Council of Europe Forum for the Future of Democracy: towards a code of good conduct for political parties

Moscow, 19.10.2006 - The second annual meeting of the Council of Europe Forum for the Future of Democracy, which examined the role of political parties in democracy-building, ended today with the presentation of the conclusions by the General Rapporteur, Mikko Elo.

The conclusions will provide the basis for a report proposing the adoption of a code of good conduct for political parties. Mr Elo’s report is due to be debated by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe during its winter session in January 2007.

In a message to the participants, the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, stressed the importance and topicality of the discussions in the different workshops, as well as the active contribution made by political parties and civil society to intercultural and interreligious dialogue. President Putin said that the Forum was one of the highlights of the Russian Chairmanship of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers.

The Forum brought together some 300 participants representing political parties from the Council of Europe’s 46 member states, European party networks, public authorities and civil society from all over Europe, as well as numerous experts. Boris Gryzlov, President of the State Duma, Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Chairman-in-Office of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers, Terry Davis, the Organisation’s Secretary General, and René van der Linden, President of the Parliamentary Assembly, addressed the participants.

The next meeting of the Forum will be held in Sweden, from 13 to 15 June 2007, and will focus on the subject of human rights and democracy.

The conclusions are available on the Council of Europe’s website www.coe.int.

Press contact:
Estelle Steiner, Press officer, Council of Europe
Tel. +33 (0)3 88 41 33 35, mobile +33 (0)6 08 46 01 57, estelle.steiner@coe.int
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A political organisation set up in 1949, the Council of Europe works to promote democracy and human rights continent-wide. It also develops common responses to social, cultural and legal challenges in its 46 member states.