Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland replied to questions from members of the Assembly in a question and answer session during the Assembly’s autumn part-session.
During this exchange, PACE members asked Mr Jagland for his reaction to Turkey’s derogation from part of the European Convention on Human Rights. The Secretary General responded by emphasising that it was not possible for any country to have a complete derogation from the Convention. Certain articles, including the right to life, the ban on torture and on slavery and forced labour, must be respected in all circumstances. Mr Jagland pointed out that the Council of Europe was engaged in a « constructive dialogue » with Turkey. He called for judicial safeguards to be respected for all those who were arrested and later prosecuted, or who were suspended or dismissed from their jobs.
Asked about the volatile situation in Eastern Ukraine, the Secretary General replied that his most useful contribution was to continue to support the Minsk process. He said it was important to stabilise Ukraine as an independent state, notably by fighting corruption and developing de-centralised power structures through the constitution, measures which would lead to increased trust by Ukrainian citizens in their national institutions.
In response to a question about proposals in some countries to reduce or ban family reunification, as embodied in Article 8 of the Convention, Mr Jagland referred to more than 20,000 unaccompanied child migrants who are being cared for by the Greek authorities while waiting to be re-united with their parents in other European countries. He agreed that it was vital to remind member states of the importance of the right to a famiiy life, and to appeal to them not to weaken the protection afforded by Article 8.
Asked about the ariel bombardment of the Syrian city of Aleppo, Mr Jagland described it as an absolute catastrophe that was hard to imagine could take place in the 21st century. He said it represented a big failure on the part of the United Nations Security Council, and called for renewed diplomatic efforts to establish a ceasefire followed by a broader political solution.
Other topics addressed included questions on the Assembly’s monitoring procedures, the re-run of the Austrian presidential election, media freedom in Hungary, Turkey and Ukraine, continuing tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia and the implications for Scotland of the Brexit vote.