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Resolution 1953 (2013) Final version
The progress of the Assembly’s monitoring procedure (June 2012 – September 2013)
1. The Parliamentary Assembly acknowledges
the work carried out by the Committee on the Honouring of Obligations
and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring
Committee) in fulfilling its mandate as defined in Resolution 1115 (1997) on
setting up of an Assembly committee on the honouring of obligations
and commitments by member states of the Council of Europe (Monitoring
Committee) and modified by Resolutions
1431 (2005) on the initiation of a monitoring procedure
and post-monitoring dialogue, 1515 (2006) on
the progress of the Assembly's Monitoring Procedure (May 2005-June
2006), 1710 (2010) on the
terms of office of co-rapporteurs of the Monitoring Committee and 1936 (2013) on the
harmonisation of regulatory and para-regulatory provisions of monitoring
and post-monitoring dialogue procedures.
2. In particular, the Assembly commends the committee on its
action in accompanying 10 countries under specific monitoring (Albania,
Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, the Republic
of Moldova, Montenegro, the Russian Federation, Serbia and Ukraine),
and four countries engaged in a post-monitoring dialogue (Bulgaria,
Monaco, “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” and Turkey)
in their efforts to fully comply with the obligations and commitments
they entered into upon accession to the Council of Europe.
3. Furthermore, the Assembly expresses its satisfaction at the
new approach adopted by the committee in the progress report with
respect to the monitoring of the 33 member States which are not
under a specific procedure, regarding their compliance with the
statutory obligations they entered into upon accession; it encourages
the committee to pursue its reflection on possible ways to increase
the efficiency and impact of its monitoring of these countries with
regard to respect for democracy and the rule of law and the protection
of human rights.
4. Moreover, the Assembly takes note of the committee’s continued
work on the consequences of the war between Georgia and Russia and
regrets that, despite the announced intention by the co-rapporteurs
on the Russian Federation and on Georgia to visit Moscow, Tbilisi,
Tskhinvali and Sukhumi during a joint mission led by the Chair of
the committee, only the visit to Moscow and Tbilisi took place,
in May 2013, due to the rejection of this initiative by the de facto authorities of the breakaway
regions. The Assembly endorses the committee’s decision to closely
follow developments with regard to the consequences of the war and
engage in a dialogue with the de facto authorities
in Sukhumi and Tskhinvali without status-related preconditions,
if it receives signals that such a wish for dialogue exists.
5. The Assembly notes with satisfaction that the committee accomplished
its task of preparing a written opinion on the motion for a resolution
on “Serious setbacks in the fields of the rule of law and human
rights in Hungary”, and submitted it, in accordance with the Rules
of Procedure, to the Bureau of the Assembly, thus enabling the Assembly
to hold a debate on the subject.
6. During the reporting period, the committee produced full monitoring
reports on Montenegro, the Russian Federation, Azerbaijan and the
Republic of Moldova, and reports on post-monitoring dialogue with
Bulgaria, Turkey and “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”.
In addition, the committee approved a preliminary draft report on
the post-monitoring dialogue with Monaco and transmitted it to the
authorities for comments, which were subsequently considered by
the committee. The committee also approved a report on the functioning
of democratic institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina in September
2013.
7. The respective rapporteurs carried out fact-finding visits
to: Albania, Azerbaijan (3 visits), Bosnia and Herzegovina (2 visits),
Georgia (2 visits), the Republic of Moldova, the Russian Federation
(2 visits), Ukraine, Bulgaria, Monaco, “the former Yugoslav Republic
of Macedonia”, Turkey (2 visits), Montenegro and Hungary. The rapporteur
on Bulgaria and the co-rapporteurs on Hungary paid visits to the
European Commission in Brussels. The respective rapporteurs also
participated in the pre-electoral and/or electoral missions to the following
countries: Armenia, Georgia, Montenegro, Ukraine, Bulgaria and Monaco.
8. The respective co-rapporteurs also submitted information notes
on Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Georgia; these were declassified
by the committee.
9. In the framework of the preparation of reports on specific
countries, during the reporting period, the committee requested
the legal expertise of the European Commission for Democracy through
Law (Venice Commission) with regard to legal acts in Azerbaijan,
Hungary, Georgia, Monaco, “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”,
Ukraine and the Russian Federation. In June 2012, it held an exchange
of views with the President of the Venice Commission, Mr Gianni
Buquicchio, and the Director, Mr Thomas Markert.
10. The committee organised a hearing on frozen conflicts in the
framework of its meeting in Tallinn in May 2013, conceived as a
follow-up to the hearing held in Berlin in 2007, with the participation
of experts on Abkhazia and South Ossetia, on Nagorno-Karabakh and
on Transnistria.
11. Furthermore, the committee held an exchange of views with
Ms Ursula Gacek, Chair of the Committee of Ministers’ Group of Rapporteurs
on Democracy (GR-DEM), on possible ways to enhance co-operation,
and continued its reflection on this subject at subsequent meetings.
The committee also held an exchange of views with Mr Thorbjørn Jagland,
Secretary General of the Council of Europe, during the reporting
period.
12. The committee held an exchange of views with the participation
of Mr Štefan Füle, European Commissioner on European Union Enlargement
and Neighbourhood Policy.
13. The Assembly expresses its satisfaction at some positive developments
in a number of countries under the monitoring or post-monitoring
procedure over the reporting period. It welcomes, in particular:
in Albania, the improved co-operation between the ruling party and
the opposition, which has allowed for a number of important laws
and reforms that needed a two-thirds majority to be passed in parliament;
in Armenia, the presidential election, which, according to the international
observers’ assessment, was well administered, respected fundamental
freedoms and constituted a clear improvement in the electoral process
in the country; in Montenegro, the substantial progress made since
2010 towards the fulfilment of its remaining obligations and commitments
towards the Council of Europe and in particular the ratification
of 83 conventions and the adoption of many laws and constitutional
amendments in the field of the rule of law, democracy and human rights;
in Ukraine, the continuing efforts displayed by the Ukrainian authorities
to reform the judiciary, as well as the release of Mr Yuri Lutsenko
following a presidential pardon; in Georgia, the peaceful constitutional transfer
of power and the emergence of a genuine pluralistic and democratic
framework following the 2012 parliamentary elections; in Bulgaria,
the substantial progress made towards the fulfilment of its remaining obligations;
in Turkey, a process of major reform which is taking place against
a complex background of political transition involving the judiciary
and the army, and progress in bringing the legislation into line
with the European Convention on Human Rights (ETS No. 5), the resumption
of talks by the authorities with a view to finding a political solution
to the Kurdish question and promoting the cultural and linguistic
rights of the Kurds; in the Russian Federation, the reduction of
the electoral threshold from 7% to 5% and the liberalisation of political
parties' registration procedure.
14. At the same time, the Assembly expresses its concern about
worrying developments in some of the countries under the monitoring
procedure and post-monitoring dialogue. In particular: in Albania,
with regard to the ineffective delivery of justice, discrimination
against minorities and the social exclusion of Roma, as well as
corruption and money laundering based on organised crime; in Azerbaijan,
with regard to the lack of independence of the judiciary and restrictions
on basic freedoms, including freedom of expression, freedom of assembly
and freedom of association, as well as the reports of alleged political
prisoners and alleged cases of torture and ill-treatment by the
police; in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with regard to the lack of substantial constitutional
reform which would enable the full functioning of democratic institutions,
as well as the lack of progress in the implementation of the judgment
of the European Court of Human Rights in the case of Sejdić and Finci; in Georgia, with
regard to the difficult cohabitation and a number of arrests of
leading members of the opposition and, more generally, the independence
of the judiciary and the administration of justice; in the Republic
of Moldova, with regard to the need for revision of Article 78 of
the Constitution, insufficient efforts in the fight against corruption,
the reform of the Prosecutor’s Office and the police, and the independence
of the judiciary; in Montenegro, with regard to the need for further
progress in five key areas, namely the judiciary, minority rights,
the fight against corruption and organised crime, the media and
the situation of refugees and internally displaced persons; in the
Russian Federation, with regard to a number of recently adopted
laws restricting basic freedoms (the law on the criminalisation
of defamation, on the Internet, on assemblies, on non-governmental
organisations (NGOs) and on propaganda of homosexuality to minors),
as well as serious concerns about politically motivated justice,
reinforced by recent judgments against Mr Alexei Navalny and the late
Mr Sergei Magnitsky, and the non-implementation of the resolutions
on the consequences of the war between Georgia and Russia (Resolutions 1633 (2008) on the
consequences of the war between Georgia and Russia, 1647 (2009) on the
implementation of Resolution 1633 (2008) on the consequences of
the war between Georgia and Russia and 1683 (2009) on the war between Georgia
and Russia: one year after); in Ukraine, with regard to the deficiencies
of the judicial system and criminal proceedings initiated against
a number of former government members on controversial charges;
in Monaco, with regard to the tensions which characterised the electoral
campaign and the outstanding reforms to be accomplished; in “the
former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”, with regard to the division
of the country across both political and ethnic lines and the implementation
of laws not yet in force; in Turkey, with regard to the concerns
about the criminal code, restrictions on freedom of expression and
pre-trial detention, taking note of the progress in the aforementioned fields.
15. With respect to the countries which are not subject to the
monitoring procedure stricto sensu,
the Assembly expresses its concern that a number of these countries
have not signed and/or ratified some major Council of Europe conventions,
thus preventing convention mechanisms attached to them from monitoring their
implementation.
16. Furthermore, the Assembly is concerned about worrying developments
in some of these countries with regard to the situation of Roma,
in particular Roma segregation, including: the segregation of Roma
children in schools in the Czech Republic; the lack of personal
identity or citizenship documents of many Roma in Croatia; the evictions
of Roma travellers in France, Italy and the United Kingdom; forced
repatriations to Kosovo 
from
Germany; the precarious situation of stateless Roma in the Netherlands;
social exclusion, including segregation in schools and various forms
of discrimination, in Portugal, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia;
and insufficient Roma integration policies in Spain;
from
Germany; the precarious situation of stateless Roma in the Netherlands;
social exclusion, including segregation in schools and various forms
of discrimination, in Portugal, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia;
and insufficient Roma integration policies in Spain; 17. Other problems in some of these countries have been identified
by different Council of Europe monitoring mechanisms: in Andorra,
indirect discrimination in employment based on citizenship and the government’s
reluctance to enact comprehensive legislation against racism and
discrimination; in Austria, some concerns with regard to the rights
of asylum seekers, women and persons with disabilities; in Belgium, Greece
and France, restrictions on defenders of migrants’ rights; in Denmark,
discrimination in employment, education and housing, as well as
restrictive rules for family reunification; in Estonia, the unemployment
rate among non-Estonians is still disproportionately high compared
to that of ethnic Estonians; in Greece, hate crimes targeting migrants
as well as incidents of State violence against migrants and refugees;
in Ireland, insufficient rights for asylum seekers; in Liechtenstein,
unsatisfactory legislation on foreigners and administrative legal
framework aimed at combating racial discrimination in all fields
of life; in Malta, the increasing number of incidents of State violence
against migrants and refugees; in Poland, the increased number of
racially motivated offences; in the Slovak Republic, the lack of
adequate policies with respect to the integration of refugees; in
Switzerland, the growth of racist political discourse against non-citizens
and insufficiently developed legislation to deal with direct racial
discrimination.
18. The Assembly expresses its concern that a number of these
countries, including Greece, Italy, Poland and Romania, face major
structural problems leading to delays in the execution of judgments
of the European Court of Human Rights.
19. Moreover, with respect to this group of countries, the Assembly
is concerned by the conclusions of the third round compliance reports
on the implementation of the Civil Law Convention on Corruption
(ETS No. 174) and the Criminal Law Convention on Corruption (ETS
No. 173) and its Additional Protocol (ETS No. 191). It is particularly
worrying that the degree of compliance with the recommendations
of the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO)
is considered “globally unsatisfactory” in the case of the Czech Republic,
Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Portugal, the Slovak Republic
and Slovenia.
20. Consequently, the Assembly urges all countries which remain
under the specific monitoring procedure or are engaged in a post-monitoring
dialogue to fulfil the remaining obligations and commitments entered
into upon on accession to the Council of Europe, and in particular
it calls on:
20.1. the Parliament
of Albania to pursue work on reform and step up efforts to improve
co-operation between the ruling party and the opposition;
20.2. the Parliament and the authorities of Azerbaijan to create
conditions which would allow for a fair electoral campaign and presidential
election, in compliance with democratic standards;
20.3. the Parliament of Bosnia and Herzegovina to carry out
a substantial constitutional reform which would allow the country
to become a fully functioning democracy; to revise the constitution
and electoral legislation with a view to eliminating ethnicity-based
limitations on the right to stand for office, in order to comply
with the standards of the European Convention on Human Rights; to
implement the Sejdić and Finci judgment
of the European Court of Human Rights; to introduce reforms in the
judiciary, the fight against corruption and regarding governance;
20.4. the authorities of Georgia to ensure that the legal proceedings
against former government officials, including the former prime
minister, the former minister of health and the former minister
of defence, are conducted transparently and in full compliance with
Georgia’s obligations under Articles 5 and 6 of the European Convention
on Human Rights;
20.5. the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova to pursue the
reform process, including the necessary revision of the constitution;
20.6. the Parliament of Montenegro to make further progress,
in five key areas, namely the judiciary, minority rights, the fight
against corruption and organised crime, the media and the situation
of refugees and internally displaced persons;
20.7. the Parliament of the Russian Federation to revise controversial
laws adopted recently, in particular the law on the criminalisation
of defamation, on the Internet, on assemblies, on NGOs (law “on foreign
agents”) and on the propaganda of homosexuality to minors; to ensure
that the executive authorities refrain from exercising influence
on the judiciary;
20.8. the authorities of Ukraine to implement the newly adopted
laws and strategies in order to ensure an independent and impartial
judiciary that fully respects the principles of the rule of law,
and to use available legal means to release Ms Yulia Timoshenko
given that the judicial procedure leading to her conviction has
raised heavy criticism;
20.9. the National Council of Monaco to adopt the legislation
recommended by the Parliamentary Assembly in 2009 in its Resolution 1690 (2009) on
the honouring of obligations and commitments by Monaco;
20.10. the Parliament of Turkey to continue its reform programme,
that is, further reform of the constitution and continued revision
of the criminal code, as well as to ensure progress on freedom of expression,
pre-trial detention, local and regional decentralisation and resolving
the Kurdish question, taking note of the ongoing reconciliation
process.
21. With respect to the honouring of obligations by the countries
which are not subject to the monitoring procedure sensu stricto, the Assembly calls
on:
21.1. Andorra, Belgium, Estonia,
Greece, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Portugal and San Marino to sign and
ratify, and France, Iceland, Italy and Malta to ratify the European
Charter for Regional or Minority Languages (ETS No. 148);
21.2. Andorra and France to sign and ratify, and Belgium, Greece,
Iceland and Luxembourg to ratify the Framework Convention for the
Protection of National Minorities (ETS No. 157);
21.3. the Czech Republic and Liechtenstein to sign and ratify,
and Estonia and Greece to ratify the Council of Europe Convention
on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (CETS No. 197);
21.4. Denmark, France, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland
and the United Kingdom to sign and ratify, and Austria, Belgium,
the Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland,
Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Norway, Portugal and the Slovak Republic
to ratify Protocol No. 12 to the Convention for the Protection of
Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ETS No. 177) concerning the
fight against discrimination;
21.5. Switzerland to ratify Protocol No. 1 to the Convention
for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ETS
No. 9), adding the right to peaceful enjoyment of property, the
right to education and the right to free elections by secret ballot
to the fundamental rights protected by the Convention;
21.6. Liechtenstein and Switzerland to sign and ratify, and
Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Iceland,
Luxembourg, Poland, San Marino, Spain and the United Kingdom to
ratify the European Social Charter (revised) (ETS No. 163);
21.7. Andorra, Austria, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Hungary,
Iceland, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland,
Romania, San Marino, the Slovak Republic, Spain, Switzerland and
the United Kingdom to sign and/or ratify the Additional Protocol
to the European Social Charter Providing for a System of Collective
Complaints (ETS No. 158) or to accept the complaints procedure pursuant
to Article D.2 of the European Social Charter (revised), as the
case may be;
21.8. Liechtenstein, Portugal, San Marino and Switzerland to
sign and ratify, and Andorra, Denmark, Germany, Iceland, Ireland,
Luxembourg and the United Kingdom to ratify the Civil Law Convention
on Corruption;
21.9. Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein and San Marino to ratify
the Criminal Law Convention on Corruption;
21.10. Andorra, the Czech Republic, Germany, Ireland, Liechtenstein,
Lithuania, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom to sign and
ratify, and Austria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland,
Italy, Luxembourg and Sweden to ratify the Council of Europe Convention
on Laundering, Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds
from Crime and on the Financing of Terrorism (CETS No. 198);
21.11. the Parliaments of Greece, Italy, Poland and Romania to
promote progress in the implementation of judgments of the European
Court of Human Rights, and to initiate legislative changes aimed
at eliminating structural problems leading to repeated violations
of the European Convention on Human Rights.
22. Furthermore, the Assembly urges these countries to fully comply
with recommendations made by the respective monitoring mechanisms
of the Council of Europe, and in particular calls on:
22.1. Croatia, the Czech Republic,
France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, the Slovak Republic,
Slovenia, Spain and the United Kingdom to undertake the necessary
measures to remedy the situation of Roma, bring to an end their
social exclusion and educational segregation, as well as all forms of
discrimination, to enhance integration policies and to refrain from
forced evictions and repatriations;
22.2. Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Greece, France, Denmark, Estonia,
Ireland, Liechtenstein, Malta, the Slovak Republic and Switzerland
to eliminate, where appropriate, all forms of discrimination identified
by the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, the European
Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) and the monitoring
mechanism of the Framework Convention on the Protection of Minorities;
22.3. Greece, Italy, Poland and Romania to eliminate major structural
problems leading to delays in the execution of judgments of the
European Court of Human Rights;
22.4. the Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands,
Portugal, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia to step up efforts –
which so far have been considered “globally unsatisfactory” – to
comply with recommendations of the Council of Europe’s Group of
States against Corruption (GRECO).
23. The Assembly stresses the importance it attaches to the full
independence of rapporteurs on the monitoring of obligations and
commitments and the political neutrality of the Monitoring Committee
in accomplishing their work.
24. The Assembly commends the remarkable work carried out by the
Council of Europe monitoring mechanisms, and the acquis they have established over
the years. It also welcomes the initiative by the Secretary General
of the Council of Europe to launch a process of reflection on the
monitoring procedures in the intergovernmental sector of the Organisation,
aimed at strengthening and improving co-operation between the different
monitoring mechanisms.
25. The Assembly resolves to pursue a more general reflection
on ways to enhance the efficiency and the impact of the Assembly
monitoring procedures with regard to all Council of Europe member
States and takes note of the intention of the Monitoring Committee
to establish a working group tasked with the preparation of concrete
proposals in this respect.