News 2010
Secretary General meets Bill Clinton and George Soros
On the last day of his visit in New York, Thorbjørn Jagland met with the former US President Bill Clinton, the founder of the Open Society Institute George Soros, President of Bosnia and Herzegovina Haris Silajdzic and the Czech Minister of Foreign Affairs Karel Schwarzenberg. President Clinton...
Council of Europe regrets confirmation of death penalty by Supreme Court in Belarus
Jagland announced on 24 September that he is “deeply saddened” by news that the appeals of two prisoners on death row in the city of Grodno were rejected by the Supreme Court. Jagland recalled that “the Council of Europe has repeatedly condemned executions in Belarus and called for abolition of...
Council of Europe calls for constructive and concrete high level meeting for Roma
The Secretary General, Thorbjørn Jagland, and the Chairman of the Committee of Ministers, Antonio Miloshoski, invited on 29 September governments of 47 countries, the EU and international organisations to a meeting in Strasbourg on 20 October, to agree measures improving the situation of Roma...
Council of Europe Group of Eminent Persons: Thorbjørn Jagland and Joschka Fischer launch expert group on '"Multicultural Europe'"
Joschka Fischer, former German Foreign Minister, will chair a Group of «Eminent Persons» including, among others, Javier Solana and Emma Bonino with the mandate to find answers to the current threats from intolerance and discrimination in Europe. Launching the initiative in Brussels today,...
Council of Europe meeting on Roma
European governments act to help Roma Representatives of the 47 Council of Europe countries, the EU and the Roma community who gathered in Strasbourg on 20 October unanimously condemned widespread discrimination against Roma and their social and economic marginalisation. Thorbjorn Jagland who...
Session of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities
Secretary General stresses need to ''bridge the gap between Roma and rest of society'' One week after the Council of Europe hosted a conference on Roma rights, Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland elaborated on practical steps the Council of Europe will take to help Roma...
Thorbjørn Jagland met with representatives of Fundamental Rights Agency
Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland met with the Chairperson, Ilze Brands Kehris, and Morten Kjaerum, the Director, of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, on 2 November in Strasbourg. They discussed the existing close working relationship which could serve as a model for...
Thorbjørn Jagland met the United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon
Human rights must be pursued with determination everywhere On 15 November in New York, at their third meeting this autumn, Council of Europe Secretary General, Thorbjørn Jagland and United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon recognised the ongoing and pressing need for close cooperation...
Interview - European Council on Refugees and Exiles
Member states should respect ECHR decision on forced expulsions of Iraqis The European Court of Human Rights has recently confirmed its decision to suspend forced returns to Iraq in a number of individual cases against the Netherlands, the UK and Sweden, until further notice. In many cases an...
Secretary General meets European Commissioner Füle
Secretary General Jagland and European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP), Stefan Fule have signed today a € 4 million “Facility” in the framework of the Eastern Partnership initiative (EaP): a multilateral tool to facilitate activities in the fields of electoral...
Conference ''Prevention of terrorism: prevention tools, legal instruments and their implementation'', 16-17 December 2010
Thorbjørn Jagland: ''Speed up international efforts to fight terrorism'' During the conference, Secretary General has called on member states to intensify their co-operation in fighting terrorism. ''The threat of terrorism remains acute. The Council of Europe has developed a unique approach in...
Thorbjørn Jagland in Moscow, 9 May 2010
Thorbjørn Jagland attended the celebration ceremonies in Moscow on 9 May, on the occasion of the 65th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. On this occasion, the Secretary General published an Opinion article in the 11th May edition of the Russian daily...
Secretary General participates in EU-Western Balkans meeting in Sarajevo
At the invitation of the EU Presidency, Thorbjørn Jagland will attend the European Union Western Balkans High Level Meeting in Sarajevo. The 2 June meeting will take stock of integration of the Western Balkans into the European family of nations. The Council of Europe – which counts all Balkan...
Council of Europe mediates solution to end constitutional crisis in Moldova
The governing ''Alliance for European Integration'' (AEI) announced on 3 June that the government will hold a referendum to amend Article 78 of the Constitution (to allow for direct election of the President), dissolve Parliament and call for new elections. This solution was reached as the result...
Secretary General on official visit to Helsinki, 8-9 June 2010
Finland supports Roma rights and reform for the Council of Europe As the Council of Europe prepares an international debate on the situation of Roma in Europe for its Parliamentary Assembly session later this month, Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland praised Finland for the priority it has given...
Thorbjørn Jagland discusses advance of LGBT rights with ILGA-Europe
Secretary General held a constructive exchange with Nigel Warner and Evelyne Paradis from ILGA-Europe - a non-governmental umbrella organisation which represents organisations of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons, at the European level. Thorbjorn Jagland and ILGA discussed the...
Thorbjørn Jagland meets Dosta! campaign ambassador Fanny Ardant
The Secretary General met on 22 June in Strasbourg with Fanny Ardant, French actress and director, and thanked her on behalf of the Organisation for lending her voice to the cause of defending Roma rights across Europe. Fanny Ardant is serving the Council of Europe to support the Dosta! Campaign...
Meeting with OSCE Permanent Council
Complementarity not competition, Secretary General told OSCE Permanent Council In his address to the OSCE Permanent Council on 1 July in Vienna, Thorbjørn Jagland stressed that the Council of Europe's institutions and tools which are indispensable to promote democratic stability in Europe in the...
Commemoration of Srebrenica genocide
Thorbjørn Jagland in Srebrenica - ''never again'' is not enough! The Secretary General together with Mevlüt Çavusoglu, President of the Parliamentary Assembly, attended on 11 July the commemoration of the 1995 Srebrenica genocide. In his speech to those gathered for the ceremony, Thorbjørn...
Meeting with the President of Slovenia, Danilo Türk
The Secretary General met with the President of Slovenia, who is an old friend of the Council of Europe and a renowned expert on the rights of national minorities. They discussed the current priorities for the Organisation, the work of the Group of Eminent persons as well as the Secretary...
Speeches
