21/06/2010 Session
This session will be marked by the venue of three Heads of State and Government from the Western Balkans, a communication by the Macedonian Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers and a debate on the situation in Kosovo, the PACE President said in his opening speech of the PACE June session today. He stressed that together with his official visits to the region and PACE’s previous discussions on Albania as well as Bosnia and Herzegovina, the priority given to the issues at stake there were a clear illustration of the Balkan dimension of the Council of Europe and of his presidency in particular. “Allow me to take this occasion to say to our friends from the Balkan countries – we are proud of the progress that you have made in transforming your countries in conformity with the Council of Europe principles, we stand ready to assist you further in this process and we strongly support your efforts to accede to the European Union as soon as possible,” he said.
Referring to the bi-annual debate on the state of democracy in Europe, the President stressed that the timing could not have been better. “In many European countries, after the first shock of the financial and economic crisis, we start to feel, and fear, the consequences that this crisis may have on the functioning of our democratic systems. There is a risk of an increasing vulnerability of some disadvantaged groups and a danger of rising intolerance and discrimination. These are the issues which are at the heart of our political systems. Either we have democracy for all or we do not have real democracy,” he said.
He then announced that he would like to use the unique forum offered by the Assembly to organise a debate with the Prime Ministers of Spain and Turkey, who are at the origin of Alliance of Civilisations initiative, next year in Strasbourg with the participation of different religious leaders. “In this connection, I look forward to our discussion on the report on Islam, Islamism and Islamophobia in Europe. It will not be an easy debate, but I am convinced that it will produce the right results,” he said.
The President also referred to his role as PACE President in promoting Council of Europe values in non-member states. “In this connection, the Israeli raid on civilian ships bringing humanitarian aid to Gaza which resulted in the death of nine persons came as a shock to me. In my statement issued immediately after this tragic event, I condemned this action by Israeli forces and deplored the disproportionate use of force. Targeting people involved in humanitarian and peaceful activities can never be justifiable and goes against the values of the Council of Europe. The request for an urgent debate regarding the Middle East has been supported by the Bureau this morning and, therefore, we will most probably have an opportunity to adopt an Assembly position in this respect,” he said.
Finally, the President stressed that the Council of Europe was not equipped to deal with emergency situation like the one in Kyrgyzstan, with hundreds of victims and thousands of refugees and displaced persons as a result of ethnic tensions abused for political purposes. “But should we not be more pro-active before they arise? Should we not use more generously our partner for democracy status, offer it to countries that may not yet be up to our standards, but where our involvement could make a real difference and save lives,“ the PACE President concluded.