13th Plenary Session of the CongressStrasbourg, 30 May - 1 June 2006The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe held its plenary session from 30 May to 1 June in Strasbourg. The session began with the renewal of the delegations and elections for the posts of President of the Congress and Presidents of the chambers, Vice-presidents and Chairs of the Statutory committees. The members of the Congress reviewed the recent initiatives of the Congress as the setting up of a Council of Europe centre for interregional and transfrontier cooperation in Saint Petersburg or the creation of new types of Euroregions such as the Adriatic Euroregion and the Black Sea Euroregion. The members also assessed the state of local and regional democracy in Europe. They examined reports on the local elections in Ukraine on 26 March 2006 and on the Referendum on self-determination for Montenegro (Serbia & Montenegro) on 21 May 2006 and debated urban security, access for migrants to social rights and the management of water and waste. The presentation of a report on combating trafficking in human beings was followed by the signing of a declaration. The guests who are to address the Congress include Terry Davis, Council of Europe Secretary General, Thomas Hammarberg, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, and Michel Delebarre, President of the European Union's Committee of the Regions.
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