Secretary General 18/09/2012 Secretary General condemns film “The innocence of Muslims” Thorbjørn Jagland Strasbourg, 18/09/2012 – The Secretary General of the Council of Europe said today the European Convention on Human Rights offered guidance to European governments responding to the public outcry over the offending, anti-Islamic film. He condemned the film “The innocence of Muslims” as prejudiced and called on member States to fight hate speech, Islamophobia and intolerance. Read the Secretary General’s statement to the ambassadors of the 47 Council of Europe member states in full  

Commissioner for Human Rights 18/09/2012 Italy needs to speed up court proceedings and improve treatment of Roma and migrants Commissioner for Human Rights Nils Muižnieks Strasbourg, 18/9/2012 – “Lengthy proceedings and the treatment of Roma and migrants in Italy raise serious human rights concerns” said today Nils Muižnieks, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, releasing a report based on the findings of his visit to Italy carried out on 3-6 July 2012.   “It is high time that durable solutions be found to the excessive length of court proceedings, which is a long-standing human rights problem in Italy, generating the highest number of...

Parliamentary Assembly 17/09/2012 Speakers to gather in Strasbourg for major European parliamentary summit Parliamentary Assembly Strasbourg, 17.09.2012 – Speakers and presidents of parliament from the 47 member states of the Council of Europe and many partner, observer and neighbouring countries, as well as the heads of several interparliamentary assemblies, will be gathering in Strasbourg from 20 to 21 September 2012 for a major European parliamentary summit which is held every two years.   Around 350 delegates are expected at the European Conference of Presidents of Parliaments, held under the auspices of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE),...

Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe 16/09/2012 PACE President and predecessor call for calm, mutual respect and dialogue in Middle-East Jean-Claude Mignon, PACE President Strasbourg, 16 September 2012 - "We follow with great concern the violent protests that have flared up across the Middle-East triggered by the circulation of an Islamophobic film, and we wish to support and spread Pope Benedict XVI’s call for renewed Muslim-Christian co-operation in the Middle East; we underline that all religions can live together without hatred, respecting beliefs of each, to build together a free and humane society", said Jean-Claude Mignon, PACE President and his...

Parliamentary Assembly 14/09/2012 International Day of Democracy: declaration by the PACE Bureau Parliamentary Assembly Strasbourg, 14.09.2012 – To mark its support for the UN International Day of Democracy on 15 September, the Bureau of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted the following statement:   “The perception of a decline in democratic values triggered by the economic and financial crisis is growing in Europe and beyond. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has for some time been sounding the alarm, pointing to the diminishing trust of citizens in democratic institutions and political leadership, low electoral...

Committee of Ministers 12/09/2012 Roma Mediation backed by Committee of Ministers Committee of Ministers Strasbourg, 12 September 2012 - The Council of Europe Committee of Ministers today called on member governments to draw on the positive experience of the organisation’s Romed training programme by setting up their own effective system of quality mediation with Roma communities.   The call came in a recommendation to member states which stresses the benefits of mediation in terms of Roma access to health, housing, education and jobs, welcoming the fact that such mediation is being practised more widely and becoming an explicit part of national strategies and action...

Parliamentary Assembly 11/09/2012 Assembly President welcomes resolution on illegal CIA prisons PACE President Jean-Claude Mignon Strasbourg, 11.09.2012 – “I warmly welcome today’s European Parliament resolution on the illegal detention of prisoners in European countries by the CIA,” said Jean-Claude Mignon, the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).   “It is now more than five years since Senator Dick Marty first presented to PACE credible evidence of secret CIA prisons in Poland and Romania, and the involvement of other European countries in illegal renditions. Much of what he said has been subsequently...

Secretary General 11/09/2012 Thorbjørn Jagland meets Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders and Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland Strasbourg, 11 September 2012 - The Secretary General met Didier Reynders, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and European Affairs of Belgium.   The meeting focussed on the co-operation between the Council of Europe and Belgium, the future Belgian Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe and on current political affairs.   The reform of the Organisation also was part of the agenda.      Read also: Belgium and...

Commissioner for Human Rights 11/09/2012 “Austria should improve the protection of asylum-seekers, women and persons with disabilities” Commissioner for Human Rights Nils Muižnieks “Despite a well-established human rights system, Austria still needs to bridge some remaining gaps, in particular as concerns the rights of asylum-seekers, women and persons with disabilities” said Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Nils Muižnieks, publishing a report based on the findings of his visit to Austria last 4-6 June.   “Access of asylum-seekers to the labour market should be extended, including by granting young asylum-seekers permission to take up an...

European Court of Human Rights 10/09/2012 European Court of Human Rights elects Dean Spielmann (Luxembourg) as its new President Dean Spielmann Strasbourg, 10 September 2012 - The European Court of Human Rights has today elected Dean Spielmann (Luxembourg) as its new President. He will take office on 1st November 2012.   The President was elected by secret ballot by the plenary Court.   Dean Spielmann succeeds Sir Nicolas Bratza (British), whose mandate will come to an end on 31 October 2012.   Dean Spielmann was born on 26 October 1962 in Luxembourg ( CV available here ). He has been a judge at the European Court of Human Rights since 24 June 2004 and Section...

Parliamentary Assembly 07/09/2012 Boat tragedies off Turkey and Lampedusa: further warnings for Europe © Gamma Strasbourg, 07.09.2012 – “The latest sinking incidents – the terrible loss of life off the coast of Turkey yesterday, in which so many children died, and the news that some people are still missing after the incident off Lampedusa in the early hours of this morning – are a warning to Europe of what can happen when humanitarian tragedies are ignored, said Tineke Strik (Netherlands, SOC), who has investigated boat deaths in the Mediterranean for the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).   “We know that a failure to react...

Secretary General 07/09/2012 Secretary General Jagland visits Ukraine Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland Strasbourg, 07.09.2012 – Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland is in Kyiv on Monday 10 September where he met President Viktor Yanukovych and Foreign Minister Kostyantyn Gryshchenko, and addressed a conference on the implementation of the Council of Europe action plan for Ukraine. In his speech , the Secretary General underlined the need for further democratic reforms. He also urged the Ukrainian authorities to ensure a free and fair electoral process. Jagland also met with opposition leader Arsenyi Yatcinuk.   The three-year plan, launched in September...

Parliamentary Assembly 05/09/2012 PACE: Russian Federation is seeing momentum for change and its society needs reform Palais de l'Europe, Strasbourg Strasbourg, 05.09.2012 – The engagement and the mobilisation of more than 100,000 citizens following the December 2011 elections, the awakening of a very engaged civil society and the willingness of the authorities to hear the call for reforms have created in the Russian Federation “a momentum for change” and to realise this unique political potential, “Russian society needs concrete reforms”, the Monitoring Committee of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) said at the end of its meeting in...

Secretary General 04/09/2012 Secretary General Jagland: “Making a hero out of a murder convict is unacceptable” Thorbjørn Jagland Strasbourg, 4 September 2012 - In a statement today the Council of Europe’s Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland said that murder - such as that committed by Ramil Safarov – cannot be glorified. “Ramil Safarov was convicted for murder and sentenced to life imprisonment in Hungary. On August 31, he was transferred to Azerbaijan, and immediately pardoned. I do not want to comment on the legal proceedings, but I find it unacceptable that a convicted murderer is welcomed as a hero.” “I reject the prospect of a...

Commissioner for Human Rights 04/09/2012 Internally displaced persons in Europe: Another lost generation? Commissioner for Human Rights Nils Muižnieks Strasbourg, 4/9/2012 - The media have frequently raised the prospect of a “lost generation” appearing in Europe as a result of the economic crisis. However, a different kind of “lost generation” has been struggling to cope in many European countries as the result of past military-political crises. I have in mind Europe’s internally displaced persons (IDPs), some of whom have been facing extremely difficult circumstances for decades. These victims of past or on-going conflicts continue to need the help of the...

Council of Europe - European Union 04/09/2012 Joint statement by Commissioner Füle and Secretary General Jagland on Bosnia and Herzegovina Strasbourg, 04.09.2012 - Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy Štefan Füle and Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjørn Jagland today made the following statement on the Road Map for Bosnia and Herzegovina's EU membership application and the execution of the European Court of Human Rights’ "Sejdić and Finci" judgment.   “The Council of Europe and the European Commission note with great disappointment that the institutional and political leaders of Bosnia and...

Council of Europe - European Union 03/09/2012 Which way out for the Euro zone? Wolfgang Schäuble, German Federal Minister for Finance (© Bundesministerium der Finanzen, Ilja C. Hendel) Strasbourg, 3 September - Wolfgang Schäuble, the German Federal Minister for Finance, is today at the Council of Europe in the context of an event organised by the French National College of Administration (ENA) and ESCP Europe (European Identity and Global Perspective). The event is placed under the patronage of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjørn Jagland.   “Which way out for the Euro zone?” This is the question which Mr Schäuble...

Parliamentary Assembly 29/08/2012 PACE President disappointed with Court of Cassation decision in Tymoshenko case Yuliya Tymoshenko Strasbourg, 29.08.2012 - The President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Jean-Claude Mignon, and the co-rapporteurs for Ukraine, Mailis Reps (Estonia, ALDE) and Marietta de Pourbaix-Lundin (Sweden, EPP/CD), expressed their deep disappointment with the Court of Cassation rejection of the appeal by Yulia Tymoshenko against her conviction to seven years in prison in the so-called gas case.     “The Assembly has stated on several occasions that her conviction in the gas case amounts to the criminalisation of...

Secretary General 28/08/2012 Thorbjørn Jagland encourages Romanian politicians to co-operate after decision of Constitutional Court Thorbjørn Jagland Strasbourg, 28/08/2012 - Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjørn Jagland said in a statement this morning: "I welcome the implementation of the decision of the Constitutional Court of Romania on 21 August, allowing President Basescu to return to office. It sends a clear signal that the rule of law has prevailed in Romania, a member State of the Council of Europe. I now encourage Romania's politicians to work together for a democratic and prosperous Romania." Romania and the Council of Europe ...

European Court of Human Rights 27/08/2012 Chamber hearing in the case of Tymoshenko v. Ukraine Strasbourg, 28 August 2012 - The European Court of Human Rights (the Court) held on 28 August 2012 at 2.30 p.m. a public hearing in the case of Tymoshenko v. Ukraine (application no. 49872/11), concerning complaints related to the detention of the former Ukrainian Prime Minister.   Ms Tymoshenko, born in 1960, is the leader of Batkivshchyna, the main opposition party in Ukraine, and of Yuliya Tymoshenko’s Block. She was the Prime Minister of Ukraine in 2005 and between December 2007 and March 2010. Criminal proceedings were brought against her for allegedly making an...