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Home arrow newsitems arrow Incoming+OutGoing CoE Chairs Armenia+Andora F.Ministers Nalbandian+Sunyé to EuroFora on ECHR respect

Incoming+OutGoing CoE Chairs Armenia+Andora F.Ministers Nalbandian+Sunyé to EuroFora on ECHR respect

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Written by ACM
Thursday, 16 May 2013
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*Strasbourg//CoE/Angelo Marcopolo/- Replying to an "EuroFora" question on the Accumulation of Non-Implemented ECHR Judgements  which have condemned often serious Human Violations, but are still pending at CoE's Committee of Ministers, while, on the contrary, ECHR's inflow of New Applications, earlier growing during recent Years, has just been settled and even slightly diminshed last year (2012) for the 1st time in History, as ECHR's President Spielman anounced on January 2013 (comp. previous NewsReport with Replies given by President Spielman to our Questions), both the Incoming and Outgoing CoE Chairmen, Armenian Foreiogn Minister Edward Nalbandian and Andora's Foreign Minister Gilber Synué,, stressed mainly the current need to Try now to solve that remaining issue, while CoE should  carefuly assess the overall situation regarding the ECHR, in order to decide on next steps, without hurrying up to merely perpetuate the status quo ante, i.e. the previous phase of ECHR reforms.
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 - The Incoming CoE President-in-office, Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian, stressed to "EuroFora" his willingness to act efficiently in this regard, during the forcthoming Semester of May - November 2013 :


- I know that CoE's Committee of Ministers is rather overloaded" with ECHR judgements pending execution, and "We (the incoming 5 - 11/2013 CoE Presidency by Armenia) shall really Try" to find ways to start solving that problem, the new CoE's Chairman promissed in reply to a relevant "EuroFora"s question.


+ Moreover, in this regard, Nalbandian pointed also at the Conference on "European Standards on Rule of Law, and the Scope of Discretion of Powers in CoE's Member States", i.e. practically concerning mainly one of the Key Questions raised by "EuroFora" to ECHR's New President Spielman,  (particularly after the 2011 Brighton CoE Conference and Protocol No 15 to the ECHR), which has been scheduled, in principle, for July 3 to 5, (i.e. unfortunately during EU Parliament's July Session, at least partly...),

 Perhaps, the additional fact that the New COE's Chairman, Armeinan Minister Nalbandian, appeared earler Today to have very Good personal Relations with EU's Chairwoman-in-office, Irish EU affairs Minister Lucinda Creighton, might help the already important EU - CoE cooperation to become more active on this crucial issue for Human Rights' respect during the next Months.. 

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+ Meanwhile, during a Press Conference given earlier today by CoE's Secretary General Thornbjorn Jagland together with the outgoing CoE Committe of Ministers' Chairman, Andorran Foreign Minister, Gilbert Sunyé, on the outcome and perspectives after the Semester of November 2012 - May 2013, interesting replies were also given to "EuroFora" on a similar Question concerning the same issue which has become Crucial No 1 Today :


 -"One of the success that you passed over silence, was that, recently, the famous ECHR Crisis about too big number of cases at the ECHR, which was growing too much during the latest years, came for the 1st time in History, you succeeded to pass it under control, and even started to decelerate a little bit, as it was anounced also by the new President of the Court, Spielman, earlier on Januray 2013"; EuroFora observed from the outset.


- "But,  a question raised now both by the President of the ECHR (during  his Annual Press Conference on January 2013) and as it was also revealed by the Statistics published by CoE's Committee of Ministers,  is that another problem appeared recently, elsewhere :  it's about the Number of Cases which have been Pending for a too long Time at CoE's Committee of Ministers", (to which CoE's Statute has assigned the task to "Supervise the execution of ECHR's judgements")", we pointed out.


=> - "Do you think that, now, considering also the debate  that CoE's Committee of Ministers has now, particularly about  the Secretary General's initiative to strengthen CoE's "Monitoring", there might be a Hope in the foreseable Future to tackle  efficiently this other, remaining problem of the Execution of ECHR's Judgements ?", "EuroFora" asked "both" CoE leadership's representatives.
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 - "It's really Important to demonstrate Efficiency, particularly about the ECHR, since the Court is a Key element of the Structure of CoE", replied Positively the experienced out-going CoE Chairman, Minister Sunyé to "EuroFora"s query.


 - "So", we (CoE) have "to demonstrate that we can conclude work well,  that we can have Results", also on that remaining crucial issue, he stressed.


+ In this regard, "I think  that the Initiative (of CoE SG on boosting "Monitoring" : See Infra) can enable CoE and the Court to make progress, and it's also the (CoE's) Parliamentary Assembly that can be of great Help", he added.


 - "At this point, I'd like to say that I really appreciate the Progress that has been made in this respect. it's very good news", Sunyé added, referring to ECHR's application flow deceleration, obtained recently (Comp. supra)


- However, concerning the better way to further advance in the Future, (f.ex. in ordre to settle the remaining and growing problem of ECHR judgements pending for execution at CoE's Committee of Ministers), "We (outgoing Andorran's rotating CoE Presidency) have been trying to advance the idea that it's better to advance Step by Step., and take a moment to assess the situation and reflect, before reaching another decision. It's not by adding Reforms to Reforms that we can make progress", he warned carefully.


 - Already, "F.ex. we have now the arriving Protocol 15, and the (forthcoming) Armenian presidency will have to deal with the arriving Protocol  16" to the PanEuropean Convention on Human Rights, etc. "The idea is to analyze at first  how the Existing Protocols can help to Solve Problems, and how we might need f.ex. to Amend them", Minister Sunyé advised.


+ "And then, we can move forward. ... That's the idea. I do encourage to follow that Strategy; i.e. to advance Step by Step, I'm sure that it's  Best. We (CoE) can't just  add Reform to Reform", he concluded.
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+ Meanwhile, CoE's Secretary General, Thornbjorn Jagland, speaking at the same Press Conference, stressed the exceptional importance of proposals currently made in order to Strengthen CoE's "Monitoring" mechanisms, for more Efficiency and a Stronger protection of Human Rights, Democracy and Rule of Law : CoE has arrived now at "a Crucial Stage", Jagland warned, pointing at the Debate that CoE's Foreign Ministers and Permanent Representatives will hold later Today, during their May 2013 Semestrial Session. 

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In this regard, one of CoE's Member Countries which has the Oldest, and growing until recently, ECHR case law with many ECHR Judgements condemning Turkey for "continuing" serious Violations of Human Rights in the Occupied Territories of the island controlled by Ankara's Invasion and Occupatoin Army, (f.ex. in cases of "Missing" Persons, Refugees obliged to flee and still hindered to return to their Ancestral Fatherland and/or Family Homes and prrivte properties, experienced former Minister, and now Secretary General of Cyprus' Foreign Ministry, Mavrogianis,  replying yesterday to a relevant "EuroFora"s question, pointed at the need for the CoE to really do something to upgrade its Monitoring mechanisms in order to, at last, apply, in real practice, ECHR's judgements, still pending unexecuted for too long.

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 Later-on, the Official Conclusions of Today's (Thursday's) CoE Committee of Ministers' Session in Strasbourg; under the Presidency of Armenian Foreign Minister Nalbandian, welcomed the Proposals made by CoE's Secretary General Jagland on strenghening the overall "Monitoring" of the PanEuropean Organization in order to achieve a better Implementation of Human Rights, and invited him to present, for the 1st time, a general Report on the Situation of Human Rights throughout all CoE's Member States, with concrete suggestions, at the latest on May 2014.

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                           - Today, "Europe is at the Crossroads", because "the European model as we know it is under considerable  Strain", since "there are signs that some may have lost the motivation or the stamina to live up" to European "Values", and . "this is reflected" even  in  "Regression in Human Rights and Democratic conduct", Jagland's Report on CoE's "Monitoring" warns from the outset


        That's why, "In order to be able to live up to the CoE's responsibilities and face new challenges", we must "strengthen the Monitoring activities, not broaden them or create new mechanisms", by "better "identify(ing) shortcomings in individual, as well as member States’ general trends in Europe", "with an emphasis on assisting member States to undertake necessary reforms", while, at the same time, in parallel ECHR would complete its own restructuring in order to saveguard "Europe's ...unique and unprecedented Mechanism for the protection, enforcement and promotion of human rights, democracy and the rule of law", with its "distinctive  character ", which "lies, in particular, in the legally Binding character of its standards, in its institutional set-up and in its continent-Wide Geographical scope".
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    One of those CoE Member Countries which still face some among the most Long-standing and Serious Human Rights Violations : Cyprus, where ECHR's well established case-law has already found, as early as already on 1992, 1996 and 2001 etc., Massive and Continuing Human Rights Violations particularly against "Missing" Persons and their Families, as well as against Refugees and Displaced Persons, since the 1974 Turkish Invasion/Occupation of the Norhern part of the Island by Ankara's Foreign Army, naturally feels the need to ensure a Better Respect of CoE's Standards :


    - "Given also the serious cases that we still have pending at the CoE, we are sincerely interested into safeguarding its pan-European Mechanism for the Protection of Human Rights, as well as to find adequate ways to make it function better", replied to an "EuroFora" question its representative to CoE's Ministerial Session, experienced former EU affairs Minister, and current Secretary General of Cyprus' Foreign Ministry, Ambassador Mavrogianis, (who has also a keen experience of UNO's Headquarters at New York, where he met "EuroFora"s co-founder during the Historic 2005 60thAnniversary Summit, which reformed UNO mainly by creating a UN Human Rights' council at nearby Geneva, before serving also as EU Chairman-in-office recently on 2012 : Comp. Mavrogiani's statements to "EuroFora", at EU Parliament in Strasburg and/or at EU Summits in Brussels).


    A "Preliminary Overview" of currently outstanding, general Human Rights problems thrughut Europe, drafted by CoE's Secretary General and published Today, points mainly at "Corruption" and "Discriminations", but also "Ill-treatment by law enforcement officers" and "Detention conditions", added to "Expulsions and Asylum procedures" together with the "Effective functioning of the Judicial system", and even "Freedom of Expression/Media", among the most Important contemporary issues.


    However, some independent but experienced CoE observers find that, without even mentioning explicitly any "Sanction" whatever, (contrary, f.ex., to the Exclusion from the CoE that the former Regime of Colonels in 1967-1974 Greece had to face shortly before collapsing and letting Democracy and EU accession take precedence), and by refusing from the outset to "Shame and Blame", .."Not" even "Finger-Pointing" at those Member States which might seriously disrespect CoE's Human Rights Standards, as Jagland's Report reveals, things might not go as far as needed, particularly if recalcitrant Governments would not feel really obliged to move...

(.../...)

(For other Replies to "EuroFora"'s Questions by the Incoming CoE Chairman, Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian, see previous NewsReport)
                    
        
***

(NDLR : "FlashNews", i.e. Brief Highlights containing just a Part of a full, more accurate and final NewsReport, due to come asap, as already sent to "EuroFora"s Subscribers/Donors).

***

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People in Europe and the World expect from CoE to make a succes of its "Monitoring" for Human Rights and Democracy, despite difficulties, said Finland's President Tarja Halonen to "EuroFora" at a crucial moment for the mecanism built 15 years ago by the paneuropean organization which celebrates its 60th Anniversary in 2009.

Halonen, known as "Mother" of CoE's "Monitoring" mecanism, a long-time MEP and former Foreign Minister before becoming Finland's President, holds a long experience in the mattter, after also serving twice as CoE and EU Chairwoman in the past. That's why she is well placed to judge how CoE's "monitoring" should deal today with some crucial issues of importance both to CoE and to the EU.

The move came just a Month before a crucial, last visit to Turkey, scheduled for June, by the President of CoE''s "Monitoring" Committee, Ukranian MEP Serge Holovaty, to finalize his Report on Ankara, the CoE Member State with the longest Monitoring procedure. From its results depends its overall credibility.

This is a Test-case, because, in fact, it's in order to avoid Sanctions threatened against Turkey by a CoE's Assembly's April 1995 Resolution for grave Human Rights violations, Democracy gaps, the continuing Military Occupation in Cyprus, the unresolved Kurdish problem, Aegean differend with Greece, etc., that MEPs decided to create, for the 1st time on April 1996, a "Monitoring" proces, allegedly destinated to check, without excluding Countries who did not fulfill all CoE's standards.

In the Past, the obliged withdrawal of Greece's Military regime and of its "Civil" cover-up out of the CoE had helped bring back Democracy in 1974. But, on the contrary, since April 1996, the idea was to "monitor" Human Rights' respect while keeping most concerned Countries inside the CoE. After Turkey's oldest example, this was extended also to several former "Eastern" European Countries, even if CoE's Assembly has imposed to some of them (fex. Ukraine, Russia, etc., after Belarus, Serbia, etc) various "Sanctions", that Ankara always avoided. Curiously more succesful even than .. USA itself, (a CoE "Observer" since 1995), which has been at least threatened with sanctions some years ago..

EU-effects of CoE's Monitoring process became obvious between 2001-2008, since the "closure" of this procedure, when CoE felt that a Country had met most of its Human Rights, Democracy and Rule of Law obligations, (i.e. the "Copenhagen Criteria" for the EU), helped trigger Negotiations with the EU for "Accession" or other closer relations : This occured already before the 2004 and 2007 EU Enlargements to former "Eastern" European Countries, as well as for the commencement of "accession" negotiations with Croatia, and of "open-ended" negotiations with Turkey in 2005.

    But a stricking new development are Holovaty's recent findings that on core Human Rights issues as Torture and Freedom of Expression, Turkey, even "5 Years after" CoE closed its "Monitoring", back in 2004, inciting EU to start accession Negotiations in 2005, still presents grave problems.

    His findings are of crucial importance after a 2008 CoE Resolution called, "if need be", to "seriously consider the possibility of Re-Opening the Monitoring procedure for Turkey" : A move which might affect Ankara's controversial EU bid, since EU Accession Negotiations are based on the Hypothesis that the Candidate fullfils the "Copenhagen Criteria" (See above)..
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    Holovaty expressed his will to check  "Matters still Outstanding" and  those that he "didn't have an opportunity to discuss" at an earlier visit this year, "in order to discuss the more complex issues in greater depth", at his forthcoming New Visit to Ankara, before the December 2009 EU Summit.  This is all based on the 2004 CoE Resolution which stresses that, CoE "will continue.. post-monitoring Dialogue with the Turkish authorities,...in addition to a 12-points list,..and on any Other Matter that might arise in connection with Turkey’s Obligations as a CoE member state".

    CoE's Resolution also asks  from Turkey "to secure the proper Implementation of Judgements, particularly in the Cyprus v. Turkey InterState case", of 2001, which concerns also the plight of many Hundreds of MISSING People. It adds Turkey's obligations to "execute" ECHR's Judgements in the Loizidou case,..and in particular adopt General Measures to avoid repetition or continuation of Violations found by the Court" to the detriment of Refugees.

    Nevertheless, Holovaty said to "EuroFora" that "MISSING" persons,"might be included" and cannot be excluded, but he has yet to examine the situation "to find out  which issues will be raised" to the Turkish Government.

    Therefore, "EuroFora" asked Halonen, as the Historic "Mother" of CoE's Monitoring mecanism, if she thought that, "whenever there are grave Human Rights Violations, as fex. "MISSING" persons, attested even by ECHR's judgements, they should be always checked by a Monitoring process. Or could they be forgotten ?"
    
     - "We (CoE) must be, at the same time, Fair, Realistic, but not in the mind that "now we have Forgotten", etc., replied to "EuroFora"'s question Halonen, speaking as a matter of general principle.

    - "When we think of those People that are suffering from the lack of Democracy, of Human Rights, and of the Rule of Law", "we should find a base on how to deal with the (Monitoring) system more rapidly"', she stressed.

    - "Sometimes it's very difficult to combine Transparency and Effectivenes together, particularly in this specific case", she went on to say. But, "I have not found a (CoE Member) Country who could be insensitive in this sens", Halonen answered concerning grave Human Rights violations attested by the ECHR.

    - "I have no ready-made answer. I have the expectations that you, in the CoE, will, step by step, find the different types of the monitoring systems."

    Also "because this is a part of the UN's Post-Conflict system, (fex. when it comes to Cyprus' MISSING persons), and it's a more Global system". So that, "If we make a succes in Europe, the others will follow", throughout the World.  "But they expect that we (Europe) are this opportunity, this Opportunity to make a Succes", Halonen concluded.

    In addition, she advised to extend CoE's Monitoring to all its 47 Member States, "because, as long as we hear that, all these monitoring systems are "OK for the neighbor, but not for me", "it's very difficult" to understand. Something which could make easier to Compare...

    Finnish MEP Jaako Laakso, former CoE Rapporteur on the Occupied Territories of Cyprus and one of the 5 Signatories of the Historic CoE's call to create the "MONITORING" mecanism since 1996, was more specific :  - "We (CoE Assembly) have to find a way for the issue of Cyprus' MISSING People to be better followed", he stressed, anouncing his intention to "speak to Mr. Holovaty" about that. "There might be also other ways", added Laakso.

    - The 2008 "Year had been a very Bad one for Turkey with regard to Human Rights in general, and Freedom of Expression in particular", denounced, meanwhile, Holovaty's preliminary Post-Monitoringh Draft Report by Holovaty, published by the CoE on April 2009.

    "Amnesty International believes that freedom of expression is not guaranteed given the various articles of the Criminal Code that restrict it. .. "For example, 1,300 Websites are said to have been closed down by the (Turkish) authorities in 2008" ! While "the new Turkish Criminal Code was used to bring a total of 1,072 proceedings between June 2005 and April 2008, and led to the conviction of 192 people", for expressing views. "Representatives of the Özgür Gündem newspaper, which specialises in Kurdish affairs, ..complained about Numerous Attacks on their Freedom of Expression ...as was everyone who advocated a settlement to the question by means other than the intervention of the army" "According to their figures, 19 Newspapers had been suspended 43 times between 4 August 2006 and 4 November 2008" !...

    Moreover, on 2008,  CoE's "Ministers adopted its 4rth Resolution on the execution of the judgments of the ECHR, ...and outstanding issues regarding 175 Judgements and decisions relating to Turkey delivered between 1996 and 2008...  concerning Deaths resulting from the excessive use of force by members of the Security forces, the failure to protect the right to life, the DIisappearance and/or death of individuals, Ill-Treatment and the Destruction of property". CoE's " Ministers urged the Turkish authorities ...to ensure that members of Security forces of all ranks can be prosecuted without administrative
authorisation" for "serious crimes". Holovaty reminded.

"Nonetheless", Holovaty heard anew of "Several cases of Violence committed last year (2008) by the (Turkish) security forces". Amnesty International speaks of Many Cases of ill-treatment and Torture in the prisons and by the police". "Including, fex."'the death of Engin Ceber, a young man of 29 who died on October 2008 as a result of the TORTURE allegedly inflicted on him by police officers, prison staff and members of the gendarmerie. He was part of a group of people arrested on September 2008 during a demonstration and Press Conference in Istanbul'. Proceedings against suspects are "on-going" in this case.

- " I therefore noted an Obvious Contradiction between the Government’s stated “zero tolerance” policy.... of Torture and other forms of ill-treatment, and the different testimonies given", denounced CoE's Rapporteur.  Turkish "authorities must make considerable efforts to guarantee that proper investigations are carried out into allegations of abuses by members of the security forces and that perpetrators are effectively punished" "In this respect, I have requested detailed Statistics on the number of Investigations, acquittals and convictions in cases involving allegations of abuse in order to show the positive impact of the measures taken to date", Holovaty said, repeating a permanently unsatisfied CoE's demand to Turkey since a Decade...

    - "The Political Crisis that shook the country in the spring of 2008 highlighted the Weaknesses of the (Turkish) Constitution", which comes from the Military regime of 1982, "and the Urgent Need of Reforms", stressed from the outset CoE's Rapporteur in 2009. In particular, "the ...Democratic functioning of state institutions, including the independence of the judicial system, are crucial", he observes.

    But, "the Electoral  system and the ways in which it is circumvented do not appear to give those elected complete Legitimacy, and tend to pervert the course of direct universal suffrage", denounces Holovaty, observing that, even 5 Years later, Turkey did not yet change the 10% nationwide Threshold for a party to take any seat, which is "far higher" than the "3%" maximum in Europe and already condemned as contrary to European Standards by the CoE.

    + Moreover, EU Parliament's 2009 Report on Turkey, drafted by Dutch MEP Ria Oomen-Ruijten and adopted in Strasbourg on March, expresses "Concern over the Failure of the (Turkish) Judiciary to prosecute cases of Torture and Ill-treatment, the Number of which is Growing". EU also "is concerned about continuing Hostility and Violence against Minorities" in Turkey. It also "calls on the Turkish Government to launch, as a matter of Priority, a Political Initiatve favouring a lasting Settlement of the Kurdish issue, (while "condemning violence.. and terrorist groups"). EU "regrets that No progress has been made on establishing full, systematic Civilian suprevisory functions over the (Turkish) Military".

    The final results of Holovaty's 2nd and last visit to Turkley will be known later this year, and, at any case, before EU's December 2009 Summit.

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