CoE New Chief Buric to EF on BioEthics Treaty Interpretation by ECHR: Trust, but Sensitive=>careful

*Strasbourg/Angelo Marcopolo/- Replying Today to an "Eurofora" Question, CoE New Secretary General, Marija Buric (2019-2024), reacted to ECHR President's anouncement, in EU Parliament Yesterday, about EuroJudges starting to be Consulted for Interpreting CoE's BioEthical Rules, "for the 1st Time in History", by Expressing her "Trust" to Strasbourg's PanEuropean Court, in general, even when it notoriously adapts its methods of interpretation to the needs of nowadays Society (Comp. Infra), But, also Warning that there are "Sensitive" Issues in this particular area, inviting to be Careful.

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 - "Eurofora" pointed to the Fact that Buric had Concluded her Speech by a Call to "Defend CoE's Rules" and Values, and we observed that BioEthics come Nowadays at the Forefront of Topical and "Hot" Contradictions. while ECHR's President had just announced, Yesterday in EU Parliament in Strasbourg, that, "for the 1st Time in History", EuroJudges Start to be Consulted on the interpretation of CoE's 1997/8 "Oviedo" Convention on Human Dignity and Bioethics, (See: http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/coesgburiconechrbioethicsinterpretation.html), Knowing that ECHR uses, generaly, since 1970, to Adapt somehow the Interpreted Texts to the Living Society of our Times. Even if this might be, in general, Interesting, (particularly for Long-living Texts, as that of ECHR, which Date More than 70 Years), nevertheless, given also the Fact that BioEthics raise certain particularly "Sensitive" Issues for Humankind, (while CoE's Rules there Date "Only" around 20 Years-Time: Since 1998), wouldn't we all, Better be "Carefull" on the way they might be Interpretered ?

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 -  " I CanNot Commend on what ECHR's President said", the New CoE's SG observed from the outset, Carefuly.

-  "But  it's true that the Court tries to Adapt itself on the Needs of the Society" in general, "in order to go forward, and ameliorate certain things".

 - "As far as I'm personally concerned, I am inclined to Trust the Court, because it did always well, and made advance certain issues".

- However, "as You said, this (BioEthics) is a very Sensitive matter", she Warned.

- "But also a too Complex one, for me to say more" now, she modestly concluded Carefully, (Comp. Supra).

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ECHR has been Already Consulted on BioEthics also, f.ex;, by French Supreme Courts on "End of Life" Cases ("Lambert", etc), "Surrogate Mothers"' cases, etc., But Only in order to interpret the PanEuropean Convention on Human Rights' classic general text, (particularly Article 2 = end or beginning of "Life", and Article 8 = "Private life/Family").

+ "Very Recently", CoE's Committee on BioEthics asked ECHR to give a Consultative Interpretation about Article 7 of CoE's "Oviedo" Treaty, on "Human Rights and Dignity of the Human Person in Medicine and Biology" (1997-1998), concerning Measures on Persons suffering from "Mental Disorders", revealed Yesterday at EU Parliament ECHR's President Alexandros Sicilianos.

Any Member-State can also do so, in Addition to that Committtee itself, but it's "the 1st Time in History", until now, that ECHR would Interpret anOther, Different Text from that of the 70 Years Old PanEuropean Convention on Human Rights, and, meanwhile, it's Competent Committee just Started to Adopt the required New Rules of Procedure, for this new era, he revealed; (See : ..., etc). "Hot" Topical BioEthical Issues, such as a Global Ban on "Human Cloning" (since 1998), Heritable Human Genome Editing, etc., are included among the Many and Various "Oviedo" Convention BioEthic matters.

+ By the way, President Alexander Sicilianos' Birthplace : Greece, which is due to take over CoE's rotating Chairmanship during the Period of May - November 2020, has notoriously proposed the ECHR for this same year's (which coincides with CoE's 70th Anniversary) prestigious "Nobel" Peace Prize.

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 CoE SG Catherine Lalumière's (with whom, "Eurofora"s co-Founder had Started to work at the CoE) Bureau and of the Congres of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE), as well as Denis Huber, President of CoE's Staff Association, and former Director of CoE's "North-South" Center (Lisbon).

Other Questions concerned well-known Issues, (such as "BREXIT", Ukraine, Russia, Turkey, OSCE, Budget, etc), and the Replies were mostly Familiar to those who had followed Buric's recent interventions at CoE's Assembly, etc.

(../..)

("Draft-News")

(NDLR: Original = in French. => Fast Translation in English)

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