On 13-14 May 2024, the Steering Committee on Democracy held its first plenary meeting in Strasbourg. The Secretary General, Marija Pejčinović Burić, and President of the Ministers' Deputies, Domenik Wanger, welcomed the participants. Delegates from 39 member states discussed democratic challenges and committee tasks for the biennium 2024-2025 with representatives of relevant Council of Europe bodies, the European Union, academia and civil society.
The CDDEM will focus in the next two years on creating parameters to facilitate the implementation of the Reykjavik Principles for Democracy. The committee will also work to empower the civic space by updating Recommendation CM/Rec(2007)14 on legal status of non-governmental organisations in Europe, contributing to the CDDH review of the implementation of Recommendation CM/Rec(2018)11 on the need to strengthen the protection and promotion of civil society space in Europe, and developing guidance to enhance civil society participation in Council of Europe work. The CDDEM will moreover analyse the advantages and risks of using artificial intelligence in public debate about democratic processes.
At its first meeting, the CDDEM also adopted several decisions about its working methods and agreed to hold its second plenary meeting on 29-30 October 2024.
One of the priorities of the first plenary was to create the groundwork for the development of parameters to facilitate the application and implementation of the 10 Reykjavik Principles for Democracy. Marja Ruotanen, Director General of Democracy and Human Dignity, noted that the Principles' holistic concept of democracy necessitates that the CDDEM be supported in its work by diverse organisational sectors.
Matjaž Gruden, Director for Democracy, Erik Wennerström, Judge of the European Court of Human Rights, and Roberto Stefan Foa, Co-Director of the Cambridge Centre for the Future of Democracy, outlined the key democratic principles and difficulties facing European democracies. Judge Wennerström emphasised the significance of protecting freedom of expression, assembly, and association under the European Convention on Human Rights, stating that democracy is the only political system consistent with the Convention.
George Papandreou, PACE General Rapporteur on Democracy, and Claire Bazy Malaurie, President of the Venice Commission, emphasised that democracy is more than a set of laws; it is a culture. Citizens must have access to accessible tools and resources that allow them to understand how democratic systems work and to actively participate in democratic processes, creating a society that makes a conscious choice for democracy.
Krista Oinonen, Chair of the Council of Europe’s Steering Committee for Human Rights, stressed the importance of effectively implementing existing standards to strengthen the protection and promotion of civil society space. Representatives of civil society, Sofia Calabrese and Danijel Kalezić, shared their experience about the ways and means to improve the participation of NGOs and citizens in democratic processes, as well as in Council of Europe work. Vice-Chair of the Advisory Council on Youth Margo Vorykhava underlined the importance of reaching out to youth and promoting their political engagement.
Moreover, the CDDEM members agreed on the committee's working methods and the creation of two working groups on the parameters for implementing the Reykjavik Principles and on civil society participation, respectively. The committee also appointed Gender Equality and Youth rapporteurs.
