From words to deeds

“In spite of the considerable progress made in member states, also thanks to the role played by the Council of Europe, the fact remains that grave violations of human rights continue to be committed in our continent”, said CHRISTOS POURGOURIDES, rapporteur of the legal affairs committee of the Parliamentary Assembly (PACE). His denunciation in the Palais de l’Europe on Wednesday 18 April animated the debate on the situation of human rights and democracy in the old continent, held during the plenary session in Strasbourg on 16-20 April. A BRUTAL REALITY. “Forced disappearances, extra-judicial murders, secret detentions, torture and inhumane treatment. In many states the defenders of human rights, those who help others to see that their rights are honoured, are attacked and live under repression”: Pourgourides described a situation that seemed too brutal to some, “but it’s true and we can no longer ignore it”. According to the Cypriot deputy, “it’s time to pass from words to deeds and to respect human rights and the rule of law”. After a wide-ranging exchange of opinions and concerns, the parliamentary assembly urged the governments of the 46 member states “not to remain indifferent to the worst violations” of individual and collective rights. The resolution voted during the plenary denounced “the gulf between the norms defined on paper and the reality of actual practice”. It appealed to governments “to reinforce the Council of Europe”, and “concentrate their activities on a number of priorities” relating to fundamental liberties. It also requested greater investigative powers for the Assembly: TURMOIL IN BELARUS. The work of the assembly in Strasbourg concentrated on various “democratic emergencies” involving European states. First the case of Belarus. The sub-committee that PACE especially established expressed its support for the reinforcement of the democratic forces in Belarus as “precondition for the democratisation of the country”. Signs of dissatisfaction in the domestic political situation in the large Eastern European country are growing throughout Europe: the President, Aleksander Lukashenko, is accused of being the “last dictator in Europe”. In this regard the PACE supports the democratic forces active in Minsk, though expects from them the “overcoming of their ideological differences with a view to the achievement and preservation of unity”. Explicit support is also given to the second Congress of the democratic forces due to be held in May. The sub-committee asks citizens and parties “to act with farsightedness and prepare the ground for the legislative elections scheduled in 2008”. “The citizens of Belarus must be made aware that a democratic option is being offered to them and that they must be free to choose it”. TRANSITION IN UKRAINE. Another burning issue raised in the parliamentary assembly is the difficult phase of transition that Ukraine is going though. The President of the Assembly, RENÉ VAN DER LINDEN , in opening the debate on this question, held in the presence of President Viktor Yanukovych, declared that it would be a grave error to divide the population into “pro-Western and pro-Russian”, thus offending “the wisdom of the Ukrainians”. “Ukraine, Russia and Europe are – according to Van der Linden – realities that cannot exist without each other. Ukraine is an essential link for the unity of the continent”. “The Ukrainian people has firmly chosen democracy”, said Van der Linden. He appealed to all the political forces in the country to seek a solution to the current conflicts on the basis of the rule of law “and in full respect for the Constitution in force” in the country. PODGORICA’S BID FOR CE MEMBERSHIP. The parliamentary assembly also debated a report drafted by the deputy from Monaco, JEAN-CHARLES GARRETTO, on Montenegro’s application for membership. The members of the assembly welcomed “the progress made by Montenegro in numerous fields” and “the political will to continue the process of reforms expressed by its authorities”. But if the Balkan country is to become the 47th member of the Council of Europe, it is essential that “this commitment be now translated into concrete acts”. Podgorica, independent from Serbia since 3 June 2006, “ought to adopt, within a year at the most, a new Constitution containing the seven fundamental principles already agreed by the country’s leaders, including an absolute ban on the death sentence, the independence of the judiciary and measures to protect the rights of minorities”. FIORENZO STOLFI , Foreign Minister of San Marino and current President of the CE Committee of Ministers, explained that the opinion of the PACE “will be examined by the Committee in the weeks ahead, in view of the objective of achieving Montenegro’s membership of our organization on the occasion of the ministerial session on 11 May”.