The States of Europe must assume shared responsibility for accommodating refugees on their territory in line with the applicable right to asylum and human dignity. That was the message from the members of the Congress in a declaration adopted on 21 October 2015 in Strasbourg, France. 'This declaration is a tool for reiterating our deep commitment to the principles of solidarity, social cohesion and the values promoted by the Council of Europe and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities', said Gunn Marit Helgesen (Norway, EPP/CCE), Congress rapporteur. The declaration asks the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe to work together with the EU to ensure that the question of immigration and the right to asylum are the subject of comprehensive European policies. It also stresses the need to allocate the necessary funding to local and regional authorities. The declaration calls on the local and regional authorities of all Council of Europe member States to establish a 'European network of cities of solidarity' in response to the European appeal launched on 3 October 2015 by the municipalities of Strasbourg, Catania and Rovereto.
Introduction by par Gunn Marit Helgesen
File ''29th Congress Session''
Interview with Nihat CIFTCI, Mayor of Sanliurfa, Turkey (in Turkish)
Interview with Mrs. Anne BRASSEUR, president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the COE
