Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) 10/04/2013 Four heads of state or government to address Parliamentary Assembly Spring Session . Strasbourg, 10.04.2013 – German President Joachim Gauck, Georgian Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta and Andorran Head of Government Antoni Martí are among a number of leading figures to address the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) during its Spring plenary session in Strasbourg (22-26 April). Topics for debate include the Assembly’s post-monitoring dialogue with Turkey, violence against religious communities, fighting “child sex tourism” and balancing the benefits...

Commissioner for Human Rights 09/04/2013 Bridging interethnic divisions: top priority in “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” Commissioner for Human Rights Nils Muižnieks Strasbourg, 9/4/2013 – “Several milestones have been reached since the signing of the Ohrid Framework agreement which ended the 2001 conflict, including in the areas of local government, the use of languages and equitable representation. However, deep politicisation along party lines and political patronage undermine social cohesion” said today Nils Muižnieks, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, releasing a report based on his November 2012 visit to the country.   While...

Secretary General 08/04/2013 International Roma Day: Secretary General visits camps in Strasbourg . Strasbourg, 8 april 2013 - On the occasion of International Roma Day, Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland visited two Roma camps in Strasbourg, where the organisation is based. Accompanied by the city of Strasbourg’s Deputy Mayor, and head of European and International relations, Nawel Rafik-Elmrini, Mr Jagland met residents of the camps and discussed their situation. Concluding his visit he said:    “I would like to pay tribute to the Roma, their heritage and contribution to European culture. At same time I am concerned that...

Council of Europe and European Commission 08/04/2013 Commissioner Füle and Secretary General Jagland regret lack of progress in implementing Sejdić-Finci judgement Štefan Füle in Strasbourg, January 2012 Strasbourg, 8 april 2013 - Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy Mr Štefan Füle and Secretary General of the Council of Europe Mr Thorbjørn Jagland regret that narrow party and ethnic interests continue to prevail over genuine engagement to end the constitutional discrimination of many citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina and bring the legislation in line with the European Convention on Human Rights . The lack of commitment from some of...

Parliamentary Assembly 08/04/2013 Situation in Middle East: Parliamentary Assembly delegation visits Jordan and Palestinian Territories Parliamentary Assembly Strasbourg, 05.04.2013 - “Jordan urgently needs the support of the international community in order to cope with the immense necessities of the hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees whom it harbours on its territory. Merely fulfilling the basic needs of the 140,000 Syrian refugees placed in the Za’atri camp, which our delegation visited, costs a million dollars a day. And over 2 000 new refugees are arriving at Za’atri every day,” Josette Durrieu (France, SOC), Chair of the Assembly Sub-Committee on the...

Secretary General 07/04/2013 Secretary General Jagland welcomes decision of Ukrainian President Yanukovych to pardon former minister Yuri Lutsenko Secretary General Jagland Strasbourg, 7 April 2013 - Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland welcomes the decision of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych to pardon former minister Yuri Lutsenko: "I welcome the decision of President Yanukovych to pardon former Ministers Lutsenko and Filipchuk as well as four other persons. It follows the spirit of the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights . I trust that Ukraine will also follow the judgment of the Court in the case of former Prime-Minister Yulia Tymoshenko. The Council...

Group of States against Corruption 05/04/2013 GRECO publishes compliance reports on Czech Republic, Cyprus, Norway and Republic of Moldova Strasbourg, 05/04/2013 – The Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) has published compliance reports on the Republic of Moldova, the Czech Republic and Cyprus, and a second compliance report on Norway. The reports assess the level of compliance with the recommendations made by GRECO in its Third Round evaluation reports, which deal with the criminalisation of corruption and the transparency of party financing.   Report the Republic of Moldova Report on the Czech Republic Report on Cyprus ...

Secretary General 05/04/2013 Milestone reached in negotiations on accession of EU to the European Convention on Human Rights Strasbourg, 05/04/2013 – Negotiators of the 47 Council of Europe member states and the European Union have finalised the draft accession agreement of the European Union to the European Convention on Human rights. The EU Court of Justice in Luxembourg will now be asked to give its opinion on the text.   Accession of the EU to the ECHR will strengthen the protection of human rights in Europe, by ultimately submitting the EU and its legal acts to the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights.   Thorbjørn Jagland, the...

Making Human Rights for Roma a Reality 05/04/2013 DOSTA! campaign launches in Lithuania and Spain Dosta! photo gallery Strasbourg, 5 April 2013 - On the 8 and 9 April the DOSTA! campaign will be launched in Vilnius and Madrid respectively. DOSTA! means “enough” in the variant of the Romaní language spoken in the Balkans, where the campaign was first initiated. The campaign promotes better knowledge of the Roma community and raises awareness of the prejudices and stereotypes surrounding it.   The DOSTA! campaign started in 2006 within the framework of a joint Council of Europe/European Commission programme on South-east Europe “Equal Rights...

President of the Parliamentary Assembly 04/04/2013 Jean-Claude Mignon ends official visit to Finland PACE President Jean-Claude Mignon Strasbourg, 04.04.2013 – “Europe cannot progress unless it invests in young people and unless young people’s voices are heard and heeded in all major decisions affecting society,” said Jean-Claude Mignon, PACE President, speaking at the end of an official two-day visit to Finland (2 and 3 April 2013). “Europe is an idea that never grows old and one that cannot be achieved without young people,” he stressed.   Jean-Claude Mignon congratulated Finland on being one of the countries to host an annual youth...

President of the Parliamentary Assembly 28/03/2013 Respect for Council of Europe commitments is an ‘essential stage’ on Ukraine’s path to European integration Jean-Claude Mignon Strasbourg, 27.03.2013 – “I welcome the clear willingness expressed by Ukraine’s highest authorities to scrupulously respect their obligations and commitments to the Council of Europe, as well as the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights,” said Jean-Claude Mignon, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), speaking today in Kyiv.   Following a meeting with President Yanukovich during an official visit to the country, Jean-Claude Mignon said...

Commissioner for Human Rights 27/03/2013 Estonia: all children should be citizens Nils Muižnieks Tallin, 27/03/2013 - “In Estonia there are 1200 stateless children – all children should be granted citizenship automatically at birth even when their parents are stateless” urged Nils Muižnieks, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights , after concluding his three-day visit to Estonia. “It is in the best interests of the child to hold citizenship from birth as this is key to enjoying fully all human rights.” The Commissioner welcomed the on-going reform of the Child Protection Act and stressed that qualified staff for child protection should be made...

Group of States against Corruption 27/03/2013 Finland encouraged to further sharpen its tools to prevent corruption . Strasbourg, 27.03.2013 – Finland has an effective system for preventing corruption among members of parliament, judges and prosecutors. However, there is still room for improvement – particularly with regard to conflicts of interest among parliamentarians. These are the main findings of an evaluation report published today by the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO ). The report noted that Finland is widely regarded as being one of the least corrupt countries in Europe, and that perceptions of corruption among...

Parliamentary Assembly 25/03/2013 Václav Havel Human Rights Prize launched in Prague Václav Havel, Council of Europe, 1990 Strasbourg, 25.03.2013 – The Václav Havel Human Rights Prize, which aims to reward outstanding civil society action in the defence of human rights in Europe and beyond, was launched today at a ceremony in Prague (Czech Republic). To be awarded each year by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), in partnership with the Václav Havel Library and the Charta 77 Foundation, the Prize is open to nominations from any individual, non-governmental organisation or institution working to defend human rights, and will be worth €60...

President of the Parliamentary Assembly 22/03/2013 Parliamentary Assembly President makes official visit to Ukraine Jean-Claude Mignon Strasbourg, 22.03.2013 – Jean-Claude Mignon, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), is to make an official visit to Ukraine from 26 to 28 March 2013. In Kyiv on Tuesday, he is due to meet President Viktor Yanukovich, Prime Minister Mykola Azarov and Foreign Minister Leonid Kozhara. The following day he will meet the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Volodymyr Rybak, and begins a series of meetings with the leaders of Ukraine’s major political factions and the heads of key parliamentary committees. Later in...

Secretary General 21/03/2013 Secretary General calls on states to focus support for Roma on education   Bucharest, 21.03.2013 - In a video message from Bucharest, Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland today urged governments to co-operate in the integration of the Roma and to make education a priority in support projects at the local, national and European level.    During his official visit to Romania, the Secretary General went to Ferentari district, one of the poorest areas in Bucharest, to get a first-hand impression of the challenges facing Roma communities and local authorities today. He visited a local public...

Secretary General 19/03/2013 Secretary General Jagland makes official visit to Romania Thorbjørn Jagland and Victor Ponta Strasbourg, 20.03.2013 – Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland is making an official visit to Romania on 20-21 March. In Bucharest, Mr. Jagland is holding bilateral meetings with the President of Romania Traian Băsescu, the Prime Minister Victor Ponta, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Titus Corlăţean, the Minister of Justice Mona Maria Pivniceru, the President of the Chamber of Deputies Valeriu Zgonea, the President of the Senate Crin Antonescu and the President of the Superior Council of Magistrates Oana Schmidt Hăineală. He will...

Parliamentary Assembly 18/03/2013 Some countries 'slipping back' to discrimination against LGBT people, says Assembly rapporteur Peter Scholz / Shutterstock.com, Munich 2012 Strasbourg, 18.03.2013 - Some Council of Europe member states are "squarely slipping back" towards greater discrimination on the ground of sexual orientation and gender identity, according to PACE rapporteur Håkon Haugli (Norway, SOC), speaking on the eve of a major conference on freedom of expression for LGBT people, to take place in Warsaw on Tuesday 19 March. Presenting a memorandum to PACE's Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination, Mr Haugli said that all countries faced...