WELCOME BY MR MEVLÜT ÇAVUŞOĞLU, PRESIDENT OF THE PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY, TO MR JORGE SAMPAIO, HIGH REPRESENTATIVE OF THE UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY-GENERAL FOR THE ALLIANCE OF CIVILIZATIONS

(Strasbourg, Wednesday 23 June 2010, 12 noon, Hemicycle)

President Sampaio, it is an honour and a pleasure to welcome you again to our Assembly. You were President of the Republic of Portugal from 1996 to 2006 and in 2007 you were appointed by the UN Secretary General as his High Representative for the UN Alliance of Civilisations. In 2008, you addressed this Assembly and you were also awarded the North-South Prize of the Council of Europe for your outstanding contribution to the protection of human rights, the defence of pluralist democracy and the promotion of North-South partnership and solidarity.

President Sampaio, only a few weeks ago, at your invitation, I took part in the round table on “Addressing Islamophobia” as part of the annual Forum of the Alliance in Rio. Although the Rapporteur for our report, Mr Mogens Jensen, could not come to Rio, the report was made widely available at the Forum. Today’s debate on Islam, Islamism and Islamophobia, I am sure, will greatly benefit from your presence here.

This is an excellent example of cooperation between our institutions. Geographic distances are becoming less dividing for the peoples of this world. It is therefore essential for the Council of Europe and the United Nations to work together more closely on matters of common concern, especially on such complex, world-wide problems as those that we shall be discussing today.

Parliaments and governments must react to any form of extremism which challenges our common values. I am confident that your contribution, President Sampaio, will be most valuable in this respect.