltic Assembly and 15th session
of the Baltic Council, Vilnius (Lithuania), 26-28 November 2009
(without cost for the Assembly);
b Mr Sasi (Finland, EPP/CD): enlarged session of the steering
committee of the parliamentary conference of the World Trade Organisation,
Geneva (Switzerland), 1 December 2009 (without cost for the Assembly).
XIX. Visits by
rapporteurs
31. On 2 October, the Bureau:
a authorised Mr Pourgourides (Cyprus,
EPP/CD), Vice-Chairperson of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human
Rights, to participate in the Belarusian European Forum to be held
in Minsk (Belarus) on 14 November 2009;
b authorised Mr McIntosh (United Kingdom, SOC) Chairperson
of the Sub-committee on the Media of the Committee on Culture, Science
and Education to attend the United Nations Internet Governance Forum to
be held in Sharm El Sheikh (Egypt) from 15-18 November 2009.
C. Relations with
other bodies of the Council of Europe
I. Committee
of Ministers
i. Joint Committee (Thursday,
28 January 2010 at 6.30 pm)
32. On 14 December, the Bureau
agreed to propose to the Committee of Ministers that the following
items be included on the agenda:
a Enhancing
dialogue and cooperation between the Parliamentary Assembly and
the Committee of Ministers;
b Future of the European Court of Human Rights.
II. European
Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment (CPT)
33. On 2 October, the Bureau approved
the lists of candidates to the CPT in respect of Austria, Bulgaria, Germany,
Luxembourg, Serbia, Slovenia, Turkey and the United Kingdom, to
be transmitted to the Committee of Ministers.
D. Relations with
non-member states
I. Request for
observer status with the Assembly by the Parliament of the Republic
of Kazakhstan
34. On 2 October, the Bureau took
note of an information report by the Political Affairs Committee (Rapporteur:
Mr Iwinski (Poland, SOC)).
E. Elections
I. Parliamentary
elections in Bulgaria (5 July 2009)
35. On 2 October, the Bureau held
an exchange of views with the Chairperson of the Bulgarian delegation.
II. Presidential
election in Ukraine (17 January 2010)
36. On 2 October, the Bureau:
a set up an ad hoc committee for
the observation of these elections, composed of 40 members (according to
the “d’Hondt” system), and left it to the President to appoint the
Chairperson;
b authorised a pre-electoral mission composed of eleven
members (3 EPP/CD, 3 SOC, 2 ALDE, 2 EDG, 1 UEL), to take place about
six weeks before the election.
37. On 19 November, the Bureau:
a took
note of the letter from the Ukrainian authorities inviting the Assembly
to observe this election;
b approved the composition of the ad hoc committee to observe
the election and took note of the appointment by the President of
the Assembly of Mr Eörsi (Hungary, ALDE) as Chairperson;
38. On 14 December, the Bureau took note of the report and press
release on the pre-electoral mission (Chairperson of the ad hoc
committee: Mr Eörsi, Hungary, ALDE) which took place from 24 to
26 November 2009.
III. Elections
to the Palestinian Legislative Council and for the Presidency Authority
(24 January 2010, subject to confirmation)
39. On 19 November, the Bureau:
a decided to observe these elections,
subject to receipt of an invitation;
b set up an ad hoc committee to observe these elections,
composed of 11 members: (3 EPP/CD; 3 SOC; 2 EDG; 2 ALDE; 1 UEL)
and left it up to President of the Assembly to appoint the Chairperson
of the ad hoc committee;
c authorised a pre-electoral mission consisting of five
members – one from each political group who were also members of
the ad hoc Committee – on the understanding that it should take
place about one month ahead of the elections.
IV. Schedule
of elections in 2010
40. On 2 October, the Bureau took
note of the dates of elections scheduled during 2010.
F. Other business
I. Forums
i. Forum on Early Warning in
Conflict Prevention (Strasbourg, 24-25 September 2009)
41. On 2 October, in the absence
of Mr Wilshire (United Kingdom, EDG), Chairperson of the ad hoc committee
of the Bureau on early warning systems and conflict prevention in
Europe, the Bureau decided to postpone this item until its next
meeting.
42. On 19 November, the Bureau heard an account by Mr Wilshire,
Chairperson of the ad hoc committee of the Bureau on the Forum,
regarding the conclusions of the Forum and asked the Political Affairs
Committee to follow-up these conclusions by setting-up a sub-committee
if this was thought to be necessary.
ii. Forum for the Future of Democracy
(Kyiv, 21-23 October 2009)
43. On 2 October, the Bureau took
note of the programme for the Conference.
44. On 19 November, the Bureau took note of the conclusions of
the Forum and asked the Secretary General of the Assembly to prepare
a document, in time for the next meeting, with proposals for the
follow-up to these conclusions by the Assembly’s committees.
45. On 14 December, the Bureau approved the proposals set out
in the document [AS/Bur (2009) 109], on the follow-up to be given
to the Forum by the relevant Assembly committees.
II. Conferences
i. Joint Parliamentary Meeting
(European Parliament and the Swedish Riksdag) on “The Parliamentary dimension
of a European area of freedom, security and justice”, (Brussels,
16-17 November 2009)
46. On 2 October the Bureau, subject
to receipt of an invitation, set up an ad hoc committee of the Bureau to
participate in this meeting, composed of 10 members (five from the
Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population and five from the
Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights).
ii Joint Conference Assembly/Inter-Parliamentary
Union (IPU) on “migration and violence against women in Europe”
(Paris, 10-11 December 2009)
47. On 2 October, the Bureau set
up an ad hoc committee of the Bureau to participate in this conference comprised
of the members of the Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women
and Men and the contact parliamentarians committed to combating
violence against women, including domestic violence.
48. On 19 November, the Bureau approved the composition of the
ad hoc committee of the Bureau to participate in this conference
and appointed Mr Wille (Belgium, ALDE) as Chairperson.
iii. European Conference of Presidents
of Parliaments (Cyprus, 10-12 June 2010)
49. On 2 October, the Bureau took
note of the themes for the Conference.
III. Assembly
Honorary President
50. On 14 December, the Bureau
decided to grant the title of Honorary President of the Assembly
on Mr Van der Linden.
IV. Communications
51. On 2 October, the Bureau took
note of the written communications of the Deputy Secretary General
of the Council of Europe and of the Secretary General of the Assembly.
52. On 19 November, the Bureau took note of the communications
by the President, the Secretary General and the Deputy Secretary
General of the Council of Europe as well as the Secretary General
of the Parliamentary Assembly.
53. On 14 December, the Bureau:
a took
note of the communications of the President, the Secretary General
of the Council of Europe and of the Secretary General of the Assembly;
b held an exchange of views with the Secretary General of
the Council of Europe.
Appendix 1 – Regulations for the Council
of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Human Rights PrizeNote
Article 1: The Prize
The Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Human Rights
Prize shall be awarded on the occasion
of the Parliamentary Assembly’s biennial debate on “The State of
Human Rights in Europe”, in order to reward outstanding
civil society action in the defence of human rights in Europe.
Article 2: Nature
The Prize shall consist of a sum of ten thousand euros, which
may be subject to periodic adjustment by the Bureau, a plaque and a diploma commending
the Prizewinner’s outstanding contribution to the cause of human
rights.
Article 3: Eligibility
Individual members of civil society or non-governmental organisations
or institutions who are active in the defence of human rights in
Europe may be eligible for consideration.
Article 4: Nominations
1 Nominations for the
Prize must reach the Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly
by 30 September each year. They shall be signed by at least five
sponsors, other than the nominee, on the special form appended to
these Regulations.
2 Nominations shall provide details of the nominee’s action(s)
in the defence of human rights and specify the reasons why the nominee’s
action(s) can be considered to be outstanding. All relevant supporting documents
shall be provided.
3 Nominations may be submitted in one of the two official
languages of the Parliamentary Assembly: English or French.
Article 5: Selection Panel
1 A selection panel comprising
the President of the Assembly, the Chairperson of the Committee
on Legal Affairs and Human Rights, the Chairperson of the Monitoring
Committee and four independent persons with recognised moral standing
in the field of human rights shall examine the nominations and make
a recommendation to the Bureau as to the Prizewinner for the year
in question.
2 The four independent experts referred to in the preceding
paragraph shall not be current members of the Assembly. They shall
be appointed by the Bureau for a five-year period, renewable once.
In order to ensure a reasonable rotation and continuity, the term
of two of the experts shall be limited to three years on the occasion
of the first appointment made by the Bureau. The names of the experts
concerned shall be drawn by lot by the President of the Parliamentary
Assembly.
3 The selection panel shall be chaired by the President
of the Assembly.
4 In the event that the selection panel considers that none
of the nominations put forward is sufficiently outstanding, it shall
inform the Bureau accordingly.
Article 6: Decision on the Prizewinner
1 The decision on the
Prizewinner shall be taken by the Bureau by an absolute majority
of the votes cast.
2 The Bureau’s decision on the Prizewinner shall be subject
to the endorsement of the Parliamentary Assembly by means of the
Bureau’s progress report.
Article 7: Award Ceremony
1 The Prize shall be awarded
at a ceremony which shall take place in principle during the part-session
of the Parliamentary Assembly following the Assembly’s endorsement
of the Prizewinner.
2 The Bureau of the Parliamentary Assembly shall approve
the modalities of the ceremony.
Appendix 2 – References and modifications
of references
On, 14 December the Bureau approved the following
references and modifications of references, subject to ratification
by the Assembly:
i. references to committees
The European Union Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Evans and others,
to the Committee on the Environment, Agriculture and Local and Regional
Affairs to be taken into account in the
preparation of the report on the reform of the Common Fisheries
Policy
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Lindblad and others
Abuse of the criminal justice system in Armenia, to the Committee
on the Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by Member States
of the Council of Europe (Monitoring Committee) to be taken into account in the preparation
of the report onthe Assembly's
monitoring procedure on Armenia
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Rochebloine and others
Measures to be taken to ensure the preservation of the fundamental
values of sport, to the Committee on Culture, Science and Education for information
Motion for a resolution presented by Earl of Dundee and others
The impact of the world economic crisis on local and regional
authorities within member states of the Council of Europe, to the
Committee on the Environment, Agriculture and Local and Regional
Affairs for report
Motion for a resolution presented by Mrs Yazdanfar and others
Promoting the development of microcredit, to the Committee
on Economic Affairs and Development for report
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Zingeris and others
The economic crisis and the legitimacy of democracy in Europe,
to the Political Affairs Committee for report and
to the Committee on Economic Affairs and Development for opinion
Motion for a recommendation presented by Mrs Memecan and
others
Roma asylum seekers in Council of Europe member states, to
the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population for report
Motion for a recommendation presented by Mrs Fiala and others
Access to and protection of the audiovisual cultural heritage,
to the Committee on Culture, Science and Education for report
i. Decision by the Bureau
Extra-institutional sources of power in the democratic system,
to the Political Affairs Committee for
report
j. Decision by the Bureau
Measures to improve the democratic character of elections
in Council of Europe member states, to the Political Affairs committee for report and to the Committee
on Legal Affairs and Human Rights, the Committee on Culture, Science
and Education, the Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and
Men and the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population for opinion
ii. modifications to references
The Declaration of Principles on Equality and activities
of the Council of Europe
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Cilevičs and others,
to the Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men for opinion
