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Resolution 2078 (2015)
The progress of the Assembly’s monitoring procedure (October 2014-August 2015)
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
the setting up of an Assembly committee on the honouring of obligations
and commitments by member states of the Council of Europe (Monitoring
Committee) (as modified by Resolution
1431 (2005), Resolution
1515 (2006), Resolution
1698 (2009), Resolution
1710 (2010), Resolution
1936 (2013) and Resolution
2018 (2014)).
2. In particular, the Assembly commends the committee on its
actions in accompanying the nine countries under a monitoring procedure sensu stricto (Albania, Armenia,
Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova,
the Russian Federation, Serbia and Ukraine) and the four countries
engaged in a post-monitoring dialogue (Bulgaria, Montenegro, “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. The Assembly notes with satisfaction the closure of the monitoring
procedure and the opening of a post-monitoring dialogue in respect
of Montenegro, as well as the closure of the post-monitoring dialogue
in respect of Monaco. It urges the Monégasque authorities to implement Resolution 2052 (2015) on
the post-monitoring dialogue with Monaco and set up the expected
mechanisms to find a suitable legal solution that would allow for
the ratification of Protocols Nos. 1 and 12 to the European Convention
on Human Rights (ETS Nos. 9 and 177), as well as the revised European
Social Charter (ETS No. 163), while respecting the specificity of
the country. The Assembly will continue to follow these developments
through the periodic review carried out by the Monitoring Committee
of the honouring of the membership obligations to the Council of
Europe by countries that are not subject to a monitoring procedure sensu stricto or engaged in a post-monitoring
dialogue with the Assembly.
4. During the reporting period, the Assembly considered two full
reports on Albania and Montenegro, two reports on the functioning
of democratic institutions with regard to Georgia and Azerbaijan
and a report on the post-monitoring dialogue with Monaco.
5. During the reporting period, the respective co-rapporteurs
carried out fact-finding visits to Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan,
Bulgaria, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova (two visits), Monaco
(two visits), Montenegro (two visits), the Russian Federation, Serbia,
Turkey and Ukraine (three visits). In addition, the respective co-rapporteurs
participated in the pre-electoral and election observation missions
in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republic of Moldova, “the former
Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”, Turkey and Ukraine. The co-rapporteurs produced
information notes on Georgia, the Republic of Moldova, Monaco, Turkey
and Ukraine, which were declassified by the committee, as well as
statements with regard to developments in Armenia (two statements), Azerbaijan
(three statements), Bulgaria, Georgia (three statements), the Republic
of Moldova, the Russian Federation (two statements), “the former
Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” (two statements), Turkey (three statements)
and Ukraine (three statements).
6. The Assembly takes note of the fact that the Monitoring Committee
was seized, in line with the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly,
for report on the challenge, on substantive grounds, of the still
unratified credentials of the delegation of the Russian Federation.
Subsequently, in line with Resolution
2034 (2015), the committee presented a report on the
consideration of the annulment of the previously ratified credentials
of the delegation of the Russian Federation (follow-up to paragraph
16 of Resolution 2034
(2015)). The Assembly commends the committee for its
ongoing efforts in relation to the developments in Ukraine.
7. The Assembly is disappointed by the decision of the Russian
delegation to boycott the work of the Assembly, which was a clear
rejection of the Assembly’s offer of dialogue and a violation of
the Russian delegation’s commitment to co-operate and to maintain
a constructive dialogue with the Assembly.
8. The committee held an exchange of views with Mr Laurent Nouvion,
Speaker of the National Council of Monaco, and Mr Jacques Rit, Chairperson
of the Special Committee on modification of the law on the organisation
and functioning of the National Council, on the ongoing developments
with regard to the implementation of Monaco’s remaining accession
commitments. In addition, the committee held an exchange of views
with Ambassador Heidi Tagliavini, Special Representative of the
Chairperson-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation
in Europe (OSCE) in Ukraine and member of the Trilateral Contact Group
on the implementation of the “Package of Measures for the Implementation
of the Minsk Agreements” with regard to the conflict in eastern
Ukraine, as well as with Sir Nicolas Bratza, Chair of the International Advisory
Panel on Ukraine, on the report of the Advisory Panel on the review
of the Maidan investigations.
9. The Assembly notes that the ad hoc sub-committee on Russia’s
neighbourhood policy with regard to other Council of Europe member
States was disbanded in January 2015 and that, in the light of the
four ongoing frozen conflicts in the Council of Europe geographical
area, an ad hoc sub-committee on conflicts between Council of Europe
member States was set up to replace it.
10. The Assembly welcomes positive developments and the progress
made during the reporting period in a number of countries under
a monitoring procedure or engaged in a post-monitoring dialogue.
In particular, the positive developments and the progress include,
in:
10.1. Albania, the successful
implementation of the first phase of the territorial-administrative
reforms and the holding of local elections that, despite shortcomings,
generally respected fundamental freedoms of assembly and expression,
as well as the December 2014 agreement that resulted in the return
of the opposition to the work of the parliament;
10.2. Armenia, the initiation of the constitutional reform with
the stated objective of guaranteeing the respect for fundamental
rights and freedoms and strengthening the balance of powers in the
country;
10.3. Azerbaijan, efforts to increase transparency and fight
corruption, terrorist financing, money laundering and organised
crime;
10.4. Georgia, the ongoing reform of the justice system with
a view to increasing the efficiency of the administration of justice
and the independence of the judiciary;
10.5. the Republic of Moldova, the parliamentary elections that
allowed voters to express their will freely and choose from a wide
range of political alternatives, as well as the renewed impetus
given by the Moldovan authorities to the settlement of the Transnistrian
conflict;
10.6. Ukraine, the ongoing efforts to reform the constitution
and decentralise power to the regions;
10.7. Bulgaria, the improved political climate and consensual
adoption of a strategy to reform the judicial system;
10.8. Montenegro, the considerable progress made in honouring
its obligations and accession commitments with regard to the independence
of the judiciary, the situation of the media, the fight against
corruption and organised crime, the rights of minorities and the
fight against discrimination and the situation of refugees and internally
displaced persons (IDPs);
10.9. “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”, the agreement
reached in July 2015 between the main political parties to overcome
the political crisis in the country;
10.10. Turkey, the parliamentary elections which led to a more
pluralist parliament, the outstanding efforts to accommodate two
million refugees from Syria, the improvement of relations with religious minorities
and the restitution of confiscated properties to churches and their
communities.
11. At the same time, the Assembly expresses its concern about
developments and remaining shortcomings in a number of countries
under a monitoring procedure or engaged in a post-monitoring dialogue.
These shortcomings undermine the democratic consolidation of those
countries and are at odds with their obligations and accession commitments.
These shortcomings include:
11.1. in
Albania, the persistent and widespread corruption at many levels
of Albanian society, the continued politicisation of the civil service
and the lack of independence and impartiality of the judiciary;
11.2. in Armenia, the ongoing polarisation of the political
environment, including over the constitutional reforms;
11.3. in Azerbaijan, the lack of independence of the judiciary,
the reprisals against independent media and journalists and the
systemic repression and criminal prosecution, on dubious charges,
of human rights defenders, leaders of non-governmental organisations
(NGOs), journalists, their lawyers and others who express critical
opinions of the government;
11.4. in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the continuing ethnic divide
and persistent lack of any credible efforts to reform the constitution
in order to implement the Sejdić and Finci judgment of the European
Court of Human Rights, as well as an ever-growing public mistrust
in the functioning of democratic institutions which is undermining
the stability and compromising the future of the country;
11.5. in Georgia, the continued polarisation of the political
environment, the increase in intolerant discourse against minorities
and the systemic deficiencies in court proceedings that negatively
affect the respect for a fair trial in certain cases, including
of opposition political figures;
11.6. in the Republic of Moldova, the high electoral threshold
to enter the parliament and insufficient transparency of campaign
financing, the dysfunctioning of State institutions as highlighted
by the 2014-15 bank scandal, as well as the enduring impunity for
corruption;
11.7. in the Russian Federation, the illegal annexation of Crimea
and waging of a covert war in eastern Ukraine, as well as the signing
of the so-called “treaty on alliance and strategic partnership”
with the occupied region of Abkhazia, in Georgia, and the so-called
“treaty on alliance and integration” with the Tskhinvali Region/South
Ossetia, in Georgia, in violation of, inter
alia, international law, the Statute of the Council of
Europe (ETS No. 1) and Russia’s accession commitments, the repressive
legal framework for civil society organisations, the harassment
and prosecution of NGOs critical of the government, the restrictive
legal environment for media and journalists, which challenges the
right to freedom of expression in Russia, and the interference in,
and pressure on, neighbouring countries, in clear contradiction
with its accession commitments;
11.8. in Ukraine, the credible reports of human rights abuses
and violations of international human rights and humanitarian law
by all sides in the conflict in the east of the country, including
forces under the control of the Ukrainian authorities, as well as
the postponement of the implementation of the Law on the General
Prosecutor, which is a setback for the legal reform process;
11.9. in Bulgaria, the persistent ill-treatment of prisoners
by the police and prison staff, the appalling prison conditions,
overcrowding and endemic corruption in the penitentiary institutions,
as well as the lack of any concrete steps by the authorities to
address this serious situation;
11.10. in Montenegro, the widespread corruption, the situation
of the media and discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender (LGBT) persons;
11.11. in “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”, corruption,
the political crisis in the country following the parliamentary
elections which underscores persistent deficiencies in the functioning
of democratic institutions and the institutional make-up of the
country, as well as the apparent extent of surveillance at all levels
carried out in the country in recent years;
11.12. in Turkey, the recent suspension of the peace process
with regard to the Kurdish question, the deterioration of the independence
and efficient functioning of the judiciary, prosecution service
and police force and the continuing threats to freedom of expression
and freedom of assembly.
12. Consequently, the Assembly urges all the countries under a
monitoring procedure or engaged in a post-monitoring dialogue to
step up their efforts to fully honour all membership obligations
and accession commitments to the Council of Europe. In particular
it calls on:
12.1. the Albanian authorities
to implement a comprehensive reform of the justice system, including
of the prosecution service, on a consensual and inclusive basis
and in full respect of the independence of the judiciary, and to
ensure that local authorities are given clear and concrete powers
and functions of self-government and the necessary means to implement
them properly; and calls on all political forces in the parliament
to participate fully in the work of the ad hoc parliamentary committee
on judicial reform established by the Albanian Parliament;
12.2. the Armenian authorities to ensure a democratic referendum
process on the planned constitutional changes, including comprehensive
public consultations and debate before the referendum takes place,
as well as to transparently investigate any allegations of excessive
use of force by the police during recent demonstrations;
12.3. the Azerbaijani authorities to put an end to systemic
repression of human rights defenders, the media and those critical
of the government, including politically motivated prosecutions,
and allow for effective judicial review of such practices, and to
create an adequate balance between fighting terrorism and organised
crime and the right to freedom of expression and association;
12.4. the authorities and political forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina
to overcome the ethnic divide and adopt the long overdue constitutional
amendments to implement the judgment of the European Court of Human
Rights in the Sejdić and Finci case;
12.5. the Georgian authorities to continue the reform of the
justice system, and especially of the prosecution service, with
a view to establishing a genuinely independent judiciary, and to
address the systemic shortcomings in the judicial procedures noted
in the monitoring report of the OSCE’s Office for Democratic Institutions
and Human Rights (ODIHR) on the trial of 14 former high-level government officials;
and calls on all political forces to agree on electoral reform,
in particular to address the excessive variations in size of the
single mandate election districts, and to consider a proportional regional
election system, based on open lists, which seems to have the agreement
of most, if not all, political forces in the country;
12.6. the Moldovan Parliament to adopt the required constitutional
changes with regard to the election of the president and the appointment
of the prosecutor general; to adopt the law on the prosecution service;
and calls on the Moldovan authorities to strengthen the independence
and efficiency of the National Anti-Corruption Center, depoliticise
State institutions and take concrete steps to harmonise the Moldovan
legislation and the Statute of the Autonomous Territorial Unit of
Gagauzia-Yeri;
12.7. the Montenegrin authorities to complete, by the end of
2017, a series of reforms concerning the electoral process, the
independence of the judiciary, the fight against corruption and
organised crime and the situation of the media;
12.8. the authorities of the Russian Federation to:
12.8.1. fully
implement the requirements of Assembly Resolution 2034 (2015), in particular
to reverse the illegal annexation of Crimea and to withdraw its
troops from eastern Ukraine and fully implement the Minsk Agreements;
12.8.2. reverse its recognition of Georgia’s occupied regions
of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, withdraw its troops from these occupied
regions and fully implement the six-point ceasefire agreement of
12 August 2008;
12.8.3. release all Ukrainian political prisoners detained in
Russia, in particular Nadiia Savchenko, member of the Ukrainian
delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe;
12.8.4. cease the harassment and prosecution of civil society
organisations or their activists and journalists;
12.8.5. abrogate the law on undesirable foreign organisations;
12.8.6. bring the legal framework for non-governmental organisations
into line with Council of Europe standards;
12.8.7. guarantee in practice the full implementation of all judgments
of the European Court of Human Rights in respect of the Russian
Federation;
12.9. the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine to promptly adopt the constitutional
amendments on the decentralisation and judiciary chapters; the Ukrainian
authorities to continue the judicial and anti-corruption reforms
and to effectively fight the endemic corruption in the country,
to fully investigate any reports and allegations of human rights
abuses and violations of international human rights and humanitarian
law by troops under the command of the Ukrainian authorities;
12.10. the Bulgarian authorities to take immediate and effective
steps to address the grave concerns with regard to the ill-treatment
of prisoners and prison conditions, as noted by the European Committee for
the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment (CPT);
12.11. all political forces in “the former Yugoslav Republic
of Macedonia” to implement in good faith the agreement to overcome
the political crisis in the country and to address its underlying
causes; and the authorities to transparently and impartially investigate
any allegations of violations and wrongdoings that surfaced in the
wiretap scandal;
12.12. the Turkish authorities to respect and strengthen the
independence of the judiciary and prosecution service, to fully
respect, in practice, the fundamental rights of freedom of assembly, association
and expression, to ensure the continuation of the right to individual
appeal to the Constitutional Court, to bring the internal security
and Internet laws into line with Council of Europe standards, to
establish a proper legal status for religious minorities, and to
renew the dialogue with Kurdish representatives on the settlement
of the Kurdish question.
13. The Assembly reaffirms the importance of the parliamentary
monitoring procedure, and the work of the Monitoring Committee in
the democratisation and institution-building processes in many Council
of Europe member States. In that respect, it commends the Monitoring
Committee for the prompt and coherent implementation of the reform
of the parliamentary monitoring procedure as adopted by the Assembly
in Resolution 2018 (2014).
14. The Assembly especially welcomes the establishment of the
periodic review of the honouring of the membership obligations to
the Council of Europe by countries that are not subject to a monitoring
procedure sensu stricto, or
engaged in a post-monitoring dialogue with the Assembly. It gives
its full support to the guidelines and reporting schedule adopted
by the Monitoring Committee to conduct these periodic reviews.
15. The Assembly takes note of the reports of the periodic review
of the honouring of the membership obligations to the Council of
Europe by Andorra, Belgium, Croatia and Cyprus that are contained
in the report on the progress of the Assembly’s monitoring procedure
(October 2014-August 2015). It endorses the findings and conclusions
of these periodic review reports and encourages the respective authorities
to implement its recommendations. In particular, the Assembly:
15.1. with respect to Andorra:
15.1.1. welcomes the important reforms carried out in recent years,
in particular to increase economic and fiscal transparency and co-operation;
15.1.2. welcomes the development of an effective policy with a
view to increasing the integration of non-Andorrans in Andorran
society and encourages the authorities to consider further reforms to
increase their participation in the democratic processes of the
country. In this respect, the Assembly recommends that the authorities
consider granting voting rights in local elections to non-Andorrans
as well as exploring the possibility of introducing dual citizenship
and easing the residency requirements for Andorran citizenship applications;
15.1.3. expresses its concern about the lack of independence of
the Andorran media from financial, political and religious interests
and calls on the authorities to guarantee the independence of the
media in both principle and practice;
15.1.4. with regard to Council of Europe conventions, recommends
that Andorra, inter alia,
sign and ratify the European Convention on Nationality (ETS No.
166), the Additional Protocol to the European Social Charter (ETS
No. 128) providing for a system of collective complaints, and welcomes
the announcement by the authorities that they will ratify the Additional
Protocol to the Convention on Cybercrime, concerning the criminalisation
of acts of a racist and xenophobic nature committed through computer
systems (ETS No. 189) by the end of 2015;
15.1.5. encourages the authorities to implement all remaining
recommendations of the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO)
and those of the Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money
Laundering Measures and the Financing of Terrorism (MONEYVAL) and
to continue their efforts to adopt comprehensive legislation against
racism and intolerance;
15.2. with respect to Belgium:
15.2.1. welcomes efforts
to build a political consensus on a more efficient federal State
and greater autonomy for the federated entities. It considers that
further steps are necessary to ensure the stability and efficient
functioning of State structures based on co-operation and cohabitation
between communities;
15.2.2. expresses its concern about structural problems related
to prison conditions and prison overcrowding, as well as to the
situation of mentally ill prisoners. The Assembly encourages the authorities
to fully implement the judgments of the European Court of Human
Rights in this respect;
15.2.3. urges the Belgian authorities to fully address the issue
of detention of refugees and asylum seekers and the lack of access
to reception centres;
15.2.4. with regard to Council of Europe conventions, recommends
that Belgium ratify, inter alia,
Protocol No. 12 to the European Convention on Human Rights, the
Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence
against Women and Domestic Violence (CETS No. 210) and the Additional
Protocol to the Convention on Cybercrime concerning the criminalisation
of acts of a racist and xenophobic nature committed through computer
systems;
15.2.5. encourages the authorities to implement the remaining
GRECO recommendations and improve the implementation of the Council
of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings
(CETS No. 197);
15.3. with respect to Croatia:
15.3.1. welcomes the implementation
of comprehensive reforms to strengthen the functioning of democratic
institutions, but considers that challenges still remain with regard
to post-war justice and reconciliation; the authorities should in
particular conduct effective investigations into the killing and
disappearance of civilians during the war and ensure that a comprehensive
legal framework is established that allows access to reparation
for all civilian war victims;
15.3.2. urges the authorities to step up the fight against corruption
and in particular to promptly adopt the code of ethics for parliamentarians
that is currently being prepared, and to implement the GRECO recommendations
with regard to strengthening the independence of, and public trust in,
the judiciary;
15.3.3. encourages the authorities to further promote the rights
of national minorities in line with the European Charter for Minority
or Regional Languages (ETS No. 148), and to pay particular attention
to the situation of the Serb and Roma minorities, which face specific
discrimination;
15.3.4. with regard to Council of Europe conventions, recommends
that Croatia ratify, inter alia, the
Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence
against Women and Domestic Violence, and the revised European Social
Charter;
15.4. with respect to Cyprus:
15.4.1. strongly welcomes
the recent renewed impetus to the peace talks and encourages President
Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Akıncı to continue their
efforts to bring lasting peace to the country and to resolve the
problems related to persons missing as a result of the conflict;
15.4.2. notes the action by the authorities to implement GRECO
recommendations, but considers that sustained efforts are needed
to create a robust and coherent legal framework to effectively combat
corruption, including with regard to transparency of political party
funding;
15.4.3. while noting the important influx of refugees and asylum
seekers due to its geographical position, remains concerned about
the detention and treatment of irregular migrants and asylum seekers.
In this respect, it urges the authorities to implement and further
enhance the legal and administrative framework for migrants and
asylum seekers and alternatives for the current practice of detaining
asylum seekers;
15.4.4. although positive measures have been taken by the authorities,
including plans for the construction of new prisons, is concerned
about reports of ill-treatment and overcrowding in prisons and urges
the authorities to develop a coherent strategy to address these
issues;
15.4.5. welcomes the efforts made to combat trafficking in human
beings and encourages the authorities to promptly implement the
recommendations of the Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking
in Human Beings (GRETA) and the Committee of the Parties. As concerns
the execution of the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights
in the case of Rantsev v. Cyprus and
Russia, the Assembly takes note of Cyprus’s full compliance
with the general measures. It recalls however that the compliance
of the individual measures required from both parties still needs
to be assessed for the case to be closed;
15.4.6. with regard to Council of Europe conventions, recommends
that Cyprus ratify, inter alia, the
Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence
against Women and Domestic Violence.
16. The Assembly takes note of the Opinion on the request for
the opening of a monitoring procedure in respect of France, adopted
by the Monitoring Committee on 3 September 2015, in which the committee recommends
not to open a monitoring procedure. Nevertheless, the Assembly urges
the French authorities to promptly address the concerns and recommendations
expressed in this opinion.
17. The Assembly takes note of the decision of the Monitoring
Committee to henceforth present its reports on the progress of the
Assembly’s monitoring procedure at the January part-sessions of
the Assembly.