Procedure for examining requests for consultative status with the Council of Europe

Report | Doc. 255 | 26 May 1954

Committee

Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs

Rapporteur :

Mr Hendric Dudley OAKSHOTT, United Kingdom

Thesaurus

A Explanatory Memorandum

1

Having consulted the Assembly on the question of relations between the Council of Europe and non-governmental organisations (Opinion No. С of the Assembly of 24th September, 1953), the Ministers' Deputies, during their Eighteenth Meeting (February, 1954), l a id clown the conditions and procedure for granting consultative status with the Council of Europe to such organisations, and defined three categories of status. [(1) These categories are described at length in an official Council of. Europe publication entitled Relations between the Council of Europe and international non-governmental organisations (pp. 6-10).]

In accordance with the Opinion of the Assembly, theCommittee of Ministers'has decided that the files concerning requests f o r consultative status shall be transmitted: simultaneously to the Committee of Ministers and to the Assembly. [(2) These files would not bo tabled as Assembly documents but would be available at the Distribution Office to any Representativo asking for them.] The Assembly, upon receiving a report from the appropriate Committee or Committees, makes a Recommendation to the Committee of Ministers proposing either the refusal or the acceptance of the request for consultative status and stating, in the case of acceptance, the category of status to be granted. In the event of disagreement between the Assembly and the Committee of Ministers, the question is referred to the Joint Committee.

I n view of the variety of non-governmental organisations which request consultative status, arid the fact that three categories of status have been provided för, Your Committee consider i t important that the Assembly should examine such requests i n accordance w i t h a systematic and u n i f o rm procedure for determini n g the status to be granted. They consider that this could best be achieved by the appointment of a single committee to examine all requests. I f the requests were referred to existing Committees leaving them to report back i n d i v i d u a l ly to the Assembly, the desired . u n i f o r m i t y of views would not be obtained.

To meet this d i f f i c u l t y , Your Committee have·unanimously agreed to recommend'to the Assembly the following procedure. The' requests f o r consultative status should be referred to' a Committee consisting of the Chairmen of the Committees under the Chairmanship of the President of the Assembly. A h y Chairman who was prevented f r om attending could depute a Vice-Chairman to replace him. The Committee would appoint a rapporteur to present its conclusions to thè Assembly.

The following d r a f t Order was unanimously adopted by the Committee for submission to the Assembly.

B Draft Order of the Assembly

The Assembly resolves :

1 That the Bureau do refer all requests for consultative status f r om international nongovernmental organisations to a Committee consisting of the Chairmen of Committees under the Chairmanship of the President of the Assembly.

2 That any Chairman who is prevented f r om attending the Committee be empowered to delegate a Vice-Chairman.

3 That the Committee do appoint a rapporteur to present its report to the Assembly containing a d r a f t recommendation to the Committee of Ministers.