Council of Europe 13/05/2013 Council of Europe on terrorist attack in Turkey Strasbourg, 13 May, 2013 - Following the car bombings which caused the death of over forty persons in the Turkish city of Reyhanlı, near the Syrian border, Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland sent a message of condolences to Turkish authorities and people, in which he assured them of the Organisation’s support and solidarity.   Jean-Claude Mignon, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), speaking on the eve of an official visit to Turkey, also expressed his sincere condolences to the families of the victims. He said: “I also express my support for...

Parliamentary Assembly 13/05/2013 President of the Parliamentary Assembly makes official visit to Turkey Jean-Claude Mignon Strasbourg, 13.05.2013 – Jean-Claude Mignon, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), makes an official visit to Turkey from 13 to 15 May, during which he is due to meet the President of the Republic, the Prime Minister, the Speaker of the Grand National Assembly, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister for the Family and Social Policy.   Talks are also scheduled with representatives of various political parties.   PACE President condemns attacks in Turkey   See also: Turkey and the...

Council of Europe’s expert group on human trafficking (GRETA) 07/05/2013 Norway urged to set up identification system for victims of trafficking Strasbourg, 07.05.2013 – Norway has taken significant steps to help fight human trafficking in recent years, but a number of important challenges remain – including the need to set up a national system for identifying and assisting victims. These are among the main points of a report published today by the Council of Europe’s expert group on human trafficking ( GRETA ).   The report notes that there are around 150-200 potential victims of trafficking per year in Norway, mostly women from Nigeria, Romania and...

Council of Europe 06/05/2013 Terrorism: towards improved harmonisation of use of special investigation techniques Strasbourg, 06.05.2013 – As part of its action against terrorism, the Council of Europe is organising a conference on the use of special investigation techniques, to discuss existing standards and guidelines, and the need to update them. The conference will take place in Strasbourg, on 14 and 15 May. To protect society from terrorism and organised crime, law-enforcement must apply modern investigation methods including interception of telephone and Internet communication, electronic surveillance, undercover operations and other means known as “special...

Council of Europe’s expert group on human trafficking (GRETA) 06/05/2013 Poland and human trafficking: important steps taken but improvement still needed Strasbourg, 06. 05. 2013 – The Polish authorities have taken a number of important steps to prevent and combat trafficking in human beings, but several important challenges remain, according to a report published today by the Council of Europe’s expert group on human trafficking, GRETA .   The report notes that the criminalisation of trafficking in human beings in Poland took effect only in September 2010. There is still a significant gap between the number of identified victims of trafficking and the number of...

Secretary General 06/05/2013 Secretary General concerned over political situation in Moldova Thorbjørn Jagland Strasbourg, 6 May 2013 - Reacting to the recent political crisis in Moldova, Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland published the following statement: "I am following the developments in Moldova with concern. In the last few days the Moldovan Parliament has amended a number of laws fundamentally affecting the political system of the country. The laws on the constitutional court, the electoral legislation, the functioning of the Government and the functioning of the law-enforcement structures have been changed, sometimes repeatedly, without proper...

Secretary General 06/05/2013 Secretary General makes official visit to Switzerland Thorbjørn Jagland and Didier Burkhalter. Strasbourg, 6 May 2013 - Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland is making an official visit to Bern on Monday 6 May, where he is meeting Simonetta Sommaruga, member of the Swiss Federal Council and Head of the Federal Department of Justice and Police, and Didier Burkhalter, Vice-President of the Federal Council and Head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs of Switzerland.   Topics on the agenda include the need for governments to fully respect the right to freedom of expression and to a free press. The meetings occur three days after World...

Secretary General 03/05/2013 Azerbaijan: Secretary General concerned about new charges brought against Ilgar Mammadov Strasbourg, 03.05.2013 - Thorbjørn Jagland, Secretary General of the Council of Europe expressed his concern and disappointment at the new charges brought against Ilgar Mammadov, Director of the Baku School of Political Studies:   "Despite international demands for his release, the Azeri authorities are bringing new charges against him.  This is particularly disappointing and worrying in the light of the Azeri chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe scheduled for May 2014. Not only was the Council of Europe...

Council of Europe 03/05/2013 Overcrowding is problem in half of European prison administrations . Strasbourg, 03.05.2013 – Overcrowding is a problem in half of the European penitentiary administrations, according to the 2011 Council of Europe Penal Statistics (SPACE I) survey published today. On average, in September 2011, European prisons were at the top of their capacity, holding 99.5 inmates per 100 places. The SPACE survey, which is published annually and is conducted for the Council of Europe by the Criminology and Criminal Law Institute of the University of Lausanne, provides an overview of the populations detained in the penal institutions across Europe ( SPACE I ),...

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Secretary General 30/04/2013 Secretary General visits Ireland The Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore and Thorbjørn Jagland Strasbourg, 30 April 2013 - The Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjørn Jagland, is paying an official visit to Ireland from 2 to 5 May 2013. During his visit, the Secretary General is meeting the President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, Foreign Minister Eamon Gilmore and Justice & Defence Minister Alan Shatter, among others. Topics for discussion include relations between the 47-nation Council of Europe and the 27-member European Union, of which Ireland currently holds the rotating Presidency, including the EU’s accession to the ...

Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) 30/04/2013 Spain told to investigate allegations of ill-treatment and to improve detention centres for irregular migrants . Strasbourg, 30.04.2013 – The Council of Europe's Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT), in two reports published today on its visits to Spain in 2011 and 2012, calls on the Spanish authorities to effectively investigate allegations of ill-treatment, to address prison overcrowding, and to improve the conditions of administrative detention of irregular migrants.   During its 2011 periodic visit, the CPT examined the treatment of persons detained by law enforcement agencies. The report highlights...

Committee of Ministers 30/04/2013 Declaration of Committee of Ministers on recent executions in Japan and in United States of America . Strasbourg, 30 April 2013 -  The Committee of Ministers deplores the executions which have recently taken place in Japan and in the United States of America, observer States to the Council of Europe.   These executions run counter to the growing trend against the death penalty at the international level as shown by the latest resolution on the moratorium on the use of the death penalty adopted at the United Nations.   When granted the observer status to the Council of Europe, States have committed themselves to share Council of...

European Court of Human Rights 30/04/2013 European Court of Human Rights: Former Prime Minister of Ukraine was arbitrarily detained Yuilia Tymoshenko Strasbourg, 30 April 2013 - In today’s Chamber judgment in the case of Tymoshenko v. Ukraine, the European Court of Human Rights held, unanimously, that there had been: a violation of Article 5 § 1 (right to liberty and security) of the European Convention on Human Rights; a violation of Article 5 § 4 (right to a speedy review of the lawfulness of detention); a violation of Article 5 § 5 (right to compensation for unlawful detention); a violation of Article 18 (limitation on use of restrictions on rights) in...

European Court of Human Rights 30/04/2013 European Court of Human Rights: forthcoming judgment in the case of Tymoshenko v. Ukraine . The European Court of Human Rights will be delivering a Chamber judgment in the case of Tymoshenko v. Ukraine at a public hearing in Strasbourg on Tuesday 30 April 2013 at 10.30 a.m.   The case concerns complaints related to the detention of the former Ukrainian Prime Minister.   Yuliya Tymoshenko is the leader of Batkivshchyna, one of the strongest opposition parties in Ukraine, and of Yuliya Tymoshenko’s Bloc. She was the Prime Minister of Ukraine in 2005 and between December 2007 and March 2010. In April 2011, criminal proceedings...

Council of Europe 29/04/2013 Education Ministers back pan-European anti-corruption platform and ethical code for teachers . Strasbourg, 29 April 2013 - European Ministers backed the creation of a Europe-wide platform to tacklebcorruption and fraud in education and an ethical code for teachers. Meeting at the Council of Europe’s 24th Education Ministers Conference in Helsinki (Finlandia Hall) – 26-27 April – ministers and high-level delegations from 43 European States, as well as Mexico and the European Union, have been discussing ‘Governance and Quality Education’. The platform and ethical code are part of a five-point plan agreed by Ministers to ensure...

Parliamentary Assembly 26/04/2013 PACE committee recommends monitoring of Hungary Strasbourg, 25.04.2013 – The Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has recommended that the Assembly should open a “monitoring procedure” in respect of Hungary, citing deep concerns at “the erosion of democratic checks and balances” as a result of the new constitutional framework in the country.   In an opinion, the committee said there are “serious and sustained concerns” about the extent to which Hungary is complying with the obligations it took on when it joined the Council of Europe to uphold the highest...

Commissioner for Human Rights 25/04/2013 Human rights protection is under strain in Europe, says Commissioner Muižnieks in his first annual report Commissioner for Human Rights Nils Muižnieks Strasbourg, 25/4/2013 - “The picture of the human rights situation which I have observed during country visits, meetings with authorities and discussions with NGO representatives in 2012 is worrying” said today Nils Muižnieks, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights , while presenting his first annual report . “Of particular concern are the persisting patterns of discrimination, racism and homophobia; the treatment of migrants; constraints to freedom of expression; as...