29.09.08

OPENING STATEMENT

OF MR LLUĺS MARIA DE PUIG

PRESIDENT OF THE PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY

SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2008 PART-SESSION

(Strasbourg, Monday, 29 September 2008, 11h30 a.m.)


Ladies and gentlemen,

Whenever we meet in this House, it is always a moment of unity and communion.

Today we need this unity more than ever, as we face considerable concerns.

However, before addressing these current issues, I would like us to join together in that most human of feelings, which is the sadness and emptiness caused by the loss of friends.

This summer the Assembly lost one of its former Presidents and one of its most outstanding personalities, Lord Russell-Johnston. He was President of the Parliamentary Assembly from 1999 to 2002 and a member for twenty-three years.

In his whole attitude and his commitment to our values, Lord Russell-Johnston was a great European. Throughout his political career, he was guided by the idea that moralpolitik should always prevail over realpolitik. However, Lord Russell-Johnston was also someone who was profoundly caring. Not only did this quality make him an outstanding friend on a personal level; it also inspired the thinking behind his political activities.

A book of condolences will be opened for all those wishing to express their sympathy with his family after a small ceremony starting at 5 pm in the prayer and meditation room.

Another exceptional person departed us recently, namely Mr Michel Dreyfus-Schmidt, the Vice-Chair of the French delegation. In this Assembly he was an ardent champion of individual freedoms and made a real contribution to discussions on the Council of Europe’s role.

In public life, he has left an indelible mark, both through his skills as a renowned criminal lawyer and in the rectitude and humanity of his work as a politician within the French Senate, his own party, and his native town of Belfort.

Lastly, the Council of Europe has also lost one of its former Secretaries General, Georg Kahn-Ackermann, who was a member of the Parliamentary Assembly from 1963 to 1974, then Secretary General from 1974 to 1979. He was also known as a journalist, the author of various books and a former member of the Bundestag.

I propose that we should honour the memory of our former colleagues by observing a minute's silence.

Dear fellow members,

During the summer, Europe experienced one its most serious crises since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Two neighbouring member states of the Council of Europe, Georgia and Russia, engaged in a conflict which runs counter to the principles and values that the Council of Europe upholds.

It cannot be said that this crisis was unforeseeable, even though its scale, its violence and its impact have exceeded anything we could have imagined. In trying to establish who is responsible for what, we also have serious questions to ask ourselves. Are we living up to our role as an organisation which embodies peace and democratic stability in Europe?

I followed the crisis day by day, even hour by hour. It was not easy to find reliable information on exactly what was happening and there was also a lot of disinformation.

My immediate concern was therefore to ensure that the Assembly would not be carried away by the tide of propaganda or by emotion. I would like to pay tribute to the dedication and commitment of all those who worked to ascertain the true facts and promote dialogue between the parties, namely the heads of the political groups, the Assembly rapporteurs who visited both countries, the ad hoc committee which has just returned from its mission, the Secretary General of the Council of Europe and the Commissioner for Human Rights, the Committee of Ministers and the Secretariat.

If the Assembly agrees to the urgent debate in the format proposed by the Bureau, we will be able to discuss the consequences of the war over two days, tomorrow morning and on Thursday morning. It is our duty to initiate dialogue between all the parties concerned, to hear as many viewpoints as possible and to use this basis to draw responsible conclusions.

The Council of Europe must not withhold any criticism and must condemn in the firmest possible terms all that it regards as a violation of our principles and values. However, above all, we must look to the future and show caution, calm, clear-sightedness and political vision. For we are all aware that the conflict between Georgia and Russia has major consequences, not only for the two countries themselves, but for the entire region, other European regions and Europe as a whole.

The main question that should guide us during our discussions on this subject should be what we want for the future of Europe and how we can guarantee its peace and stability.

The crisis between Georgia and Russia should not cause us to lose sight of other ongoing concerns in other member states.

I am referring in particular to Azerbaijan and Armenia, which I visited over the summer to provide them with political support in their citizens' best interests. Last June the Assembly issued concrete recommendations to these two countries aimed at remedying a number of problems which prevented them from honouring their commitments as member states of the Council of Europe. In both cases we are awaiting convincing results and we will assess them with the same goodwill, but also the same rigour that we have to apply every time it is a question of defending our principles and values.

I would also like to say a few words about some positive events, some moments of relief and hope.

I am thinking in particular of Turkey, where the Constitutional Court refused to take the extreme step of banning the Justice and Development Party currently in power. This made it possible to avoid a grave constitutional and political crisis.

In Serbia the arrest of Radovan Karadzic, the Bosnian Serb's former political leader, will at last make it possible to do justice and honour the memory of the thousands of victims of the genocide in Srebrenica, the siege of Sarajevo and so many other atrocities. However, other criminals must still be brought to account before the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague.

Lastly, the negotiations taking place in Cyprus under the aegis of the United Nations constitute a great hope for the future of the people of this island, who are unjustly suffering from its division.

A positive outcome would be an example of peaceful conflict management, and we really need such an example at present.

I cannot end without mentioning the financial crisis which is rocking the entire world. It is not only a crisis of the markets; it is also a crisis which may have terrible social repercussions and could therefore affect fundamental human rights.

This is again a warning bell which is calling us to face our responsibilities as politicians and as European citizens.

Thank you for your attention.