[Documents/Docheader.htm]

New concepts to evaluate the state of democratic development

Doc. 10279
17 September 2004

Report
Political Affairs Committee
Rapporteur: Mr Adrian Severin, Romania, Socialist Group

Summary

The commitment to democratic standards is one of the fundamental requirements for every member state of the Council of Europe. Democratic reform and development can only be sustainable when it is based on a full integration of democratic norms and practices into the administrative, political and judicial systems, including the normative standards as well as their implementation in the daily practice at an operational level.

While the principles of democracy, the rule of law and human rights are considered universal, their models are only indicative. The same values seeded in different cultural, social, historical and geographical environments might give birth to a large variety of public behaviors. On the other hand, the same or compatible democratic targets could be reached by following different political roads and starting from different social and cultural backgrounds.

The Parliamentary Assembly is determined to introduce a process of periodical reports on the state of democratic development, which allows each member and observer state to present updated information on democratic reforms and other measures undertaken.

I.          Draft resolution [Link to the adopted text]

1.     The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe acknowledges that democracy is nowadays confronted with a dangerous crisis which could be seen in the low turn out at elections, lack of interest and low participation of citizens in public life, decreasing respect for and confidence in political parties and politicians and the tendency to elect managers instead of leaders, technocrats instead of policymakers, entertainment stars instead of statesmen.

2.     The entire democratic deficit and those negative developments make the classic concepts of democratic rights and freedoms insufficient and speak for the need of introducing new concepts. The globalisation process amplifies the shortcomings of democratic systems and makes them fragile in the face of trans-national phenomena.

3.     While the principles of democracy, the rule of law and human rights are considered universal, their models are only indicative. The same values seeded in different cultural, social, historical and geographical environments might give birth to a large variety of public behaviors. On the other hand, the same or compatible democratic targets could be reached by following different political roads and starting from different social and cultural backgrounds.

4.     The commitment to democratic standards is one of the fundamental requirements for every member state of the Council of Europe. Accession to the Council of Europe is preceded by a close scrutiny of the state of democracy and of all national legislation as well as the functioning of democratic institutions and the judicial system.

5.     Democratic reform and development can only be sustainable when it is based on a full integration of democratic norms and practices into the administrative, political and judicial systems, including the normative standards as well as their implementation in the daily practice at an operational level.

6.     The Assembly is aware that the state of democratic development is not sufficient in member states, as it has been indicated by the Council of Europe’s monitoring procedures. It is thus necessary to combine these monitoring procedures with an active assistance to, and co-operation with, all member states. The logic of monitoring should be replaced or at least coupled with the logic of partnership.

7.     The Assembly will continue to actively co-operate with the Committee of Ministers and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe in order to achieve greater synergies for the Council of Europe by exploiting the specific resources and experiences of each of these bodies with regard to the evaluation of democratic development.

8.     Democratic development in Europe must be determined by various factors which may have a different weight depending on the historic, geographic, demographic, cultural, social and economic circumstances of a country. In this context, the Assembly believes that the following catalogue – to be added to the traditional democratic standards of the Council of Europe, such as the various individual freedoms, free and fair elections, the separation of powers, the checks and balances of the states’ institutions, etc. - should constitute the parameters for the evaluation of the democratic development in a given country:

i.          the transparency of governmental action and administration;

ii.          the accountability of decision-making bodies towards the public.

iii.         the openness of political decision-making processes to the public;

iv.         the possibilities and the degree of motivation for the citizens to effectively participate in the decision-making process;

v.          the participation of foreign residents in national, regional and local decision-making processes;

vi.         the level of political action by the public outside parliament and its impact on the functioning of parliament as the forum for democratic debate and decision-making;

vii.        the development of the civic society and the extent to which the civic society's structures and entities are neither controlled by the state nor acting as disguised opposition parties lacking democratic legitimacy;

viii.        the secular character of the state, meaning that the state should stay at equal distance towards all religions and confessions, including the agnostic;

ix.         the development of political pluralism and the way in which parties are financed and function;

x.         the development of civic multiculturalism associating the equality of the citizens and their equal loyalty to their common state (the civic nation) with the respect for diversity and intercultural coexistence  (multiculturalism as a multidimensional complex social tissue) ;

xi.         the capacity to aggregate national democracy with local, regional, non-national, trans-national and global ones;

xii.        the general level of economic development of a society;

xiii.       the development of the middle class compared to an economic  polarisation of a society;

xiv.       the quality of the status of minorities including those measures of positive discrimination allowing them to feel as having equal chances with the majority and granting them full opportunities to be integrated in the given society without losing their identity;

xv.        gender equality in the participation in democratic decision-making processes;

xvi.       subsidiarity as a vertical decentralisation in governmental and administrative action, regional and local self-administration while preserving the cohesion of the state, together with a horizontal decentralisation in sharing the burden of the social order between the state institutions and the society’s structures;

xvii.       the independence of the media from governmental structures, from economic monopolies, from oligarchic control or from any other non-transparent groups of interests;

xviii.      the defensive measures for the protection of democracy against non-democratic initiatives;

xix.       the level of the anti-corruption measures and their effectiveness;

xx.        the effectiveness of the policies against organised crime;

xxi.             the status of the prisoners and the quality of the conditions in prisons;

xxii.            the effectiveness of the anti-discrimination rules and regulations, including the rejection of any political, social and economic discrimination on an ethnic basis leading to political separatism and cultural segregation;

xxiii.          the effectiveness of civil control over public institutions (especially the military and the security services), as well as the transparency and the accountability of the bureaucracy.

9.         The Assembly acknowledges that all the above criteria shall be applied and checked in all its member states, be they old, new or restored democracies, the democratic deficit threatening all of them as an equally important danger.

10.        In order to avoid democratic formalism and to develop a vibrant and real democracy able to have an effective popular appeal, it is crucial to avoid double standards in assessing the democratic progress and at the same time to adapt methods for the evaluation of the possible democratic deficit in such a way as to reflect properly the variety of the cultural, historical and social environment within which democracy should grow.

11.        Democracy is never perfect but always evolving towards perfection; democracy is not a mere set of laws and institutions but a way of thinking and living and therefore it should grow naturally being impossible to export it or to transfer it mechanically from one place into another; democracy is not immutable but in evolution.

12.        The Assembly calls on the national parliaments of member states and civil society to support the stimulation of participatory democracy in Europe through the following action:

i.          major political projects should be discussed and defined in order to provide the public with political ideas and ideals for public debate;

ii.          politics should be re-socialised by addressing the major dividing lines and rifts in Europe, for instance in the social, cultural, economic or environmental sectors;

iii.         expertise and knowledge should become part of politics and political decision-making, in particular with regard to the social sciences;

iv.         the social tissue and cohesion of our societies should be strengthened by developing community spirit;

v.          a culture of conflict settlement should be supported, which ensures that differences of opinions and conflicts of interests could be settled through appropriate democratic means and processes;

vi.         political parties and organisations should seek to recruit members who reflect the differences in a society and have the capacity to define political ideas and communicate them to the public at large;

vii.        political parties should become more transparent and open to civil society and the different sectors in a society;

viii.        democratic decision-making should be decentralised and decisions should be taken as close as possible to the people concerned, which is of particular importance within the enlarged and reinforced European Union;

ix.         the public should be provided with more possibilities of expressing differences, either for themselves as a form of individual freedom, or with regard to local, regional and national decisions through consultative and participatory processes.

13.        The Assembly is determined to introduce a process of periodical reports on the state of democratic development, which allows each member and observer state to present updated information on democratic reforms and other measures undertaken.

14.        The Assembly is also determined to embark into a dynamic dialogue and co-operation with other international organisations concerned as well as with the parliaments from non-member states, in order to promote, beyond its frontiers, its standards and democratic values while recognising everybody’s right to have different opinions in accordance with the differences in the actual realities and traditions.

II.                Draft recommendation  [Link to the adopted text]

1.         The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe refers to its Resolution … (2004) on new concepts to evaluate the state of democratic development, and recommends that the Committee of Ministers:

i.         identify as a priority the work towards strengthening democratic development in all member states and to include this into the action programme of the Third Summit of Heads of State and Government;

ii.         instruct its competent steering committee to develop, in co-operation with the Assembly:

a.          a code of good practice for political parties and their members as well as clear European guidelines on how political parties could be financed;

b.          guidelines for petitions, popular initiatives and referendums, in particular at local and regional level;

c.          model rules of procedure for parliamentary bodies, with particular emphasis on methods of parliamentary consultation and the participation of the public;

iii.         analyse, in co-operation with the Assembly, the feasibility of creating, on the basis of a Convention, a committee which shall draw up a catalogue of fundamental democratic rights as protected by the Council of Europe and regularly prepare a critical analysis of the functioning of democratic institutions in Europe, and update it when necessary;

iv.         monitor, in co-operation with the Assembly, the democratic development within the Council of Europe’s institutions and present periodically progress reports in this respect.

III.        Explanatory memorandum

1.                   Political analysts in many European and non-European countries have come to the conclusion that citizens identify themselves to a lesser degree with political decision-making processes. The report of my colleague Mr Andrzej Wielowieyski on the future of democracy and on the strengthening of democratic institutions[1] dealt with this phenomenon. In fact, the Assembly has, without exhausting this topic, addressed various aspects concerning the strengthening of democracy over the last decades which are still valid and topical. It may thus be understood that democracy is a living concept which may face new challenges in each particular case. This being said, democracy is one of the fundamental values the Council of Europe stands for; its work in setting standards in this field is one raison d’�tre of this organisation.

2.                   With democracy having such a prominent importance for the Council of Europe, it may be considered as essential for the Council of Europe to analyse the current challenges to democracy. I fully agree with Professor Pascal Perrineau from the Institut d’Etudes Politiques in Paris, who prepared a background paper on this topic, that such challenges can be found in the growing percentage of abstentions in elections, which may either be interpreted as a psychological distance between the voters and the candidates for election, or as a form of conscious protest. In the same vein, a living democracy is challenged by the decrease in the willingness of people to actively participate in political parties and trade unions – a fact seen all over Europe. The often noticed low reputation of politicians is a symptom of the distance between politicians and voters. Globalisation and the linked dilution of national sovereignty and powers, for instance over trade and finance policies, causes frustration among voters, which in turn results in a lower recognition of national politicians. Democracy thus requires new inspirations, and the state of democratic development of a given country becomes a much more complex phenomenon.

3.                   Inspired by a discussion with Lord Dahrendorf, I should like to define three basic elements of all democratic models, irrespective of the time and country: (i) public procedures and institutions allowing for a decision-making and the revision of such decisions without violence, but by peaceful and lawful means; (ii) an institutionalised system of checks and balances between the different tiers of public power; (iii) popular participation in the decision-making process, including through elections of decision-making bodies or persons with executive function. All other elements are not essential and may differently develop the democratic environment of a country in accordance with its traditions and particular needs.

4.                   The historic experiences of the peoples of Europe concerning the absence of democracy have shaped the approach of the Council of Europe: Absolutism, Fascism, Nazism, Stalinism, Communism, Militarism and other totalitarian forms of government clearly defined the common values of democracy in a negative way. Democratic standards were set up in order to prevent those totalitarian systems. It is more difficult, however, to define positively the requirements of democracy. The Council of Europe has done this by drafting the European Convention on Human Rights, the European Charter of Local Self-Government, the Convention on the Participation of Foreigners in Public Life at Local Level and other guiding texts.

5.                   Sir Winston Churchill is quoted in saying: “Many forms of government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all those others that have been tried from time to time.” This analysis shows that we cannot discuss democracy and the state of democratic development of a society or country in abstract terms. Democracy as such and the democratic development of a country is determined by a multitude of factors.

6.                   The Assembly has already addressed a few of these factors over the years. There is, however, still the challenge of putting together a comprehensive catalogue of parameters for the evaluation of the actual democratic development. Therefore, this report shall elaborate new concepts for the evaluation of the state of democratic development in Europe and propose a stronger and synergetic basis for such an evaluation within the Council of Europe. It shall highlight possible food for thought on two questions: how can we establish democracy, and how can we measure this? This report is not an academic thesis and does not attempt to provide for answers to all questions concerning democracy.

7.                   The reference to this report has been given to the Political Affairs Committee on 26 March 2002 (Reference 2703). On 2 March 2004, the Bureau decided that the references on the state of democracy (Reference 2918) and on reinforcing the democratic cohesion between voters and elected members of parliamentary bodies (Reference 2992) should be taken into account in the preparation of this report.

A. Basic democratic standards

8.                   The Council of Europe has set up a number of individual standards which may be classified as democratic rights and freedoms. Moreover, the constitutional traditions of our member states comprise additional fundamental rights and freedoms necessary in a democratic society. Those are generally:

    1. the right to vote

    2. the right to stand for elections,

    3. the right to free and fair elections,

    4. freedom of expression and freedom of the media,

    5. freedom of association in political parties and civil society organisations,

    6. freedom of peaceful assembly,

    7. the separation of powers between the executive, the legislative and the judiciary branches of power,

    8. the checks and balances between the powers in a state,

    9. the rule of law.

Right to vote

9.                   Article 3 of the first Protocol to the European Convention on Human Rights guarantees the right to free parliamentary elections. This is a commonly recognised right in all member states of the Council of Europe. This Article has thus not been invoked frequently before the European Court of Human Rights. When we look at the questions of whether prisoners have the right to vote or this right could be withdrawn temporarily as a penalty, a common European approach does not always seem to exist.

10.               An issue which requires further consideration is the right to vote of the foreign residents and of the non-naturalized emigrants. More and more there is an acceptance that these persons should be allowed to vote in local elections at least after a certain time of living within a local community or following a certain contribution to the local or national budget. The democratic principle to be recognized in this respect should be that the subjects of taxation must be represented. In other words, all taxpayers must be represented irrespective their citizenship. 

11.               The right to vote seems to be intimately linked with the right to democratically legitimate – that is to say elected – governance. The recognition of the right to vote is in vain if there is nothing to vote for since the main powers in state are not elected – directly or indirectly - by the people but appointed by somebody else. Matter of fact is that in some member countries of the Council of Europe not all main political powers are elected (e.g. the House of Lords in UK). This does not mean, however, that those states are automatically undemocratic. Even if there should be a political preference for the elected authorities, wherever these public authorities are appointed, their action must be based on the principle of the openness, transparency and accountability in order for the given state to be considered as truly democratic. From this point of view openness, transparency and accountability look to be more important than the elective character of the state authorities.

Right to stand for elections

12.               There can be no democracy where candidates for democratic elections are excluded arbitrarily. Therefore, this right is guaranteed under Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of the United Nations. The older European Convention on Human Rights does not yet include this right expressis verbis. It can, however, be understood that the right to stand for elections is part of the common values shared by all member states of the Council of Europe. The exceptions should be established by law, should have a socially legitimate rational and should usually be limited in time.

Right to free and fair elections

13.               The Assembly developed together with the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe guidelines for the observation of elections. From these guidelines, a catalogue of requirements for free and fair elections can be deducted. The Venice Commission also provided useful information on the different electoral systems in member states. Within this frame one should state that the freedom and fairness of the elections are not only a matter of procedure or of technicalities and they could and should not be measured only during the polling date. The general atmosphere of fair political competition, of tolerance, of open civilised debate and of free access to the public – mainly via mass media – for a reasonable time before the polling date are extremely relevant as well.  

Freedom of expression and freedom of the media

14.               The European Court of Human Rights has interpreted freedom of expression and information under Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights as one of the basic freedoms in a democratic society. According to the Court’s case-law, freedom of expression and freedom of the media constitutes one of the essential foundations of any democratic society, one of the basic conditions for its progress and for the development of every human being. Voters cannot make a qualified choice in democratic elections, if they do not have the necessary factual information to base their decisions on. On the other hand, the democratic experience proved that these rights are often abused by those supposed to enjoy their exercise. Such abuses are one of the explanations for the depreciation of the public respect and trust for and in democracy. Therefore the freedom of expression and freedom of media must be associated with the obligation to inform accurately.  

Freedom of association

15.               Political decision-making in a democratic society requires a societal element: the organisation of political processes in corresponding groups or associations. Where such grouping processes are functioning, democracy is functioning in a more stable and efficient manner. We see this through the work of civil society, societal associations, non-governmental organisations and political parties. Therefore, it is commonly recognised that democratic societies should strengthen civil society in a wide sense. Totalitarian regimes are fearful of a strong civil society which will inevitably point to shortcomings of the respective regime. Therefore, they constitute an essential element in achieving greater freedom and democracy in non-democratic societies. Non-governmental organisations in functioning democracies often tend to develop to interest and lobbying groups for a particular cause. Through Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights, all member states have committed themselves to respect the right to freedom of association as a freedom necessary in a democratic society.

16.               In democratic societies with democratically elected parliaments, political action outside the framework of democratic elections and parliaments may, however, compromise the functioning and the authority of parliaments. Therefore, it must be the goal of parliamentarians to bring political debate and action into their own parliaments.

17.               Sometimes a question is raised on the need for genuine democracy to be characterised by a multi-party system. Though there are some who claim that party pluralism is not a must for a democracy to be real, one could also argue that without a strong opposition – in other words, without a robust inter-parties contest – there could not be a strong and efficient democracy. In this respect one could speak about the right to choose or the right for a choice as a prerequisite for a real democratic freedom. However, wherever the democratic systems are unipolar, the internal pluralism and the transparency of the “central party” are compulsory.

Freedom of peaceful assembly

18.               The less organised form of association is the gathering of people for a particular cause at a particular moment in time. Dating back to early forms of political community gatherings in ancient Greece, some of such meetings and demonstrations have gained historic importance, like for instance the peaceful demonstrations of students at Tiananmen Square in Beijing in 1989. Totalitarian regimes are again afraid of such demonstrations of divergent political opinions and tend to restrict oppositional demonstrations and organise and propagate aligned demonstrations. Due to its importance in a democratic society, Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights also guarantees the right to peaceful assembly to everyone.

Separation of powers

19.               Totalitarian systems are typically mono-cratic: a sole leader is in control of every layer of administration and public life. Such a mono-cratic system can also be linked to an oligarchic elite. We saw this in Communist states where the Communist Party and the military formed a non-democratic elite usurping power and privileges. The principle of the separation of powers in a state developed gradually. Historic mile stones are the Magna Charta Libertatum of 1215 of the King of England establishing the separation of the state and the church, the Bill of Rights of 1689 establishing the independent powers of the Parliament in London, and the Virginia Bill of Rights of 1776 establishing the separation of the three braches of powers in a state – the legislative, the executive and the judiciary. The French Declaration of the Rights of Men and Citizens of 1789 even stipulates that the separation of powers is a constituting element of any society.

20.               The Council of Europe has drawn up a norm on the independence of the judiciary (Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights), but otherwise lacks binding standards on the separation of powers. The advisory assistance provided by the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe has helped the shaping of many new constitutions in Central and Eastern Europe, thus fostering the separation of powers in a democratic state. However, mention should be made that for the time being the separation of power is not strictly observed in some of the Council of Europe’s member states. This proves that separation of powers, even if desirable, is not vital for a state in order to be really democratic. Nevertheless, further work may be needed for better enhancing the separation of powers principle, and the Parliamentary Assembly seems to be the natural engine for such an initiative.

Checks and balances

21.               Following the principle of separation of powers in a state, these powers – and the institutions in which they are embedded – must be corresponding to each other. In a democratic state governed by the rule of law, the three powers – i.e. the legislative, executive and judicial branches of power – are in a relation of checks and balance. This means that the parliament can typically control the action of the government, for instance by a vote of distrust against the head of government, by establishing parliamentary investigation committees, by demanding information from ministries etc. In the same vein, the executive power can control the parliament by the power of dissolving parliament. The courts can obviously control both, government and parliament. The actual level and forms of checks and controls between the branches of power in a state depend largely on the constitutional order and its historic development. The Council of Europe has so far done little work in this field which, however, determines the functioning of democratic states. Through comparative analyses and information exchanges, the constitutional discussions in member states could be assisted by specific Assembly work or work of the Venice Commission, for instance.

22.               While it is admitted that, in accordance with the principle of the checks and balances, each power limits the possible excesses of the other, one should also stress that normally the judiciary must be fully independent in the accomplishment of its task.

Rule of Law

23.               The term rule of law originates from the concept that the monarch is bound by the law, which is a principle established by the Magna Charta Libertatum of the King of England in the 13th century. This principle was refined in the 20th century by continental European legal scholars propagating the “Rechtsstat” or “Etat de droit”, which meant a democratic state based on the rule of law and bound by fundamental principles, such as the respect of human rights, the fair administration of justice and democracy. A “Rechtsstat” is thus opposed to a state governed by legal positivism. Totalitarian regimes generally practice legal positivism: the laws of the leader or of the party are the superior norms, irrespective of whether such norms stipulate that individuals who are in opposition can be imprisoned and robbed of their property, individuals who want to leave their country can be stopped by the use of fire arms, or other historic examples.

24.               The acquis of the Council of Europe comprises many legal texts which set up norms establishing fundamental principles of justice. It is hence important to analyse this acquis, assist member states in the implementation of these standards and develop them further.

B. Societal variables determining democratic development

25.               Democracy is a way of thinking and a living reality, which depends on many circumstances. Democracy must not be regarded in too formalistic or dogmatic terms. There may be good rules, but they may not function properly or are not adequately enforced. In such a case, democracy becomes less appealing for the public at large, which in turn will lead to less participation and thus to less democracy. This could become a vicious circle. It is, therefore, important to move from a merely formalistic approach to democratic development to an evaluation of democracy in action.

26.               For instance, the historic background of a country will have a major impact on its form of democracy. Countries with a democracy established over centuries may depend to a lesser degree on legal safeguards of their democracy, while newer democracies may require the creation of democratic structures in parallel to the creation of a culture of democracy.

27.               In addition, the geographic circumstances of a country may have an impact on how the decision-making processes can be structured. In a large country, stronger decentralised regional and local structures will obviously be necessary, while decentralisation as a way to bring the decision making process closer to the citizen (together with the principle of subsidiarity) is important in all countries, irrespective of their size. The European Charter of Local Self-Government of the Council of Europe sets standards in this respect.

28.               The demographic composition of a society may also influence its democratic functioning, because older generations will have other priorities compared to younger generations. This is due to the expectations and requirements different generations may have, but also a reflection of an educational system which may have changed its curriculum over time.

29.               The impact of cultural differences on democratic practices could be the strongest, if we define culture in a broad sense and subsume also the culture of democracy under this term. In western societies, the family is regarded as the cradle of any form of social cohesion and thus of democracy as such. The behavioural patterns we learn as a child will influence us throughout life, for instance with regard to our respect and tolerance for others, our perception of gender equality, our response to authority, even our response to violence. Human dignity, which is the corner stone of our human rights and fundamental freedoms, is in its true sense a cultural concept. The attitude towards equality and freedom – against inequality and authoritarianism, respectively – in all possible combinations characterises the various traditional familial patterns.  

30.               The social composition of a society will also have an impact on the functioning of democratic decision-making processes in a society. Groups, communities, minorities and other sub-structures of a society may have diverging tendencies in order to preserve or promote their particularities, but democracy requires that the common social tissue is respected and preserved by all these groups which make up a state.  Therefore, the civic and at the same time multicultural character of a state is one of the major tests for its level of democratic development. Whenever and wherever the civic dimension of the state is developed at the price of the cultural assimilation and uniformisation, democracy is in deficit. Likewise, whenever and wherever multiculturalism leads to cultural segregation and cultural exclusion, the positive discrimination implied by it being reflected in limitations of the individual rights, democracy is in jeopardy.

31.               As already expressed in Assembly Resolution 1209 (2000) on democracy and economic development, the economic circumstances of a country and its people will strongly influence the state of democracy. Poverty has often been a source for political instability in the history of Europe. One might say that democratic freedoms without economic prosperity are in peril while economic prosperity without democratic freedoms is in vein. Likewise, democracy without education is in peril while education without democracy is in vein.

32.               A basically rural society will conceive democracy in a different way than an urban society; an industrial society differently than a post-industrial one; a national society differently than a global cosmopolite one. 

33.               Finally, political parties have a strong role to play in the discussion of political questions and in forming and leading public opinion by giving a point of reference and orientation to the voters and the public at large. In states where a democratic culture is less developed, political parties typically have a marginal role: either such parties are reduced to an organisation around one leading personality who determines this party’s politics and thus reduces political pluralism to a “one man show”, or such parties may be weakened by being a lose accumulation of individuals who do not follow a common party line. The latter is sometimes characterised by frequent changes of individuals from one to another party. Therefore, the development of a strong culture of political parties will focus political debate and choice on political questions and their different responses by different parties.

34.               Political parties may also face the problem of political opposition within their own organisation. Should political parties be a place for political debates, or rather be a body which gives homogeneous answers to the current political questions? Experiences in different countries may differ depending on the political history and traditions, but a debate about this issue will surely enhance the role and recognition of political parties as democratic actors in a parliamentary democracy.

35.               Political parties in Europe have also faced concrete challenges such as party financing, transparency, the equal participation of women, and the exclusion of party members, for instance. Nevertheless, there is little knowledge about these issues among the public at large and little exchange of information and experience within Europe. Therefore, further action by the Assembly, i.e. by members of political parties in Europe themselves, may raise awareness and help to come to individual or common solutions for the respective challenges.

C. Possible action towards defining and controlling democratic development

36.               The Council of Europe set up various mechanisms for the control over compliance by member states with its acquis. The strongest supervisory organ is the European Court of Human Rights. However, detailed monitoring is also exercised by the Assembly’s Monitoring Committee, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, the respective Rapporteur Groups of the Committee of Ministers and the monitoring exercise by the Secretary General. A common approach among these bodies is achieved through mutual co-operation and exchange of information. Nevertheless, greater coordination could be helpful in order to avoid duplication of efforts or the offering of forum shopping for those whose democratic commitment is lose.

37.               In the field of democracy, a comprehensive catalogue of parameters for the evaluation of democratic development would be useful in two ways: (i) a common approach could be facilitated among the various bodies of the Council of Europe, and (ii) member states would have greater clarity as to how their democratic development could be evaluated.

38.               Based on existing Council of Europe work and the current debate on democracy among political scientist and politicians, I would propose the following catalogue of parameters:

39.               In view of the progress in democratic development in Europe, this catalogue may have to be revised over time.

40.               Together with national parliaments and civil society, the Assembly should support nine major axes for the stimulation of participatory democracy in Europe:

41.               The Assembly should also undertake work in co-operation with the Committee of Ministers and draw up the following:

42.               In order to regularly prepare a critical analysis of the functioning of democratic institutions in Europe, I also propose to set up a specific committee which shall draw up a catalogue of fundamental democratic rights as protected by the Council of Europe. Such a committee could preferably be based on a Convention, but it could also start as an ad hoc committee for some time. For this committee, member states could nominate independent experts on democracy who shall prepare regular reports. A similar structure exists for the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance ECRI of the Council of Europe. The exact form of this committee is to be determined after further analysis by the Committee of Ministers together with the Assembly.

43.               I also propose to select democracy as a theme for the Third Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe member states in 2005. The work on democracy of the Council of Europe will profit form a clear impetus from, and direction given by, the Summit.

Reporting Committee: Political Affairs Committee.

Reference to Committee: Doc. 9358 and Reference 2703 of 26.03.02

Draft Resolution unanimously adoptedby the Committee on 14 September 2004

Draft Recommendation unanimously adopted by the Committee on 14 September 2004

Members of the Committee : MM. Jakic (Chairman), Margelov (Vice-Chairman), Spindelegger (Vice-Chairman), Ates (Vice-Chairman), Mrs Aguiar, MM. Arzilli, Atkinson,  Azzolini, Ban�š, Berceanu, Bianco, Blankenborg, Bokeria, van den Brande, Cekuolis, Curiel Alonso, Davern, Dreyfus-Schmidt (alternate : Andr�), Mrs Druviete, Mr Duivesteijn, Mrs Durrieu, MM. Elo, Goerens (alternate : Glesener), Goulet, Gross, Hedrich, Henry, H�rster, Iwinski, Jahic, Jovaševic, Judd, Kalezic, Karpov, Klich (alternate : Markowski), Ko�i, Kosachev, Kostenko, Lindblad, van der Linden, Lloyd (alternate : Tomlinson), Loutfi, Magnusson, Marty, Matušic, Medeiros Ferreira, Meimarakis (alternate : Papadimitriou), Mercan,  Mignon, Mihkelson, Mrs Narochnitskaya, Mrs Nemcova, MM. Nemeth, Oliynyk, Ouzky, Pangalos, Mrs Petrova-Mitevska, Mrs Petursdottir,  Mrs Pintat Rossell, MM. Pourgourides, Prentice, Prijmireanu, Prisacaru, Puche, de Puig, Pullicino Orlando, Ranieri (alternate : de Zulueta), Roth, Severin, Mrs Severinsen, MM. Seyidov, Slutsky, Tabajdi, Tekelioglu, Torosyan, Toshev, Mrs Tritz (alternate : Bindig), MM. Vakilov (alternate : Mollazade), Wielowieyski, Mrs Wohlwend, Mrs Wurm, Mr Zacchera.

Ex-officio: MM. E�rsi, Einarsson, Russell-Johnston

N.B. : The names of the members who took part in the meeting are printed in bold

Head of the Secretariat : Mr Perin

Secretaries to the Committee: Mr Chevtchenko, Mr Dossow

[1]              Assembly Resolution 1353 (2003) and Recommendation 1629 (2003), Document 9951.