EMBARGO UNTIL DELIVERY
22.06.2009
Communication from the Committee of Ministers
presented by Samuel ŽBOGAR
Minister for Foreign Affairs of Slovenia,
Chairperson of the Committee of Ministers
on the occasion of the
third part of the 2009 Ordinary Session
of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly
(Strasbourg, 22-26 June 2009)
Mr. President,
Mr. Secretary General,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am honoured to address you in my capacity as the Chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on the progress of the Committee’s work over recent months.
I have already had the pleasure to greet some of you at the meeting of your Standing Committee in Ljubljana in May and to outline the priorities of the Slovenian Chairmanship. On that occasion, we also had a frank discussion on the issue of the election of the Secretary General.
Following the outcome of that discussion, I met with the Presidential Committee Thursday last in Brussels, together with the members of the Bureau of the Committee of Ministers. This debate was again open and useful, but unfortunately it did not enable us to overcome the difficulties we face. However, it was a step in the right direction.
In order to convey the Committee of Ministers’ readiness for dialogue and cooperation, I addressed through you, M. President, a letter to all of you. In this letter I stressed the importance of not having a vacuum in the leadership of this organisation and I asked you to consider first and foremost the higher interest of the Council of Europe. Unfortunately my efforts did not bear fruit.
I therefore cannot but express my deep disappointment and concern at the decision you took this morning to withdraw the election from this session’s agenda. Neither the Parliamentary Assembly nor the Committee of Ministers can benefit from this situation. What is more, this will damage the image of the organisation at the time it celebrates its 60th anniversary. The message we are sending out will not help us. It will probably harm all of us.
We should therefore take our responsibilities. We must overcome the present situation. And this, we must do in the near future.
On behalf of the Committee of Ministers I can assure you that we have duly considered the views of the Assembly before taking in Madrid our decision, which is now final. The Committee has acted in compliance with the Statute and the Regulations it is now for the Assembly to do the same.
On behalf of the Committee of Ministers I can also assure you that our aim is to continue constructive dialogue with the Parliamentary Assembly. I truly hope that you share our position, so that we can move forward with ideas on our future co-operation and with the election of the Secretary General at your September session.
I believe we have already found a suitable format for dialogue. I suggest we continue in the same composition as on Thursday in Brussels - the Bureau of the Committee of Ministers and the Presidential Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly.
Regular meetings between the Bureau of the Committee of Ministers and the Presidential Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly on different levels should be organised between now and the end of September to discuss new ideas on the future co-operation between the two organs.
This is my personal suggestion and I have not discussed it yet with my colleagues in the Committee of Ministers. However, judging from the atmosphere at Thursday's meeting, I believe that there is a will for continuation of the joint work.
I would have liked to share with you some of my other proposals and reflections for enhanced dialogue between the Parliamentary Assembly and the Committee of Ministers. I have to stress that I have not shared these proposals with the whole Committee yet and the decision you took this morning will not make my work any easier. I will nevertheless persevere.
I had thought of strengthening the role of the Joint Committee, inviting rapporteurs of the various committees of the Parliamentary Assembly to participate in relevant meetings of the subsidiary groups of the Committee of Ministers and vice-versa Chairs of the groups and committees of the Committee of Ministers should participate in relevant committees of the Parliamentary Assembly.
But as you will understand, following your decision this morning, I will have to consult my colleagues. I will try to convene a meeting as soon as possible in order that we may continue our dialogue.
In my package of proposals on enhanced co-operation between the two organs of the Organisation I have the future procedure for the election of the Secretary General.
(1) We should review the regulations for the future elections in order to strengthen the gender aspects and clarify the consultation process between the Parliamentary Assembly and the Committee of Ministers.
(2) After the election of the new Secretary General, we should task him to further develop the various levels and forms of co-operation between our two organs.
(3) The new Secretary General should also be tasked with presenting a report to the Parliamentary Assembly and the Committee of Ministers on other possible measures for enhanced dialogue.
I honestly hope that we will find a working relationship conducive to strengthening the impact of our Organisation. I am ready to start work immediately. I hope you are too.
We should not get trapped in a negative spiral.
Neither should we forget the substance of our work. I now come back to my communication on the progress of the work of the Council of Europe in some core areas.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
As I explained in Ljubljana, the continued implementation of the decisions taken by Heads of State and Government in Warsaw is the main goal of our Chairmanship. Our efforts will follow those of previous chairmanships and concentrate on the core objective of the Organisation – to protect and promote human rights, democracy and the rule of law. This core objective was reconfirmed by the Ministers at the Ministerial Session held in Madrid on 12 May through the adoption of the Madrid Declaration to mark the Council of Europe’s 60th anniversary.
Slovenia firmly believes in the Council of Europe and in the values it stands for. We aim to make a significant contribution to furthering these values.
The Ministerial Session in Madrid was a splendid occasion to celebrate the 60th anniversary. Member states’ great commitment to our Organisation and its values and objectives was clear from the presence in Madrid at Ministerial level of not less than 40 member states.
Mr President, I take it that you have all received the written communication of the Slovenian Chair providing you with details on the progress of the Committee’s work over recent months. I will highlight a few points that are of particular importance to the Slovenian Chairmanship.
The Slovenian Chairmanship gives very high priority to the situation of the European Court of Human Rights. Significant progress towards increasing the effectiveness of the Court was made at the Ministerial Session. The adoption of Protocol (No.) 14 bis to the Convention provides for a possible provisional application of certain procedural reforms provided for in Protocol (No.) 14. This is also envisaged through the Madrid agreement which was endorsed by a consensus at a Conference of the High Contracting Parties to the Convention which took place in the margins of the Ministerial Session. Member states may thus choose between these two options. I would like to stress that the implementation of the reform should result in a significant productivity gain for the Court.
Protocol No. 14 bis has already been signed by eight countries and ratified by three, which will enable it to enter into force on the 1st of October, whereas four member states have accepted provisional application of the procedural provisions of Protocol No. 14 in accordance with the Agreement. I am pleased to inform you that the Protocol 14 bis was approved by the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia on 16 June and I expect that Slovenia will deposit its instrument of ratification by the end of this month.
The enforcement of the Protocol 14bis, together with the entry into force of the provisional application of the procedural provisions of Protocol 14, indicate a turning point in the long lasting reform process of the European Court of Human Rights and deserve attention of an international dimension. We propose to host a conference in September to greet the beginning of the reform and to promote its prompt implementation to the widest extent possible. This could well be a follow-up Conference of the High Contracting Parties to the Convention.
The Slovenian Chairmanship appreciates the support of the member states of the Council of Europe in the adoption process of the reform. However, we are noticing a more timid reaction of states in the enforcement phase. We intend to continue to follow this very closely and we count on your support to raise the issue of your country’s plans in this respect in your national parliaments. We are also willing to offer any assistance needed for regaining the confidence in this process.
Before concluding on this subject, I must reiterate that Slovenia would have preferred to see Protocol No. 14 enter into force and still has this goal. I sincerely hope that the last ratification will take place in the near future.
Consolidating democracy is among the main priorities of the Slovenian Chairmanship. I am well aware of the Assembly’s strong interest in these issues. Several items on the agenda of this part session reflect this interest well. Slovenia will pay special attention to the promotion of democracy, the rule of law and human rights in the Caucasus, in South-East Europe and in Belarus.
In Madrid, the Committee of Ministers took a number of decisions concerning the consequences of the conflict in Georgia. It expressed its concern with the human rights protection and humanitarian situation of all persons affected by the conflict and gave its active support to the activities of the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights and to the full implementation of his six-point Action Plan. Most importantly, in this context, the Committee called on all those concerned to facilitate and grant access by the Council of Europe and the international community to all persons affected by the conflict and in need of human rights protection. It also underlined the importance of restoring democracy, human rights and the rule of law in all areas affected by the conflict and invited the Secretary General to submit projects for further activities to this end.
The Ministers took note of the first report of the Secretary General on the human rights situation in the areas affected by the conflict. He was also asked to elaborate quarterly reports on the situation. The next report is due in early July. The Committee of Ministers will thus continue following the situation closely. It has agreed to review the action taken by the Council of Europe following the conflict in Georgia at the handover meeting of the chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers on 18 November 2009.
Following the so-called "parliamentary elections" in South Ossetia/Georgia on 31 May 2009, I reiterated Slovenia’s full support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia within its internationally recognised borders.
At this point I would also like to support the views of several rapporteurs of the Parliamentary Assembly expressing great concern over the non-prolongation of the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG). With this an element of independent oversight by the international community over the developments in the region has been removed.
In connection with South-East Europe, a region which I consider particularly important, the aim of our chairmanship is to include South-East Europe in all Council of Europe activities.
The Ministers’ Deputies recently considered the activities for the development and consolidation of democratic stability in Serbia. On this occasion, my Serbian colleague, who is also one of my predecessors as Chairman of the Committee of Ministers, Mr Vuk Jeremić, participated in an exchange of views with the Ministers’ Deputies. They welcomed the fact that Serbia has very nearly fulfilled all the formal, quantifiable commitments it undertook upon accession to the Council of Europe. Serbia was invited to fulfil, in the shortest possible time, its last outstanding accession commitments. The Deputies finally decided that the post-accession monitoring procedure of the Committee of Ministers would be replaced by a dialogue-based regular stocktaking of co-operation and progress with the fulfilment of statutory commitments and democratic processes.
I would like to say a few words about the situation in Moldova following the parliamentary elections of 5 April 2009. A delegation of the Deputies’ Rapporteur Group on Democracy visited the country at the end of May to assess the situation after the events of early April in the light of Council of Europe values and standards. It met various high representatives of the Moldovan authorities including the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Justice and the Interior and the Principal State Prosecutor. It also met representatives of the opposition, civil society and the local diplomatic community.
Last week the Deputies examined a report from this visit in the light of the latest developments in Moldova and, in particular, the Parliament’s failure to elect a new President of the Republic on 3 June. On 15 June the Parliament was dissolved and early parliamentary elections have been called for 29 July 2009. The Deputies adopted a package of emergency assistance activities with the aim of ensuring that these elections are free and fair focusing on updating and monitoring of the voters' lists and media coverage of the election campaign. These elections will indeed be a test for Moldova and we count on them being in line with Council of Europe standards.
Finally, Belarus. Belarus was discussed at political level at the informal working lunch which rounded off the 119th Session of the Committee of Ministers. This discussion showed that there was a general agreement to embark on a policy of dialogue with Belarus and to keep all channels of co-operation open, provided Belarus itself shows some clear willingness to come closer to our values.
I was honoured to open, together with Minister Martynov and Deputy Secretary General Buquicchio, the Information Office of the Council of Europe in Minsk on 8 June. Beside the opening of the Info point, I met President Alexander Lukashenko and the Speaker of the Belarusian Parliament, Vladimir Andreichenko and had a longer meeting with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Sergei Martynov, where I welcomed the latest developments in his country in relation to the Council of Europe agenda and encouraged him to continue with the efforts on their way to meet the required standards. I also met representatives of the civil society.
I sincerely hope that the Information point will become a true platform for co-operation with Belarus. The Council of Europe will monitor whether access to the Information Point is freely granted.
As I underlined in my contacts with the Belarusian authorities, the establishment of closer ties between the Council of Europe and Belarus requires them to show concrete signs of their will to abide by the Council of Europe values relating to human rights, democracy and the rule of law. I made the point that a significant move in showing Belarus' commitment to the Council of Europe’s values would be the introduction of a moratorium on the death penalty and its subsequent abolition.
The Committee of Ministers will closely follow your debate on Belarus this week and let me say that I support the proposed restoration of the Special Guest status of Belarus delegation to the PACE.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Before concluding, let me just mention that the Slovenian Chairmanship considers increased co-operation between the Council of Europe and other organisations to be of great importance.
On this issue, I would like to inform you that I had the opportunity to present the Slovenian Chairmanship’s priorities to the OSCE Permanent Council on 4 June. I also met the OSCE Secretary General, Mr Marc Perrin de Brichambaut. Discussions focussed on further co-operation between our two organisations and other issues relating to their work. They also touched on the topical debate on the future of European security.
Concerning the European Union, I would like to underline that at the Session in Madrid, Ministers took note of a report on the Council of Europe’s relations with the European Union. This report indicated that significant progress has been made during the last year. Slovenia will continue to support this very positive process. The Council of Europe is an important partner of the European Union in preserving a high level of human rights protection and in promoting democratic stability. I look forward to the next Quadripartite between our Organisations which will be held on 26 October.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I conclude by thanking you for your attention and by expressing my sincere hope that the fruitful dialogue started between the Slovenian Chairmanship and the Parliamentary Assembly in Ljubljana will continue.
Now, I am looking forward to your questions.