Newsroom
Congress President deplores yet another blow to local self-government in Turkey
“I am deeply concerned about continued arrests, over the last days, of democratically elected representatives from the opposition in Turkey, notably of Mr Ayhan Bilgen, Co-Mayor of the city of Kars in the south-east of the country, who is a member of our Congress. This morning, news arrived about...
Congress to organise remote meeting of the Statutory Forum
The Statutory Forum of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe will hold a remote meeting on 28 September 2020 to examine, for adoption, several reports on the state of local democracy in Europe and on grassroots elections in major crisis situations, as well as its...
Commissioner: Human rights violations in Belarus must stop immediately
More than a month after the beginning of mass protests following the presidential elections in Belarus, the human rights situation in the country remains extremely worrying. Thousands of peaceful protesters have been arrested, and several individuals have been reported missing. Yet, non-violent...
International electoral standards must be respected in Belarus
Statement by Venice Commission President Gianni Buquicchio
Presidential election in Belarus: statement by PACE President
Following the Presidential election in Belarus, PACE President Rik Daems made the following statement: “I have been following closely the Presidential election in Belarus as well as the events of last night following the closing of the vote – I deeply regret that this election was far from being...
Ukraine: Venice Commission adopts an “urgent joint opinion” with ODIHR
The Venice Commission has adopted an “urgent joint opinion” with ODIHR (the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights) on Ukraine’s Draft Law 3612 concerning Democracy Through All-Ukraine Referendum. The opinion, requested in May by the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine’s...
Mostar: Congress spokespersons welcome adoption of amendments to the Election Law of Bosnia and Herzegovina
In a statement made on 9 July, the spokespersons of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities for the observation of local and regional elections, Jakob Wienen (Netherlands, EPP/CCE) and Stewart Dickson (United Kingdom, ILDG), commended the adoption of amendments to the Election Law of...
Webinar on involving under-18’s in civil participation and decision-making
The Council of Europe’s Elections and Civil Society Division is organising an international webinar on Wednesday 8 July to highlight the organisation’s standards in the field of youth participation in the decision-making process, specifically by children at local level. The event, which is part...
Bosnia and Herzegovina: Congress President welcomes significant developments paving the way for Mostar local elections
Welcoming the signatures between party leaders Bakir Izetbegović (SDA) and Dragan Čović (HDZ) who, last night, signed two agreements aimed at reinstating free and democratic suffrage in Mostar, the President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, Anders Knape,...
Congress President: statement on local elections to be held on 21 June in Serbia
Taking note of the fact that the Republic Electoral Commission of Serbia had resumed preparations for local elections rescheduled for 21 June, the President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, Anders Knape, expressed his confidence in the state authorities...