27/05/2011 Monitoring
Strasbourg, 27.05.2011 – The Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) co-rapporteur on the honouring of obligations and commitments by Serbia, Davit Harutyunyan (Armenia, EDG), pays tribute to the steps taken by the Serbian parliament to align its legislation with Council of Europe standards. He particularly welcomes progress made in implementing PACE Resolution 1661 (2009) by abolishing blank resignations, amending the system of allocation of seats in parliament - which should better respect the will of the citizens - and ensuring a better access of women to elected positions in parliament.
"I congratulate the Serbian authorities for these positive moves which are concrete signs of Serbia's political will to fully implement the principles and standards of the Council of Europe. The Parliamentary Assembly will further monitor the progress made in fulfilling the remaining commitments. I am confident that Serbia will continue to actively co-operate with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and arrest Goran Hadzic. I also encourage Serbia to continue to work closely with the Council of Europe to enhance its democratic sustainability, thus contributing to the reconciliation process and the political stability of the region," the co-rapporteur said.
"With the arrest of war crime-indictee Mladic, Serbia is addressing its past and paving the way to its European future," he concluded.
The Monitoring Committee will appoint a second co-rapporteur at its meeting of 30 May 2011. A report on Serbia should be presented early in 2012 to PACE.