Progress report of the Bureau of the Assembly and of the Standing Committee (29 January-26 April 2010)
Progress report
| Doc. 12210 Part I
| 26 April 2010
A. Introduction
1. The Bureau met on 29 January
in Strasbourg and on 11 March in Paris. The Standing Committee met on
12 March in Paris.
B. Functioning
of the Assembly
I. Progress Report
of the Bureau of the Assembly and of the Standing Committee (29
January – 26 April 2010)
2. On 29 January, the Bureau appointed
Mr Mignon (France, EPP/CD) as Rapporteur.
II. Standing
Committee (Paris, 12 March 2010)
i. Draft agenda
3. On 29 January, the Bureau took
note of the draft agenda.
4. On 11 March, the Bureau took note of the updated draft agenda.
ii. Meeting of
the Standing Committee
5. On 12 March, the Standing Committee:
a ratified the credentials of one
new member of the Assembly submitted by the delegation of Germany;
b ratified the changes in the composition of Assembly committees
in respect of the delegations of Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom,
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 EDG political group;
c held an exchange of views on the observation of the second
round of the presidential election in Ukraine (7 February 2010)
and took note of the report of the ad
hoc Committee of the Bureau.
III. Adopted
texts
6. On 12 March, the Standing Committee
adopted, on behalf of the Assembly, the following texts:
Draft Council of Europe Convention on counterfeiting of medical
products and similar crimes involving threats to public health
Draft Protocol amending the Convention on Mutual Administrative
Assistance in Tax Matters (ETS No. 127)
Minority protection in Europe: best practices and deficiencies
in implementation of common standards
Children who witness domestic violence
Rethinking creative rights for the Internet age
The wage gap between women and men
Term of office of co-rapporteurs of the Monitoring Committee
Rules and procedures for the future elections of the Secretary
General of the Council of Europe – Draft joint (Committee of Ministers
/ Parliamentary Assembly) interpretative statement
Change in the composition of the Bureau of the Parliamentary
Assembly
Minority protection in Europe: best practices and deficiencies
in implementation of common standards
Children who witness domestic violence
The wage gap between women and men
IV. Follow-up
to Resolution 1709 (2010) “The functioning of democratic institutions in Albania”
7. On 11 March, the Bureau heard
a report by the President on the visit of the Presidential Committee
to Albania on 22 and 23 February 2010 (see Appendix I).
V. Follow-up
to Resolution 1583 (2007) “Improving the participation of members in Assembly plenary
sessions and committee meetings”
8. On 11 March, the Bureau agreed
to return to this matter following further consultation with Chairpersons of
national parliamentary delegations.
VI. Second ordinary
part-Session of 2010 (Strasbourg, 26-30 April 2010)
9. On 29 January, the Bureau drew
up a preliminary draft agenda.
10. On 11 March, the Bureau adopted the draft agenda.
11. On 12 March, the Standing Committee took note of the draft
agenda.
VII. References
and transmissions to committees
12. On 29 January, the Bureau approved
the following references and modifications of references, which were
ratified the same day by the Assembly:
i. references
to committees
Motion for a recommendation presented by Mr Wodarg and others
Faked Pandemics – a threat for health, to the Social, Health
and Family Affairs Committee for report
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Lindblad and others
The impact of the Lisbon Treaty on the Council of Europe,
to the Political Affairs Committee for
report, to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights
and to the Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men for opinion
Motion for a recommendation presented by Mr Eörsi and others
Jewish cemeteries, to the Committee on Culture, Science and
Education for report
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Harutyunyan and others
Ensuring protection against attacks on the honour and reputation
of persons, to the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and
Institutional Affairs for report
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Ducarme and others
Fighting the global backlash against women’s human rights,
to the Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men for report
f. Bureau decision
Draft joint interpretive statement on Rules and Procedures
for the future elections of the Secretary General, to the Committee
on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs for report at the Standing Committee in March
2010
g. Bureau decision
Democracy in crisis: follow-up to Resolutions 1547 (2007) and 1617 (2008), to the Political Affairs Committee for report
h. Follow-up to the current affairs
debate ‘What can Europe do for Haiti?’, to the Social,
Health and Family Affairs Committee for
report and the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population for opinion
Assembly decision (report referred back to committee)
Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender
identity, to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights for report and to the Committee
on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men for
opinion
Assembly decision (report referred back to committee)
Biodiversity and climate change, to the Committee on the
Environment, Agriculture and Local and Regional Affairs for report
ii. modification
of a reference
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Lindblad and others
The political situation in Northern Caucasus: immediate need
for measures to increase democratic stability in accordance with
Council of Europe standards, to the Committee on Legal Affairs and
Human Rights for taking into account
in the preparation of the report on the “Legal remedies for human
rights violations in the North-Caucasus Region” and to the Political
Affairs Committee for opinion
13. On 12 March, the Standing Committee
approved the following references and modifications to references:
i. references
to committees
Motion for a resolution presented by Mrs Gautier and others
More women in economic and social decision-making bodies,
to the Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men for report and to the Committee
on Economic Affairs and Development for
opinion
Motion for a recommendation presented by Mr Volontè and others
Combating poverty, to the Social, Health and Family Affairs
Committee for report and to
the Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men for opinion
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Volontè and others
Demographic winter and the future of Europe, to the Committee
on Migration, Refugees and Population for
report
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Mignon and others
Follow-up to the reform of the Council of Europe, to the
Political Affairs Committee for report and
to the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional
Affairs for opinion
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Volontè and others
Families’ freedom of choice in education in each member state,
to the Committee on Culture, Science and Education for report
f. Bureau decision
Effective implementation of the European Convention on Human
Rights: the Interlaken process, to the Committee on Legal Affairs
and Human Rights for report
ii. transmission
for information
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr Galati and others
The socio-economic potential of endogenous resources for
the development of weak territories, to the Committee on Economic
Affairs and Development for information
Motion for a resolution presented by Mr R Huseynov and others
Expediency of using common manuals in European educational
networks, to the Committee on Culture, Science and Education for information
VIII. Debate
on the State of Democracy in Europe
14. On 29 January, the Bureau decided
to include – in the joint debate on “The State of Democracy in Europe”
planned for the June 2010 part-session – a third report by the Political
Affairs Committee on the subject “Democracy in crisis: follow-up
to
Resolutions 1547 (2007) and 1617 (2008)”.
IX. European
Convention on Human Rights (ECHR)
i. High-Level
Conference on the Future of the European Court of Human Rights,
Interlaken, 18-19 February 2010:
15. On 11 March, the Bureau referred
the Interlaken Declaration to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human
Rights, in order for it to draw up a report on “Effective implementation
of the European Convention of Human Rights: the Interlaken process”,
for presentation to the Assembly at its April 2010 part-session.
ii. Consequences
of the entry into force of Protocol 14 to the European Convention
of Human Rights on 1 June 2010:
16. On 29 January, the Bureau:
a noted that the Russian Federation
was expected soon to deposit its instrument of ratification of Protocol No.
14 to the European Convention of Human Rights, well in time before
1 July 2010;
b decided for the time being not to take any steps to initiate
within the Assembly any election process of the 21 judges on the
Court whose terms would expire on 31 October 2010.
17. On 11 March, the Bureau took note of the proposed timetable
for the election of judges to the European Court of Human Rights
(see Appendix II).
X. Code of conduct
for co-rapporteurs on the honouring of obligations and commitments
by member states of the Council of Europe
18. On 29 January, the Bureau took
note of a letter on this subject sent by the Chairperson of the
Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs
and confirmed the mandate given to the committee to prepare a report
aiming at incorporating elements from this Code of conduct into
the Assembly’s Rules of Procedure.
19. On 11 March, the Bureau took
note of letters from the two Turkish Cypriot political parties informing
the President of the Assembly of the names of the “elected representatives
of the Turkish Cypriot community” entitled to sit in the Assembly,
namely Mr Ahmet Eti (National Unity Party)and Mr Mehmet Caglar (Republican Turkish
Party), to be submitted to the Assembly for its approval within
the framework of the Progress Report.
XII. Reconstitution
of Bureau ad hoc Committees
20. On 11 March, the Bureau:
i Ad hoc Committee of the Bureau
on promoting dialogue between the Georgian and Russian Assembly delegations:
held an exchange of views on this matter and decided to postpone
its decision to a future meeting;
ii 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: held an exchange of views on
this matter and decided to postpone its decision to a future meeting;
iii Ad hoc Committee on the Forum
for the future of Democracy: decided to reconstitute
this ad hoc committee and to appoint Mr David Harutyunyan (Armenia,
EDG) as its chairperson for 2010, in his capacity as Chairperson
of the parliamentary delegation of the host country of the Forum
which would take place in Armenia.
XIII. Composition
of the Monitoring Committee and the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities
and Institutional Affairs
i. Monitoring
Committee
21. On 29 January, the Bureau:
a in respect of Armenia: appointed
Mr Harutyunyan (EDG) and Mr Rustamyan (SOC), for ratification by the
Assembly;
b in respect of Ukraine: appointed
Mrs Herasym’yuk (EPP/CD) and Mr Holovaty (ALDE), for ratification
by the Assembly.
ii. Committee
on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs
22. On 29 January, the Bureau approved
the changes in the list of members as proposed by political groups, for
ratification by the Assembly.
23. On 11 March, the Bureau approved the proposed modification
to the list of members.
XIV. Meetings
elsewhere than in Strasbourg and Paris
i. Meetings
24. On 29 January, the Bureau authorised
the following meetings:
a Committee
on the Environment, Agriculture and Local and Regional Affairs: Bucharest (Romania), 18-19 February
2010;
b Ad Hoc Committee of the Committee on Legal Affairs and
Human Rights to participate in the 4th World Congress
against the death penalty: Geneva
(Switzerland), 24-26 February 2010;
c Sub-Committee on the Middle-East of the Political Affairs
Committee: Izmir (Turkey),
4-5 March 2010;
d Social, Health and Family Affairs Committee: Florence (Italy), 5 March 2010;
e Committee on Culture, Science and Education: Istanbul
(Turkey), 10-11 May 2010.
25. On 11 March, the Bureau authorised the Committee on Migration,
Refugees and Population to meet in Brussels (Belgium) on 18 May
2010.
ii. Modification
of the rule on meetings of Committees and Sub-Committees of the
Assembly elsewhere than in Strasbourg or Paris
26. On 29 January, the Bureau approved
the proposals contained in document [AS/Bur (2009) 107].
XV. Appointments
of Assembly Representatives for official activities
27. On 29 January, in reply to
formal invitations, the Bureau took the following decisions:
a Mr de Puig (Spain, SOC): International
meeting in support of Israeli-Palestinian Peace, Qawra (Malta), 12-13
February 2010;
b Mr Mendes Bota (Portugal, EPP/CD): IPU side event on violence
against women on the occasion of the 54th session
of the commission on the status of Women (CSW) and meeting on “the
roles of parliaments in Enforcing Women’s rights, 15 years after
Beijing”, New-York, (United States of America), 1-2 March 2010;
c Mr Herkel (Estonia, EPP/CD): 73rd Rose-Roth
seminar, Yerevan (Armenia), 11-13 March 2010.
28. On 11 March, in reply to formal invitations, the Bureau took
the following decisions:
a Mr Hörster
(Germany, EPP/CD): 18th Plenary Session
of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council
of Europe, Strasbourg, 17-19 March 2010;
b Ms Kovacs (Serbia, EPP/CD): High-level round-table on
the situation of youth rights in Europe today European Youth Centre,
Strasbourg, 29 March 2010;
c Mrs Lavtizar-Bebler (Slovenia, SOC): 3rd Standing
Committee on Dialogue among Civilizations and Human Rights organised
by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean, Ljubljana (Slovenia),
15 April 2010 (no cost for the Assembly);
d Mr Marquet (Monaco, ALDE): Conference “Preparing the practical
implementation of the Council of Europe convention on counterfeiting
of medical products and similar crimes involving threats to public health
(MEDICRIME Convention)” organised by the Council of Europe, Basel
(Switzerland) 15-16 April 2010;
e Mr Gross (Switzerland, SOC): Conference “Democracy and
Decentralisation” organised by the Swiss authorities, St Gallen
(Switzerland), 3-4 May 2010 (no cost for the Assembly).
XVI. Institutional
representation of the Parliamentary Assembly in 2010
29. On 29 January, the Bureau appointed
the following Assembly representatives:
a European Commission for Democracy through Law – Venice
Commission: Mr de Puig (SOC) appointed by the President, Mr Holovaty
(ALDE, Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights); and as substitute Mr
Pourgourides (EPP/CD, Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights);
b Council for Democratic Elections (of the Venice Commission):
Mr Gross (SOC, Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights) and
Mrs Durrieu (SOC, Political Affairs Committee), the representative
for the Monitoring Committee will be appointed in March 2010; in
the meantime, members for 2009 will represent the Assembly and as
substitute: Mrs de Pourbaix-Lundin (EPP/CD, Committee on Legal Affairs
and Human Rights);
c European Centre for Global Interdependence and Solidarity
– North-South Centre: Mrs de Melo (SOC, Committee on Culture, Science
and Education) and Mr Sasi (EPP/CD, Committee on Economic Affairs and
Development) and as substitutes: Mr de Puig (SOC, Committee on Culture,
Science and Education) and Mrs Blondin (SOC, Committee on Economic
Affairs and Development);
d European Commission Against Racism and Intolerance – ECRI:
Mr Cilevics (SOC, Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights),
Mr Szabo (SOC, Committee on Political Affairs) and Mr Olsson (EPP/CD, Committee
on Culture, Science and Education) and as substitutes: Mr Berenyi
(EPP/CD, Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights) and Mrs Giannaka
(SOC, Committee on Culture, Science and Education);
e Advisory Board for the Future of Democracy: the Chairperson
of the Political Affairs Committee and the Chairperson or a member
of the Ad Hoc Sub-Committee on the Forum for the Future of Democracy (according
to availability);
f Group of States against Corruption – GRECO: Mr Sasi (EPP/CD,
Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights) and as substitute Mr
Varvitsiotis (EPP/CD, Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights);
g European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice – CEPEJ:
Mr Hunault (EDG, Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights) and
as substitute Mr Chope (EDG, Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights);
h Council of Europe Committee for Works of Art: Mr O’Hara
(SOC, Committee on Culture, Science and Education);
i Pan-European Federation for Heritage – Europa Nostra:
Mr O’Hara (SOC, Committee on Culture, Science and Education).
XVII. Visits
30. On 29 January, the Bureau:
a took note of the intention of Mr
von Sydow to carry out a visit to Kosovo
Note for
the purposes of his report on “The situation in Kosovo”;
b authorised Mr Lindblad to conduct a fact-finding visit
to the United States Congress of America for the purposes of his
report “Re-engaging in the parliamentary dialogue with the Unites
States” (at no cost to the Assembly);
c took note of Mr Lindblad’s intention to participate in
a conference in Jakarta (Indonesia) organised by the “World Movement
for Democracy” on the theme “Solidarity across Cultures: Working
Together for Democracy” (11-14 April 2010).
C. Relations with
other bodies of the Council of Europe
I. Committee
of Ministers
i. Draft Joint
Interpretative Statement (Committee of Ministers – Parliamentary
Assembly) concerning rules and procedures for future elections of
the Secretary General of the Council of Europe:
31. On 29 January, the Bureau decided
to refer the Draft Statement to the Committee on Rules of Procedure,
Immunities and Institutional Affairs for a report to be presented
to the Standing Committee at its meeting in March 2010.
II. European
Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment (CPT)
32. On 29 January, the Bureau drew
up lists of candidates in respect of Croatia and France to be forwarded to
the Committee of Ministers.
D. Elections
I. Ukraine: Presidential
election (17 January and 7 February 2010)
33. On 11 March, the Bureau approved
the report of the ad hoc committee on the second round of this election.
II. Schedule
of elections in 2010
34. On 29 January, the Bureau took
note of the schedule of elections in 2010.
E. Budgetary matters
I. Apportionment
of the allocation to political groups for 2010
35. On 29 January, the Bureau approved
the proposals contained in the document [AS/Bur (2010) 03].
F. Other business
I. Schedule for
the election of the Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly
36. On 29 January, the Bureau:
a approved the timetable for the
election of the Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly
as regards the Assembly.
b asked the Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly
to transmit the timetable as regards the Assembly to the Committee
of Ministers.
II. Conferences
i. Joint Conference
of the Commonwealth of Independent States Inter-Parliamentary Assembly
(CIS-IPA) and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
(St. Petersburg, 8 April 2010):
37. On 29 January, the Bureau decided
to hold this conference jointly with the CIS-IPA on 8 April 2010
on the theme: “The future of European Security”, and authorised
the Sub-Committee on External Relations of the Political Affairs
Committee to hold a meeting in connection with the Conference.
38. On 11 March, authorised the Sub-committee on conflict prevention
through dialogue and reconciliation of the Political Affairs Committee
to participate in this conference (in addition to the Sub-Committee
on External Relations).
III. Parliamentary
assistance programmes
39. On 11 March, the Bureau took
note of activities carried out in 2008-2009 and plans for activities
in 2010.
IV. Communications
40. On 11 March, the Bureau took
note of communications by the Secretary General and the Deputy Secretary
General of the Council of Europe as well as the Secretary General
of the Parliamentary Assembly.
Appendix 1 – Follow-up to Resolution 1709 (2010) on the Visit to Tirana by the Presidential Committee and
the co-rapporteurs of the Monitoring Committee (21-23 February 2010)
Memorandum by the President of the Parliamentary
Assembly
1. In its
Resolution 1709 adopted on 28 January 2010, in order to support the
process of resolving the current political situation and assist
President Topi in his role of mediator and his efforts to restore
political dialogue and bring an end to the boycott based on the
acceptance of the recent election result and the full restoration
of parliamentary democracy, the Assembly decided to ask “the Presidential
Committee together with the co-rapporteurs of its Monitoring Committee
to visit Albania as soon as possible after the January 2010 part-session
of the Assembly”.
2. In this context, the Presidential Committee and the co-rapporteurs
of the Monitoring Committee visited Tirana on 21 and 22 February
2010.
3. In a first round of consultations, we met with the President
of the Republic, Mr Bamir Topi, with the Speaker of the Parliament,
Mrs Josephina Topalli, the Chairman of the Democratic Party and
Prime Minister, Mr Sali Berisha, and the Chairman of the Socialist
Party, Mr Edi Rama. We also held a fruitful exchange of views with
Council of Europe Ambassadors and representatives of the diplomatic
community in Tirana.
4. We then invited Prime Minister Sali Berisha and Socialist
Party leader Edi Rama to join our last meeting with the President
of the Republic Bamir Topi and to sit together and initiate a dialogue
under the mediation of President Topi, which all parts accepted.
5. Both the ruling Democratic Party and the main opposition Socialist
party have welcomed the PACE resolution on the functioning of democratic
institutions in Albania and the recommendation to President Topi
to organise a Round table, initiating the dialogue on the current
political situation.
6. President Topi held a Round table on 13 February 2010, which
enabled three hours of talks between the main political actors to
explore points where the parties could come to an agreement.
7. When we first arrived, both sides were sticking to their positions.
On the one hand, the Democratic Party leader was ready to set up
a parliamentary inquiry committee on the 28 June elections provided
it respects the Constitutional framework – implying no opening of
the ballot boxes by the parliamentary inquiry committee. On the
other hand, the Socialist Party leader claimed that a parliamentary
inquiry committee is provided for under the Constitution of the
Republic of Albania and that determining the scope of this inquiry
committee (including the question of opening of the ballot boxes)
is an exclusive prerogative of the parliament which should fully respect
the right of the parliamentary minority. The Socialist Party, for
its part, stressed that no dialogue would take place without prior
agreement on the investigation into the rigging of the previous
elections.
8. Taking into account this difference of interpretation of the
legal framework, we proposed that the Albanian authorities seek
the Venice Commission’s opinion.
9. At the end of our visit, in the absence of any concession
position from either side, we concluded
Note that the
solution of the current political crisis could be based on the following
principles:
- the creation without
further delay of a parliamentary committee of inquiry into the June
2009 elections, chaired by a representative of the opposition and
in which the opposition would have an effective majority;
- this committee of inquiry would prepare amendments to
the electoral code in line with the recommendations of the international
observation mission and of Resolution
1709;
- the opposition would be granted a fair share of the chairmanships
of the parliamentary committees.
10. Regarding the committee of inquiry terms of reference, the
PACE delegation notes that both parties agree that this must be
dealt with within the constitutional framework of the Republic of
Albania.
11. In a positive development following our visit to Tirana, the
64 Socialist Party MPs broke their six-month long boycott of the
Parliament by returning to be formally sworn in on Thursday 25 February
2010. At the same time, the Socialist Party MPs tabled two draft
laws aiming respectively to introduce changes to the Parliament’s Rules
of Procedure so as to allow the opposition to chair and hold the
majority in the inquiry committee, and to set up an inquiry committee
with an unrestricted term of reference to look into the elections.
12. However, to date it remains unclear whether the Socialist
Party will remain in Parliament and fully participate in the legislative
work as they announced that their presence in the Parliament would
be dependent on the approval by the Parliament of the two measures
aimed at making the conduct of the June 2009 general elections fully
transparent.
13. The Chair of the Socialist Group in the Parliament, Mr Gramoz
Ruçi, emphasised in his speech that the opposition would continue
to attend proceedings only if they received a positive answer on
the two draft laws.
14. Therefore, in a statement made to the media on 1 March 2010,
while welcoming the return of the opposition to the Albanian parliament,
I called on all political forces to work together in Parliament
so that this first step would be “the beginning of ongoing participation
of all political forces in the work of the parliament”
Note.
15. I also expressed the hope that the Albanian delegation to
PACE would be completed shortly and that opposition members would
actively take part in the work of the Parliamentary Assembly.
16. On 1 March 2010, the Speaker of the Parliament, Mrs Josephina
Topalli, convened a meeting of the conference of the chairs of political
groups the next day. This meant that they might discuss the current proposal
from the SP and the follow up. [to be
updated].
17. I believe, we need to encourage the leaders of both the Socialist
and Democratic parties to make further efforts to foster and strengthen
political dialogue in the country and within its institutions. I
therefore propose that the Bureau invite the co-rapporteurs of the
Monitoring Committee to follow closely the situation and report to
the Assembly in due course.
PRESS STATEMENTS
PACE leaders urge the Albanian parties
to end the current political crisis
Strasbourg, 23.02.2010 –
At the end of their visit to Albania, the President of the Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Mevlüt Çavusoglu, the
leaders of the Assembly’s five political groups (1) and the monitoring
co-rapporteurs for Albania (2) today urge the Albanian parties to
end the current political crisis in the country in order to proceed
with the vitally needed reforms.
They believe that the absence of parliamentary dialogue undermines
the democratic functioning of the state’s institutions.
They note that both the Democratic Party and the Socialist
Party welcome PACE Resolution
1709 on the functioning of democratic institutions in Albania,
adopted in plenary session last January, in response to which President
Topi convened a round-table of Albanian political leaders on 13
February 2010. The delegation pays tribute to the President and
encourages him to continue his efforts.
They conclude that the solution of the current political crisis
could be based on the following principles:
- the creation without further delay of a parliamentary
committee of inquiry into the June 2009 elections, chaired by a
representative of the opposition and in which the opposition will
have an effective majority;
- this committee of inquiry would prepare amendments to
the electoral code in line with the recommendations of the international
observation mission and of Resolution
1709;
- the opposition would be granted a fair share of the chairmanships
of the parliamentary committees.
Regarding the committee of inquiry terms of reference, the
PACE delegation notes that both parties agree that this must be
dealt with within the constitutional framework of the Republic of
Albania.
The delegation considers that this is sufficient to enable
the opposition to permanently participate in the work of parliament.
It urges them to do so without further delay.
During their visit, the delegation met the President of the
Republic, the Speaker of the Parliament, the Prime Minister, leaders
of political parties and representatives of the international community.
The visit was a response to the request made by the Assembly
in its Resolution 1709, to “support the process of resolving the current political
situation and assist President Topi in his role of mediator and
his efforts to restore political dialogue”.
***
(1) Luca Volontè, EPP/CD; Andreas Gross, SOC; Anne Brasseur,
ALDE; David Wilshire, EDG; Tiny Kox, UEL
(2) Jaakko Laakso (Finland, UEL) and David Wilshire (United
Kingdom, EDG)
Albania: PACE President calls on all political
forces to work together in Parliament
Strasbourg, 01.03.2010 –
Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) President Mevlüt
Çavusoglu today welcomed the return of the opposition to the Albanian
parliament last week as an important political sign. “However, I
firmly hope that this positive step was not a “one off” and that
it will mark the beginning of ongoing participation of all political
forces in the work of the parliament.”
“I am all the more pleased about this development as it comes
after the recent visit of our PACE Presidential Committee to the
country, which aimed at supporting the process of resolving the
current political situation and assisting President Topi in his
role of mediator and his efforts to restore political dialogue,”
the President said.
He encouraged the leaders of both the Socialist and Democratic
parties to make further efforts to foster and strengthen political
dialogue in the country.
“Parliamentary dialogue is of utmost importance for the democratic
functioning of the state’s institutions, and vital for the reforms
which need to be addressed without delay,” he said.
He expressed hope that the Albanian delegation to PACE would
be completed shortly and that opposition members would actively
take part in the work of the Parliamentary Assembly.
Appendix 2 – Entry into force of Protocol
No. 14 to the European Convention on Human Rights and the election
of Judges by the Assembly
1. Following
the deposit of the instrument of ratification of Protocol No.14
to European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) by the Russian Federation
on 18 February 2010, the Protocol will enter into force on 1 June
2010. This Protocol introduces a single, non-renewable term of office
of nine years for judges to the Court, and contains transitional
provisions in respect of the judges still serving a term of office
on the date it enters into force
Note.
It follows that the procedure initially envisaged, namely the requirement
that the Assembly (re)elect judges in respect of 21 States Parties
to the Convention, whose terms of office were to expire on 31 October 2010,
is no longer valid.
2. At its meeting of 29 January 2010 the Bureau was informed
of the likely imminent entry into force of Protocol No. 14 following
the signature of the act of ratification of Protocol No. 14 by the
President of the Russian Federation. The Bureau agreed not to proceed
with the election process pending further developments (see, on
this subject, Doc. AS/Bur (2010) 13).
3. There is now no need to proceed with the election of judges
with respect to 18 out of the 21 States this year. However, in so
far as the three remaining States are concerned, elections will
have to be envisaged due to another provision – Article 23 of the
Convention – which stipulates that the terms of office of judges
expire when they reach the age of 70. This concerns judges in respect
of Germany (judge reaches the age of 70 in December 2010), Portugal
(judge reaches the age of 70 in February 2011) and Greece (judge
reaches the age of 70 in May 2011). The election of the judge in
respect of Germany is scheduled for June 2010, and that in respect
of Portugal and Greece for October 2010.
4. The Secretary General of the Assembly has informed the authorities
of the 21 states concerned about this new situation. The German
authorities have been asked to transmit to the Assembly their list
of three candidates by the end of April 2010, and the Portuguese
and Greek authorities have been given the deadline of 18 June 2010.
5. On the basis of the above application of the transitional
provisions of Protocol No.14 to the ECHR, there has been a need
to re-schedule the timetable for the election of all of the judges,
after due consultation with the Court’s registry. The situation
is the following:
End of judges’ terms of office upon entry
into force of Protocol No 14 to the ECHRNote
|
30
December 2010
|
Judge elected in respect
of Germany (age limit reached)
|
|
5
February 2011
|
Judge elected in respect
of Portugal (age limit reached)
|
|
17
May 2011
|
Judge elected in respect
of Greece (age limit reached)
|
|
3
October 2011
|
Judge elected in respect
of Switzerland (age limit reached)
|
|
3
November 2011
|
Judge elected in respect
of France (age limit reached)
|
|
12
September 2012
|
Judge elected in respect
of Belgium (age limit reached)
|
|
31
October 2012
|
Judges elected in respect
of Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Poland, Russian Federation,
Sweden, United Kingdom
|
|
18
May 2013
|
Judge elected in respect
of Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
|
31
October 2013
|
Judges elected in respect
of Iceland, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Slovak Republic
|
|
16
December 2013
|
Judge elected in respect
of Romania (age limit reached)
|
|
3
April 2014
|
Judge elected in respect
of Serbia
|
|
20
May 2014
|
Judge elected in respect
of Denmark (age limit reached)
|
|
31
August 2015
|
Judge elected in respect
of Liechtenstein
|
|
10
September 2015
|
Judge elected in respect
of Monaco
|
|
16
September 2015
|
Judge elected in respect
of Cyprus (age limit reached)
|
|
31
October 2015
|
Judges elected in respect
of Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Latvia, Luxembourg, Slovenia
|
|
31
December 2016
|
Judge elected in respect
of Finland
|
|
31
January 2017
|
Judges elected in respect
of Albania, Georgia, Hungary, Spain, “the former Yugoslav Republic
of Macedonia”
|
|
2
March 2017
|
Judge elected in respect
of Ireland
|
|
30
April 2017
|
Judges elected in respect
of Bulgaria, Moldova, Turkey
|
|
26
August 2017
|
Judge elected in respect
of Montenegro
|
|
20
September 2018
|
Judge elected in respect
of San Marino
|
|
24
March 2019
|
Judge elected in respect
of Italy
|
