OPENING STATEMENT

OF MR MEVLÜT ÇAVUŞOĞLU

PRESIDENT OF THE PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY

APRIL 2011 PART-SESSION

(Strasbourg, Monday, 11 April 2011, 11h30 a.m.)

Dear colleagues,

I should like to welcome you to Strasbourg for another week of hard work. Spring season is generally associated with ideas of rebirth, renewal and also with love.

Today, we witness the rising forces of rebirth and renewal in the Arab world. Unfortunately, in most cases, these processes are not associated with love but, on the contrary, with death and violence.

The current revolutions are a powerful proof that the values which the Council of Europe defends and promotes – human dignity, human rights, democracy and the rule of law – are universal. These values can empower even the weakest and most oppressed people and can defeat even the strongest dictatorships.

We, of course, support the people in the Arab world in their legitimate aspiration to build more democratic societies. However, these revolutions and their tragic consequences have taken us by surprise. We are still looking for the right solutions when facing the crimes against humanity that are being committed every day in places such as Libya or the lack of sufficient political will to help relieve the plight of countless refugees.

I am proud to say that the Council of Europe, within the scope of its limited resources, has reacted quickly and offered its assistance and expertise, in particular to Tunisia and Morocco. The adoption of new constitutions, the organisation of free and fair elections, building genuinely democratic institutions and civil society, enhancing the role of the media, ensuring more gender balance – these are all areas where we can and must help.

A comprehensive report on the situation in the Arab world as well as two specific reports on Morocco and Tunisia are now in preparation and will certainly be one of the highlights of our June session. I think that it would also be useful to discuss this week the current developments in Northern Africa as proposed by the Bureau this morning.

But, above all, humanitarian aspects must be urgently addressed. Every day, refugees die at sea. 250 persons are feared dead after a single boat from Libya sank recently off the coast of Lampedusa. And dozens of such boats are heading towards the southern shores of Europe. Therefore, I invite you to support the urgent affairs debate requested by the Migration Committee.

Colleagues,

These developments underscore the urgent need for increasing dialogue and mutual understanding, both with our neighbours and within our societies. The Assembly has taken a leading role and our debate this week on the inter-religious dimension of inter-cultural dialogue will be another important contribution to this process.

I would like to thank you for your great interest by contributing with your ideas and proposals to this debate. Five eminent religious personalities will not only address us on this occasion, but will also listen to us.

I am, in particular, glad that our efforts are not done in isolation, that it is a contribution to the work and priorities of the Council of Europe in general. This is what our reform should be about – concentrate on the key issues and unite our forces with other bodies of the Council of Europe.

Therefore, during our June 2011 part-session, we will hold another largerdebate on “living together in the 21st century”, based on the report of the Group of Wise Persons to be submitted to the Committee of Ministers at the next ministerial session in May in Istanbul.

When mentioning these issues, I would like to express my deep satisfaction that the Prime Minister of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has accepted our invitation and will address us on Wednesday.

As you know, together with the Spanish Prime Minister, Mr. Zapatero, Mr. Ergodan co-sponsored the Alliance of Civilisation Initiative aiming at promoting international action against extremism through intercultural and inter-religious dialogue and cooperation. This initiative places particular emphasis on defusing tensions between the Western and Islamic worlds. Given the issues that we are dealing with during this part-session, I am sure that Mr Erdogan’s address and the subsequent exchange of views will be of the greatest interest to us all.

Dear friends,

I should also like to recall that crisis situations do not only happen outside European borders, but also within. As politicians, and members of this Assembly, we must be concerned about some global economic developments which have consequences on human rights of our citizens. The issue I am thinking of is the excessive debt level in many of our member states.

Excessive debts are forcing governments to make painful political, economic and social choices which affect millions of Europeans and are threatening the functioning of State structures and the quality of life of European citizens. In this situation, and despite the power of financial markets and rating agencies, we must ensure that the states stay in control as regulators and guarantors of the rights of the citizens.

I addressed this issue at the European Banking and Financial Forum held recently in Prague and, therefore, I welcome the report of our Dutch colleague, Mr. Omtzigt, on “Overdebtedness of states: danger for democracy and human rights” which we will discuss this afternoon.

Dear colleagues,

Despite all the difficult issues that we have on the agenda, I am an optimist – we will find solutions and overcome difficulties. We can take inspiration and encouragement from some great historical achievements of the human spirit. One of them will be celebrated tomorrow, 12 April 2011, when we will remember the 50th anniversary of the first human flight in space – by Yuri Gagarin on 12 April 1961.

I wish you fruitful work, with your spirit flying high, but please with your feet firmly on the ground - preferably in this hemicycle this week.

Thank you for your attention.