2. session 2021 - Texts Adopted by the Assembly

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2021 ORDINARY SESSION
Second part
19-22 April 2021
TEXTS ADOPTED
BY THE ASSEMBLY
Provisional versions
Europarådet 2020-21
ERD Alm.del - Bilag 8
Offentligt
Table of contents
Recommendations
Recommendation 2198 (2021) Preserving national minorities in Europe (Doc. 15231)
Recommendation 2199 (2021) The Assembly's vision on the strategic priorities for the Council of Europe
(Doc. 15252)
Recommendation 2200 (2021) Urgent need for electoral reform in Belarus (Doc. 15253)
Recommendation 2201 (2021) Human rights violations in Belarus require an international investigation
(Doc. 15256)
Recommendation 2202 (2021) The arrest and detention of Alexei Navalny in January 2021 (Doc. 15270)
Resolutions
Resolution 2368 (2021) Preserving national minorities in Europe (Doc. 15231)
Resolution 2369 (2021) The Assembly's vision on the strategic priorities for the Council of Europe
(Doc. 15252)
Resolution 2370 (2021) Fighting fiscal injustice: the work of the OECD on taxation of digital
economy (Doc. 15251)
Resolution 2371 (2021) Urgent need for electoral reform in Belarus (Doc. 15253)
Resolution 2372 (2021) Human rights violations in Belarus require an international investigation
(Doc. 15256)
Resolution 2373 (2021) Discrimination against persons dealing with chronic and long-term
illnesses (Doc. 15208)
Resolution 2374 (2021) Post-monitoring dialogue with Montenegro (Doc. 15132, Doc. 15132 add)
Resolution 2375 (2021) The arrest and detention of Alexei Navalny in January 2021 (Doc. 15270)
Resolution 2376 (2021) The functioning of democratic institutions in Turkey (Doc. 15272)
Recommendations
2198 to 2202
Recommendation 2198 (2021)1
Provisional version
Preserving national minorities in Europe
Parliamentary Assembly
1. The Parliamentary Assembly refers to its Resolution 2368 (2021) “Preserving national minorities in
Europe”, in which it calls on Council of Europe member States to strengthen their commitment to the
Framework Convention of the Protection of National Minorities (ETS No. 157, “the Framework Convention”)
and to implementing its standards, which form an integral part of the international protection of human rights.
2. The Assembly recalls that dialogue between the representatives of national minorities and the
authorities, as well as between the authorities and the monitoring mechanism set up under the Framework
Convention, is a crucial means of achieving the aims of this convention, and emphasises the importance of
continuous multilateral engagement in this field.
3. The Assembly therefore calls on the Committee of Ministers to:
3.1. encourage States Parties to invest renewed efforts in implementing fully the recommendations
of Council of Europe monitoring bodies as a way of preserving linguistic, ethnic and cultural diversity
and building societies in which minorities are not merely tolerated but respected and perceived as an
equal and integral part;
3.2. step up its efforts to ensure the rapid adoption of its resolutions to conclude the monitoring cycle
with respect to each State Party, in accordance with the procedure set out in Resolution CM/
Res(2019)49 on the revised monitoring arrangements under Articles 24 to 26 of the Framework
Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, adopted by the Committee of Ministers on
11 December 2019;
3.3. examine ways to ensure regular and formal co-operation between the Advisory Committee of
the Framework Convention and the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice
Commission) when assessing the compliance with Council of Europe norms and standards of domestic
legislation related to the protection of national minorities in member States;
3.4. consider establishing a more multi-faceted co-operation with civil society through the
establishment of a public online platform that would enable more data to be collected and would allow
serious concerns about the rights of persons belonging to national minorities to be detected at an
earlier stage, along similar lines to the Platform for the Protection of Journalism and Safety of
Journalists already put in place by the Council of Europe.
1. Assembly debate on 19 April 2021 (9th sitting) (see Doc. 15231, report of the Committee on Equality and Non-
Discrimination, rapporteur: Ms Elvira Kovács). Text adopted by the Assembly on 19 April 2021 (9th sitting).
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Recommendation 2199 (2021)1
Provisional version
The Assembly's vision on the strategic priorities for the
Council of Europe
Parliamentary Assembly
1. The Parliamentary Assembly deems it its duty to contribute to the ongoing reflection on strategic
priorities for the coming years for the Council of Europe, so as to enable it to play fully its statutory role and to
help to use the potential of Europe’s oldest and largest treaty-based organisation, as formulated in the
Statute.
2. To this purpose, the Assembly calls on the Committee of Ministers to take into account, in its
discussions on the eve of the forthcoming ministerial session in May 2021, the views contained in Resolution
2369 (2021) “The Assembly’s vision on the strategic priorities for the Council of Europe”.
3. The Assembly will continue its strategic reflection on the future of the Council of Europe and the ways
to further increase its political relevance, preserve and reaffirm its own identity as an independent forum for a
comprehensive and inclusive political dialogue and co-operation, and ensure that it remains the pillar of
democratic security and successful and effective multilateralism in Europe as well as a cornerstone of the
European political architecture. It stands ready to engage in a constructive institutional dialogue with the
Committee of Ministers on this matter.
1. Assembly debate on 20 April 2021 (10th sitting) (see Doc. 15252, report of the Committee on Political Affairs and
Democracy, rapporteur: Mr Tiny Kox). Text adopted by the Assembly on 20 April 2021 (11th sitting).
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Recommendation 2200 (2021)1
Provisional version
Urgent need for electoral reform in Belarus
Parliamentary Assembly
1. The Parliamentary Assembly refers to its Resolution 2371 (2021) “Urgent need for electoral reform in
Belarus”. It invites the Committee of Ministers to:
1.1. continue to closely follow the situation in Belarus;
1.2. adopt measures to complement the Council of Europe Action Plan for Belarus 2019-2021 with
targeted action of primary importance for constructing transparent and democratic institutions in
Belarus, including an electoral reform with a view to putting the electoral legislation in line with
European and international electoral standards, with the involvement of the Venice Commission and
the Assembly;
1.3. implement the above-mentioned measures as soon as it becomes feasible following a clear
commitment of the Belarusian authorities to engage in a democratic transition process.
1. Assembly debate on 21 April 2021 (12th sitting) (see Doc. 15253, report of the Committee on Political Affairs and
Democracy, rapporteur: Lord David Blencathra). Text adopted by the Assembly on 21 April 2021 (12th sitting).
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Recommendation 2201 (2021)1
Provisional version
Human rights violations in Belarus require an international
investigation
Parliamentary Assembly
1. Referring to its Resolution 2372 (2021) “Human rights violations in Belarus require an international
investigation”, the Assembly invites the Committee of Ministers to:
1.1. examine the scope of universal jurisdiction with a view to its use by Council of Europe member
States to combat impunity for perpetrators of serious human rights violations;
1.2. invite Belarus to accede to the European Convention for the prevention of torture and inhuman
or degrading treatment or punishment (ETS No. 126);
1.3. make the expertise of the Council of Europe available to the co-ordination platform launched
within the European Parliament, particularly in the sphere of combating torture and protecting freedom
of expression, association and the media;
1.4. demand, in its dealings with Belarus, the immediate release of all political prisoners and the
ceasing of the campaign of repression against protesters and their families and make any technical co-
operation and any movement towards the possible accession of Belarus to the Council of Europe
subject to that requirement;
1.5. explore ways for the Council of Europe to serve as a mediation platform for the dialogue
between the authorities and the opposition.
1. Assembly debate on 21 April 2021 (12th sitting) (see Doc. 15256, report of the Committee on Legal Affairs and
Human Rights, rapporteur: Ms Alexandra Louis). Text adopted by the Assembly on 21 April 2021 (12th sitting).
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Recommendation 2202 (2021)1
Provisional version
The arrest and detention of Alexei Navalny in January 2021
Parliamentary Assembly
1. The Parliamentary Assembly refers to its Resolution 2375 (2021) “The arrest and detention of Alexei
Navalny in January 2021”.
2. The Assembly welcomes the prioritisation by the Committee of Ministers of its supervision of the
execution of the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in the case of Navalnyye v. Russia. It
invites the Committee of Ministers to use all the tools at its disposal, including those under article 46 of the
European Convention on Human Rights (ETS No. 5), to ensure full and prompt execution and in particular the
immediate release of Mr Navalny.
1. Assembly debate on 22 April 2021 (14th sitting) (see Doc. 15270, report of the Committee on Legal Affairs and
Human Rights, rapporteur: Mr Jacques Maire). Text adopted by the Assembly on 22 April 2021 (14th sitting).
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Resolutions
2368 to 2376
Resolution 2368 (2021)1
Provisional version
Preserving national minorities in Europe
Parliamentary Assembly
1. Over twenty-five years ago, in 1995, the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities
(ETS No. 157, “the Framework Convention”) was opened for signature. This crucial instrument is based on
the shared understanding that preserving stability, democratic security and peace in Europe requires
protecting national minorities; that a pluralist and genuinely democratic society should not only respect the
ethnic, cultural, linguistic and religious identity of each person belonging to a national minority, but also create
appropriate conditions enabling them to express, preserve and develop this identity; and that a climate of
tolerance and dialogue must be created in order to enable cultural diversity to be a source and a factor, not of
division, but of enrichment for each society. Importantly, the Framework Convention also recognises that the
protection of the rights and freedoms of persons belonging to national minorities forms an integral part of the
international protection of human rights, including the right to full and effective equality.
2. The Framework Convention has been ratified by 39 Council of Europe member States and signed by
four more. Since it came into force in 1998, its implementation, through the adoption of important legislative
and policy measures, has benefited national minorities in States parties and helped to maintain their linguistic,
ethnic and cultural identities.
3. Today, however, a number of challenges are endangering the capacity to protect the rights of persons
belonging to national minorities in Europe. Support for the human rights agenda is eroding in many quarters,
and attention to minority rights has diminished. Intra- and interstate tensions, and at times conflicts, have
shaken the stability of both States and European institutions. This has regrettably led to minorities again at
times being perceived, as in the past, as a threat to the security and territorial integrity of States, and to the
instrumentalisation for political ends of the rights of persons belonging to national minorities. Increasing
tensions have also been observed around the use of minority languages and teaching in and of these
languages.
4. In parallel, extreme nationalist discourse, populism, hate speech and hate crime are on the rise
throughout Europe, often focusing on exclusive nation-building while stigmatising diversity and targeting
anyone who is perceived as different. Such discourse endangers social cohesion and democratic stability,
while designating persons belonging to national minorities as scapegoats. These dynamics are often
aggravated where broader social, economic or political problems or divisions are present.
5. The Parliamentary Assembly notes that both national minorities themselves and societies as a whole
are diverse and constantly changing. Migration flows both within and between States, for example, have had a
profound impact on persons belonging to national minorities and on the implementation of their rights. This
constant evolution creates a need for continuous dialogue between the authorities and minorities, in order to
adapt rapidly to the changing needs of the latter.
6. The Assembly underlines that the persons belonging to national minorities can only exercise their rights
effectively where they are able to participate meaningfully in cultural, social and economic life and in public
affairs in the country where they live. It is therefore essential to build inclusive and democratic societies, in
1. Assembly debate on 19 April 2021 (9th sitting) (see Doc. 15231, report of the Committee on Equality and Non-
Discrimination, rapporteur: Ms Elvira Kovács). Text adopted by the Assembly on 19 April 2021 (9th sitting).
See also Recommendation 2198 (2021).
http://assembly.coe.int
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which persons belonging to minorities have an opportunity to engage actively and to influence decisions that
affect them. Changing media landscapes may create new opportunities for expression in minority languages,
but also new challenges, and States must ensure that these dynamics do not arbitrarily hinder the freedom of
expression of persons belonging to national minorities or their access to information.
7. Given the multiplication of challenges currently faced in the implementation of minority rights in Europe,
the Assembly considers that mainstreaming minority rights is crucial to keep minority protection working. The
impact of all government policies and decisions on the rights of persons belonging to national minorities,
needs to be assessed before they are adopted and implemented. This includes areas that may go beyond the
specific provisions of the Framework Convention, such as housing policy or the privatisation of public
services, which may indirectly affect the capacity of persons belonging to national minorities to enjoy the
collective dimension of their rights.
8. The Assembly reaffirms its support for the Framework Convention. Respect for linguistic, ethnic and
cultural diversity, based on the recognition of the fundamental rights to equality and human dignity, is a
cornerstone of the system of human rights protection in Europe, and crucial to preserving pluralistic and
inclusive democracies. It emphasises the importance of the multilateral monitoring system set up under this
convention, and stresses that for the Framework Convention to fulfil its purpose as a living instrument, both
institutional commitment from the Council of Europe and political will from its member States are required.
9. In the light of these considerations, the Assembly urges all Council of Europe member States that are
not yet parties to the Framework Convention, to complete the process of signing and ratifying it, in line with
the Assembly’s Recommendation 1766 (2006) “Ratification of the Framework Convention for the Protection of
National Minorities by the member States of the Council of Europe” and Resolution 2262 (2019) “Promoting
the rights of persons belonging to national minorities”, and encourages those not parties to the European
Charter for Regional or Minority Languages (ETS No. 148) also to ratify this instrument.
10. The Assembly calls on States Parties to the Framework Convention to strengthen their efforts to
promote it and implement it in practice, and in particular, to:
10.1. ensure that the standards enshrined in the Framework Convention are effectively incorporated
into domestic legislation and given effect in practice, by refraining from withdrawing already acquired
minority rights and by completing wherever necessary the adoption of comprehensive legislative
frameworks for the protection of the rights of persons belonging to national minorities, in full
consultation with their representatives;
10.2. consider, in the case of States Parties which have ratified the Framework Convention while
entering restrictive declarations and/or reservations, withdrawing these declarations and/or
reservations;
10.3. foster pluralistic and inclusive societies, in which persons belonging to national minorities are
able to express both their multiple identities and their loyalty to democratic constitutional principles,
thereby contributing to a Europe united in diversity;
10.4. strengthen their dialogue with persons belonging to national minorities and place it on a
continuous footing, notably by setting up permanent consultation mechanisms, where this has not yet
been done, bearing in mind that the composition and functioning of such structures must enable the full
and effective participation of national minorities on all issues that may affect their rights, and afford
them the opportunity to influence outcomes tangibly;
10.5. ensure that policies and practices with respect to national minorities take into account the
diversity existing within minorities and the intersectional issues that may affect them, in order that all
persons belonging to national minorities may enjoy full and effective equality as guaranteed by the
Framework Convention;
10.6. seriously consider the threats posed by hate speech promoted by State actors as well as
parliamentarians, which dehumanises persons belonging to minorities and makes them more
vulnerable to stigmatisation, discrimination and violence, call on representatives of the State and
politicians to refrain from hate speech and instigate additional measures to combat hate speech or hate
crimes perpetrated against persons belonging to minorities;
10.7. systematically consult and engage with the representatives of national minorities on the best
means of implementing the recommendations addressed to the State Party under the monitoring
mechanism of the Framework Convention, and implement them rapidly on the basis of these
consultations;
Resolution 2368 (2021)
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10.8. consider developing indicators to help measure and evaluate outcomes in this field, in particular
as regards societal integration;
10.9. develop additional outreach strategies for communicating about the Framework Convention and
disseminating to the public the findings of its Advisory Committee, including in the State language and
the languages of national minorities; these strategies should take full advantage of the increasing
availability of new technologies.
11. It further calls on States that are not Parties to the Framework Convention to implement measures in
line with those set out in paragraphs 10.2, 10.3, 10.4 and 10.5 above, in order to strengthen their own
dialogue with persons belonging to national minorities within their territory and promote their full and effective
equality.
12. The Assembly invites all member States to strengthen their multilateral dialogue on the protection of the
rights of minorities and place it on a more continuous footing. It recalls in this context the important role that
can also be played by complementary mechanisms existing in this field, notably the conflict prevention role of
the High Commissioner on National Minorities of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.
Given the close relationship that exists between respect for human rights and the proper functioning of the
rule of law and of democratic institutions, existing synergies with the European Union in this field could also be
strengthened.
13. The Assembly invites member States to explore all means to ensure that Council of Europe standards
are effectively incorporated into domestic legislation and implemented in practice, by assisting European
institutions to develop their regulation with a view to safeguarding Europe’s national minorities.
14. Finally, bearing in mind that the rights of persons belonging to national minorities cannot be properly
implemented without a strong framework in place for protecting and promoting full and effective equality, the
Assembly urges those member States that are not yet parties to Protocol No. 12 to the European Convention
on Human Rights (ETS No. 177) to complete the process of signing and ratifying it without delay.
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Resolution 2369 (2021)1
Provisional version
The Assembly's vision on the strategic priorities for the
Council of Europe
Parliamentary Assembly
1. The Council of Europe’s aim is “to achieve a greater unity between its members for the purpose of
safeguarding and realising the ideals and principles which are their common heritage and facilitating their
economic and social progress” (Article 1.a) of the 1949 Statute of the Council of Europe, ETS No. 1).
2. In the course of seven decades, the Council of Europe has become Europe’s largest treaty-based
organisation, in which all European States (except for Belarus and the Holy See) are represented. All member
States have committed themselves to the European Convention of Human Rights (ETS No. 5, “the
Convention”), thus indeed contributing to a greater unity as formulated in Article 1 of the Statute. Over 220
Council of Europe conventions have been concluded during the past seven decades within the scope of
Article 1 of the Statute, to the benefit of member States and citizens, including the European Social Charter
(ETS No. 35). This unique legally binding conventional system must be further promoted and enhanced as the
best basis of democratic public legal order in Europe, now and in the future. The European Court of Human
Rights was created “to ensure the observance of the engagements undertaken by the High Contracting
Parties in the Convention and the Protocols thereto” (Article 19 of the Convention) and several other
mechanisms have been set-up to monitor implementation of commitments in these conventions as well as to
identify priority areas for action.
3. All member States are obliged to be represented in both statutory organs of the Organisation – the
Committee of Ministers and the Parliamentary Assembly – to discuss “questions of common concern” and
develop “agreements and common action” in the further realisation of the aim of the Organisation, as
formulated in Article 1 of the Statute. Consequently, the Assembly deems it its duty to contribute to the
ongoing reflection on strategic priorities for the coming years for the Council of Europe, so as to enable it to
play fully its statutory role and to use the potential of Europe’s oldest and largest treaty-based organisation.
4. The Assembly refers to its relevant recent work – in particular Resolution 2277 (2019) “Role and
Mission of the Parliamentary Assembly: main challenges for the future”, Resolution 2186 (2017) “Call for a
Council of Europe summit to reaffirm European unity and to defend and promote democratic security in
Europe”, and Recommendation 2114 (2017) “Defending the acquis of the Council of Europe: preserving 65
years of successful intergovernmental co-operation” – based on wide consultation with national delegations
and in which strategic priorities for the Assembly, in particular, as well as for the Council of Europe in general,
were identified.
5. The Assembly also takes into account the political guidance delivered by the Heads of State and
Government at the 3rd Summit (Warsaw, May 2005), the policy decisions by the Committee of Ministers at its
129th session in Helsinki (May 2019) and the Athens Declaration by the Committee of Ministers Presidency
(November 2020).
1. Assembly debate on 20 April 2021 (10th sitting) (see Doc. 15252, report of the Committee on Political Affairs and
Democracy, rapporteur: Mr Tiny Kox). Text adopted by the Assembly on 20 April 2021 (11th sitting).
See also Recommendation 2199 (2021).
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6. The Assembly particularly welcomes the reaffirmed commitment to unity in Europe and to greater
solidarity among nations, as well as the unwavering commitment to the principles of the rule of law and the
enjoyment by all persons within member States’ jurisdiction of human rights and fundamental freedoms, as
stated in the Athens Declaration.
7. The Council of Europe’s overall priority is to remain the pillar of democratic security, the guarantor of
human rights and rule of law, as well as platform for genuine multilateralism in Europe and to preserve and
reaffirm its own identity as an independent forum for a comprehensive and inclusive political dialogue and co-
operation. Effective and sustainable co-operation with other multilateral organisations, both in Europe and
globally, should be further developed, thus strengthening the role of the Council of Europe as a cornerstone of
the European political architecture.
8. Human rights must remain at the very core of the Council of Europe’s strategic framework with the
implementation of the Convention in all member States its top priority. To support member States to do so, the
Organisation must prioritise its implementation programmes and bring together experience and promising
practice. The authority of the European Court of Human Rights must be upheld by all member States and by
the Council of Europe as a whole, its effectiveness must be further improved, notably by enhancing the
execution of its judgements by all member States. This is particularly vital in times of crisis, such as
pandemics.
9. The accession of the European Union to the Convention is a strategic priority. It will strengthen the
credibility of the European Union and the relevance of the Council of Europe and the Convention for all its
citizens and its member States.
10. Echoing to the decisions of the Committee of Ministers session in Helsinki in May 2019, the Assembly
highlights the need to put a stronger emphasis on the protection of social and economic rights in the work of
the Council of Europe.
11. The Assembly further joins the Committee of Ministers in calling on member States that have not yet
done so to consider signing and/or ratifying the Revised European Social Charter (ETS No. 163) and its
Additional Protocol Providing for a System of Collective Complaints (ETS No. 158), as well as the Turin
Protocol (ETS No.142). It also considers it of great importance to promote the European Union accession to
the European Social Charter system.
12. The Council of Europe must prioritise achieving genuine equality, inclusion and respect of human
dignity. It must continue to champion equality and eliminate discrimination based on racism, anti-Semitism,
neo-Nazism, xenophobia, islamophobia or any other grounds. It possesses ground-breaking standards and
tools to do so, notably through the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence
against women and domestic violence (CETS No. 210) – the gold standard –, the Council of Europe
Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (CETS No. 197), its standards in the area of non-
discrimination, including minorities, combined with independent monitoring bodies and multi-disciplinary
expert committees to translate these standards to national policies. The Organisation’s position as a unique
leader in this area globally must be further reinforced. In this respect, the Assembly strongly regrets any
attempts to weaken the international framework to protect human rights put in place by the Council of Europe
conventions.
13. The Organisation’s role in building a Europe for and with children must be reinforced, notably by
ensuring best interest of the child, and with a special focus on providing all our children a life free from
violence, particularly through the Council of Europe Convention of the Protection of Children against Sexual
Exploitation and Sexual Abuse (CETS No. 201).
14. The Council of Europe has to address existing and emerging threats to democratic societies and
democratic security, by promoting a contemporary and holistic vision of human rights, including new
generation rights such as the right to a safe, healthy and sustainable environment, and by assessing the
impact of the inherent relationship between human rights and development. As a recognised international
standard-setter in the field of human rights protection, the Council of Europe should focus on devising
common replies and establishing new standards to protect human rights vis-à-vis new and evolving
challenges.
15. Increasing challenges to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly need to be responded with
firm action, as without that meaningful dialogue, including with those who do disagree, is not possible.
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16. In this context, the Assembly stresses the strategic importance of providing adequate responses to
challenges related with the emergence of new technologies, in particular artificial intelligence (AI), so as to
enhance its contribution for progress in our societies but also to prevent the potential negative and amplifying
impact that its use may have on human rights, the rule of law and democracy. It refers to its relevant
resolutions and recommendations adopted in October 2020 – Resolution 2341 (2020) and Recommendation
2181 (2020) “Need for democratic governance of artificial intelligence”; Resolution 2342 (2020) and
Recommendation 2182 (2020) “Justice by algorithm – The role of artificial intelligence in policing and criminal
justice systems”; Resolution 2343 (2020) and Recommendation 2183 (2020) “Preventing discrimination
caused by the use of artificial intelligence”; Resolution 2344 (2020) and Recommendation 2184 (2020) “The
brain-computer interface: new rights or new threats to fundamental freedoms?”; Recommendation 2185
(2020) “Artificial intelligence in health care: medical, legal and ethical challenges ahead”; Resolution 2345
(2020) and Recommendation 2186 (2020) “Artificial intelligence and labour markets: friend or foe?”;
Resolution 2346 (2020) and Recommendation 2187 (2020) “Legal aspects of “autonomous” vehicles”; and
reiterates its view that the Council of Europe is in a strategic position to provide the necessary guidance and
support, in close co-operation with other European and international institutions and organisations, for creating
a global regulatory framework for AI.
17. The Assembly is aware of the threat to the democratic principles of the Council of Europe posed by
global IT companies, which often neglect the right of citizens to access and disseminate legal information in
favour of their market policies, and expresses readiness to discuss conventional mechanisms to counter such
approaches.
18. The Assembly supports the conclusion in the Athens Declaration that life and well-being on our planet
is contingent on humanity’s collective capacity to guarantee both human rights and a healthy environment for
future generations. It welcomes the signing of the 2015 Paris Agreement of Parties to the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change by all 47 member States, thus committing themselves to
strengthening the global response to the threat of climate change which puts at risk the exercise of human
rights. It deems it of high importance to work towards new legal instruments aimed at ensuring the right to a
safe, healthy and sustainable environment for present and future generations, and making it a legal obligation.
19. The Assembly further reiterates its firm support to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs), as set out in United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and welcomes the important
contribution by the Council of Europe to that end, including by the Assembly and national parliaments.
Referring to its relevant texts – Resolution 2271 (2019) and Recommendation 2150 (2019) “Strengthening co-
operation with the United Nations in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” and
Resolution 2272 (2019) “Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals: synergy needed on the part
of all stakeholders, from parliaments to local authorities” – it points to the need for the United Nations and the
Council of Europe to enhance their co-operation, within their respective mandates, to accelerate the pace of
the implementation of the SDGs towards fulfilling the 2030 Agenda.
20. The Assembly fully shares the German Presidency of the Committee of Ministers’ priority as regards
the need to bring the Organisation closer to the people. In this context, it strongly supports the Committee of
Ministers’ decision to examine further options for strengthening the role and meaningful participation of civil
society organisations, and national human rights institutions, in the Organisation. It also believes that specific
emphasis should be made on engaging in a meaningful way with the young people and children.
21. The Council of Europe must also – in line with Article 1 of the Statute – continue to keep high on its
strategic agenda the search for common responses to societal problems challenging the rule of law, notably
corruption, money laundering, terrorism and violent extremism, by means of effective implementation of
relevant legal instruments and mechanisms or by establishing new ones if appropriate. Furthermore, the
Assembly stresses the need to ensure proper protection of parliamentarians and journalists.
22. The Assembly reiterates its call, backed by the Committee of Ministers in Helsinki (May 2019), for a
stronger and more structured co-ordination between the monitoring activities of the Assembly, the Committee
of Ministers, the Secretary General and the Commissioner for Human Rights, as well as of the various
specialised monitoring and advisory bodies and mechanisms of the Organisation, without prejudice to their
independence. More broadly, it deems it worth considering ways of co-ordinating more efficiently monitoring
activities with other international organisations, including the United Nations, in order to achieve more
synergy, avoid unnecessary duplication and alleviate the reporting burden for member States. It stands ready
to engage in a constructive institutional dialogue on this matter and will evaluate its own monitoring activities.
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23. The Assembly highlights the importance of consolidating the role of the Council of Europe as a pillar of
co-operative regional order in Europe, promoting the outreach of its legal instruments beyond European
borders and enhancing partnerships with States and organisations in both geographical neighbourhood and
political proximity.
24. The role of the Assembly in promoting the key Council of Europe conventions and the Organisation’s
core values, as well as in supporting their effective implementation in Council of Europe member States, must
be better recognised and further enhanced. Furthermore, local and regional authorities as well as civil society
organisations play an important role in translating international commitments into reality for everyone. The
Congress of Local and Regional Authorities and the Conference of International Non-Governmental
Organisations of the Council of Europe need to be further strengthened and supported.
25. The Assembly sees it as a strategic priority to carry out its work independently but, where possible, in
effective complementarity with the activities of the Committee of Ministers and the intergovernmental part of
the Organisation, to increase impact of each other’s action. The further development of a regular, meaningful
and effective ‘trialogue’ between the Committee of Ministers, the Secretary General and the Assembly should
be considered as a means of ensuring the strategic relevance of the Organisation. Recommendations of the
Assembly to the Committee of Ministers need to be addressed in a transparent and meaningful way.
26. The Assembly underlines the importance of the new complementary joint procedure, which it adopted
in January 2021, enabling the Council of Europe’s statutory organs, to act together in case of a blatant
violation by a member State of its obligations under the Statute.
27. The Assembly considers it necessary to make more visible the meaning of the Council of Europe
membership, both in terms of advantages for both a given member State and all its citizens, and that of
obligations of all member States. Protecting and promoting the rule of law, human rights and democracy is
clearly to the advantage of all member States and all their citizens.
28. The Assembly reiterates its call on the governments of member States to consider all options to
guarantee the financial sustainability of the Organisation so as to enable it to remain fully effective and
politically relevant. It welcomes the commitment of member States to “zero real growth” policy for the current
biennium – even if this does not imply a “growth”, but it reiterates its long-standing position that member
States should invest more in democratic security, as embodied by the Council of Europe, and therefore
ensure a better funding of it.
29. The Assembly expresses support to a future-oriented four-year strategic outlook as proposed by the
Secretary General of the Council of Europe which should allow a prospective approach in programming the
Organisation’s activities while providing necessary flexibility to adapt to new emerging challenges.
30. The Assembly resolves to continue its strategic reflection on the future of the Council of Europe and the
ways to further increase its political relevance and prominent position as a leading European political
institution.
Resolution 2369 (2021)
4
Resolution 2370 (2021)1
Provisional version
Fighting fiscal injustice: the work of the OECD on taxation of
digital economy
Parliamentary Assembly
1. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, enlarged to include the delegations of national
parliaments of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) member States which
are not members of the Council of Europe and a delegation from the European Parliament, underlines that the
ability of governments to raise funds through taxation necessary for the funding of public services is a
fundamental anchor for democracy and social justice. The Enlarged Assembly welcomes the signing of an
updated co-operation agreement (Memorandum of Understanding) between the Council of Europe and the
OECD in December 2020, which confirms both Organisations’ mutual interest in promoting shared values and
objectives, inter alia, in relation to sustainable development and tax matters.
2. The digitisation of the economy and the rise of tech giants (including GAFA, namely Google, Amazon,
Facebook, Apple), the aggressive tax planning, tax avoidance and artificial profit shifting practices, adopted by
numerous multinational corporations, the increased awareness of the general public to these practices and
the worsening state of public finances caused by the 2008 global economic crisis and the Covid‑19 pandemic
have made the need for internationally co-ordinated policy responses more urgent than ever before.
3. While most value in the digital economy is created through virtual and stateless platforms, the Enlarged
Assembly considers that it is necessary for States to be provided with a broader tax base again to cover their
public financing needs, in particular by moving away from the concept of “permanent establishment” that
underpins the traditional model for the distribution of the international tax base.
4. The Enlarged Assembly welcomes the OECD’s work on the Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and
Profit Shifting (BEPS). It notes that the first of the many actions in the Inclusive Framework concerns policy
responses for the tax challenges arising from the digital economy, and endorses the breakdown of the policy
proposals into two pillars: the first Pillar addresses the broader issues of taxation of the digital economy and
focuses on how taxing rights are determined (namely nexus) and how taxable profits are allocated among
jurisdictions. The second Pillar tackles the remaining BEPS issues related to tax planning, through the
establishment of a global minimum tax.
5. It welcomes the OECD’s instrumental role in this context and the progress made in the work on Pillar 1
and the adoption of a joint statement outlining the general framework of the discussions for the two pillars. It
encourages the participating States to continue this work with a view to a consensus-based agreement on
both pillars.
6. The Enlarged Assembly also supports the OECD’s work in promoting global standards for collecting
value-added tax from online sales of goods, services and digital products, including as regards international
exchanges through the platform economy. It furthermore welcomes the OECD’s guidance on taxing virtual
currencies and crypto-assets aimed at developing a new tax reporting framework by the end of 2021.
1. Assembly debate on 20 April 2021 (11th sitting) (see Doc. 15251, report of the Committee on Political Affairs and
Democracy, rapporteur: Mr Georgios Katrougkalos; and Doc. 15266, opinion of the Committee on Social Affairs, Health
and Sustainable Development, rapporteur: Ms Selin Sayek Böke). Text adopted by the Assembly on 20 April 2021 (11th
sitting).
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7. The Enlarged Assembly stresses that multilateralism, provided that it is genuinely inclusive, is the best
means of achieving tangible results. It considers that achieving consensus at international level is the best
way to reform the international tax system, to restore stability to the international tax framework and to avoid
the risk of further unco-ordinated, unilateral tax measures which could trigger trade sanctions.
8. To ensure fair taxation of global corporate profits, the Enlarged Assembly urges the OECD and
member States to:
8.1. further support and promote the Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting
(BEPS) in reaching a consensus-based agreement comprising Pillars 1 and 2 within the envisaged
timelines and, if necessary, seal off the areas where a broad multilateral consensus has been reached
by concluding an interim agreement by mid-2021;
8.2. facilitate the application of the agreed multilateral instrument to existing tax treaties;
8.3. avoid and reverse a race to the bottom of national tax systems, which could undermine
governments’ legitimate financing abilities in maintaining sound public finances and high-quality social
services for all;
8.4. implement rules on transparency and automatic exchange of information for tax purposes
between all countries in order to ensure tax fairness and compliance by both corporate entities and
individuals and push for public country-by-country reporting by enterprises;
8.5. develop mandatory disclosure rules regarding aggressive or abusive transactions, arrangements
or structures;
8.6. propose measures for countering harmful tax practices more effectively, with a priority on
improving transparency, including compulsory spontaneous exchange of rulings relating to preferential
regimes (fiscal rulings) and on requiring substantial activity for the granting of any preferential regime;
8.7. promote international coherence in corporate profit taxation, so that the design of tax policy is
better informed by the increasing interconnectedness of economies and the gaps that can be created
by interactions between domestic tax laws;
8.8. do more to take account of the needs and interests of developing countries in the design of a
new post-BEPS international tax system that is multilateral and at least as inclusive as the proposed
Inclusive Framework.
Resolution 2370 (2021)
2
Resolution 2371 (2021)1
Provisional version
Urgent need for electoral reform in Belarus
Parliamentary Assembly
1. The Parliamentary Assembly stresses that free and fair elections constitute the very foundation of
democratic government and a cornerstone of representative democracy. It deeply regrets that elections in
Belarus have never met international standards of freedom and fairness and that this failed electoral system
has been a driving factor behind the current political, economic and human rights crisis affecting the country
since the presidential election of 9 August 2020.
2. For more than two decades, the Assembly, the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of
the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE/ODIHR), the European Commission for
Democracy through Law (Venice Commission), as well as the civil society in Belarus have been pointing to
the systemic problems in the electoral system and recommending, to no avail, that the electoral legislation
and practice be amended.
3. The Assembly recalls that, for reasons beyond its control, it had to decline the invitation to observe the
presidential election of 9 August 2020. However, based on the evaluation of independent local observers who
concluded that gross violations of international standards for democratic elections had taken place and
knowing that the electoral system which has earned Belarus criticism in the past remains unchanged, the
Assembly also concludes that the 2020 presidential election was neither free nor fair.
4. The Assembly firmly believes that a fully-fledged electoral reform, geared towards implementing all
previous Assembly, OSCE/ODIHR and Venice Commission recommendations, remains essential for setting
the basis for future democratic, free and fair elections which can meaningfully reflect the will of the people of
Belarus and allow them to regain confidence in the electoral process. Not only a reform of the legal framework
but also the implementation of the legislation in good faith, by an independent and impartial election
administration that enjoys public trust, are paramount in this context.
5. In light of the above, the Assembly urges the Belarusian authorities to conduct a comprehensive reform
of the electoral system taking into account the full set of recommendations of the Assembly, the OSCE/
ODIHR, and the Venice Commission, in close consultation with all relevant stakeholders, in particular the civil
society. In this context, it urges them to bring the electoral law and practice in conformity with international
standards for democratic elections, and in particular to:
5.1. guarantee the independence and impartiality of the electoral administration by making it
adequately representative and setting the basis for a politically balanced membership of election
commissions at all levels, starting by the Central Election Commission (CEC), including by:
5.1.1. introducing a requirement for the CEC to include representatives nominated by key
political stakeholders, including different political parties and civil society representatives, with
full voting rights;
1. Assembly debate on 21 April 2021 (12th sitting) (see Doc. 15253, report of the Committee on Political Affairs and
Democracy, rapporteur: Lord David Blencathra). Text adopted by the Assembly on 21 April 2021 (12th sitting).
See also Recommendation 2200 (2021).
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5.1.2. establishing clear rules governing the process by which members of elections
commissions below the CEC level are appointed by the local authorities, including a requirement
to include commission members nominated by all contestants;
5.2. create a publicly available national voter list with a view to increasing the transparency and
accountability of the voter registration process;
5.3. regulate early voting in a comprehensive way by introducing measures to guarantee its integrity,
transparency and exceptional nature, including by:
5.3.1. specifying in detail clear mechanisms for ensuring the safety and security of the ballot
boxes through early voting;
5.3.2. limiting the number of polling stations for early voting;
5.3.3. authorising early voting only in specific cases and to those voters who can prove that
they cannot be present at the place of residence on the election day;
5.4. take measures to ensure the transparency of the vote counting, including by introducing a
requirement that each ballot paper as well as the results of the election in each polling station be
announced publicly and displayed;
5.5. allow national and international observers to carry out their work effectively and without
impediment, including by clearly authorising them to:
5.5.1. approach members of the polling station to verify electoral rolls and signatures, and to
observe the counting of the votes in a direct and effective way, including through direct and
visual access to ballot papers;
5.5.2. be present during the verification of signatures submitted for the nomination of
candidates;
5.5.3. have access to storage of ballots and ballot boxes during early voting, including outside
working hours;
5.6. subject the registration of candidates to clear, comprehensive and transparent criteria and less
restrictive conditions;
5.7. subject any decision of electoral commissions, including election results, to review, including a
possibility of a judicial review of all administrative decisions.
6. The Assembly is aware of the calls from national and international actors for holding snap elections on
the basis of the current electoral system and stresses that such elections could be deemed reasonably free
and fair, only if a genuinely independent and impartial CEC can ensure, through the use of regulations,
ordinances, circulars or instructions, that the requirements listed above are fulfilled to the greatest extent
possible, and national and international observers can properly monitor the entire electoral process.
7. The Assembly stresses that democratic elections are not possible without respect for human rights, in
particular freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and association. It condemns in strongest terms the
unprecedented wave of violence, mass arrests, intimidation and prosecution of political opponents, human
rights defenders, journalists, media workers, independent election observers and citizens of Belarus following
the 2020 presidential election.
8. This violent repression is not only an outright disregard for the core values upheld by the Council of
Europe but also a major obstacle to any meaningful reform in the country, including an electoral reform.
Referring to its Resolution … (2021) “Human rights violations in Belarus require an international investigation”,
the Assembly urges the Belarusian authorities to put an immediate halt on all violence.
9. Recalling that the integration of Belarus to the Council of Europe on the basis of the Organisation’s
values and principles remains a strategic objective, the Assembly calls on the Belarusian authorities and all
relevant stakeholders, including all opposition representatives and civil society, to urgently conduct a broad-
based and inclusive national dialogue to ensure a peaceful way out of the current crisis and opening the door
for necessary reforms benefiting all Belarusian citizens. The Assembly – together with the Venice Commission
– reiterates its readiness to offer practical and technical guidance to Belarusian authorities with a view to an
electoral reform. It firmly believes that this and other necessary reforms will pave the way for a new Belarus
that is based on human rights, democracy and rule of law.
Resolution 2371 (2021)
2
Resolution 2372 (2021)1
Provisional version
Human rights violations in Belarus require an international
investigation
Parliamentary Assembly
1. The Parliamentary Assembly recalls that the peaceful protests against the falsification of the results of
the presidential election in Belarus of 9 August 2020 were brutally put down by the regime of Alexander
Lukashenko, with many protesters arrested and tortured in detention. A great many leaders of the citizens'
movement are being prosecuted for crimes which are vaguely defined but incur long prison sentences, while
others were forced into exile.
2. In February 2021, a new wave of arrests and prosecutions was launched against opposition activists
who had not yet been detained. Those prosecuted included human rights defenders, journalists, lawyers,
trade unionists and representatives of the “Coordination Council”, the political opposition's flagship body.
3. According to Freedom House, the number of political prisoners, including human rights defenders,
journalists, activists, representatives of youth organisations and political parties, has reached 300, with
fabricated cases against them; in March 2021 there were attempted suicides of two political prisoners and
three hunger strikes in protest by Igor Losik, Igor Bantser and Dmitriy Furmanov.
4. The Assembly considers the persons referred to above as political prisoners, following the definition of
this term in Resolution 1900 (2012). These persons are in administrative or pre-trial detention or serving
prison sentences for merely participating in peaceful protests or publishing information on those protests and
their unjustified repression by the law enforcement agencies.
5. The Assembly notes that the perpetrators of these serious and repeated human rights violations
committed on a massive scale when repressing the protests against the falsification of the presidential
election results have not been troubled in the slightest by any criminal proceedings at national level, despite
the fact that torture and inhuman or degrading treatment are also crimes in Belarusian law. Where
international anti-torture instruments are concerned, Belarus is not a contracting party to the European
Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (ETS No. 126)
or to the Optional Protocol to the United Nations Convention against torture (OP-CAT) or to the Rome Statute
of the International Criminal Court.
6. The Assembly stresses the great importance of combating impunity for the perpetrators of serious
human rights violations, out of principle and also to deter others from perpetrating human rights violations,
reiterating its Resolutions 2252 (2019), 2157 (2017), 2134 (2016) and 1966 (2014). It notes that the criminal
legislation of several Council of Europe member States provides for “universal jurisdiction” for their courts for
certain crimes of a particularly serious nature, including acts of torture, even committed abroad, by foreign
nationals and against foreign nationals. It also notes that a number of States have passed “Magnitsky
laws” under which targeted sanctions may be imposed on perpetrators of serious human rights violations.
1. Assembly debate on 21 April 2021 (12th sitting) (see Doc. 15256, report of the Committee on Legal Affairs and
Human Rights, rapporteur: Ms Alexandra Louis). Text adopted by the Assembly on 21 April 2021 (12th sitting).
See also Recommendation 2201 (2021).
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7. The Assembly welcomes the initiative taken by human rights activists in Belarus who have successfully
compiled a substantial body of evidence of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment and identified
presumed perpetrators.
8. It welcomes the initiative launched by the European Parliament in collaboration with other international
stakeholders, in the spirit of the follow up to the recommendations of the Moscow Mechanism of the
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), setting up an international advisory platform,
the Belarus Accountability Platform, tasked with gathering evidence of serious human rights violations in
Belarus and assessing it with a view to making it available to the competent authorities of member States, so
that they can prosecute Belarusian nationals having perpetrated these crimes, committed in Belarus against
Belarusian victims. The Assembly also supports the creation of an ad hoc working group within the Council of
Europe tasked with monitoring the human rights situation in Belarus and contributing to the aforementioned
Belarus Accountability Platform.
9. The Assembly considers that the information gathered by human rights activists in Belarus and the
evidence assessed by the platform launched within the European Parliament will be able to serve as a basis
for criminal proceedings lodged on the basis of universal jurisdiction and for the imposing of targeted
sanctions under “Magnitsky laws”.
10. It welcomes the prosecutions already initiated by Lithuanian courts on the basis of universal jurisdiction
and the commitment of some member States, notably the Baltic countries, Poland and Ukraine, which have
taken in victims of repression forced into exile and support civil society in Belarus.
11. The Assembly calls upon:
11.1. the Belarusian authorities to:
11.1.1. engage in dialogue with the opposition as the only way to cease the violence, human
rights violations and to hold new democratic elections this year to resolve the political crisis;
11.1.2. release political prisoners without delay;
11.1.3. immediately put a stop to all acts of torture or inhuman and degrading treatment
committed against opponents of the regime, whether in public, citizens' homes or any places of
detention;
11.1.4. prosecute all the perpetrators of such acts in accordance with the Belarusian Criminal
Code;
11.1.5. co-operate with the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice
Commission) with a view to reforming the Criminal Code in order to decriminalise the exercise of
freedom of expression, assembly and association;
11.1.6. sign and ratify the United Nations Optional Protocol to the Convention against torture
and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (OP-CAT) and the Rome
Statute establishing the International Criminal Court and ask the Council of Europe Committee
of Ministers to invite their country to accede to the European Convention for the Prevention of
Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment;
11.1.7. take all necessary measures to ensure the right to a fair trial, including access to a
lawyer;
11.1.8. cease all restrictions on media freedom and freedom of assembly;
11.1.9. implement all recommendations of the European Commission for Democracy through
Law (Venice Commission) in its opinion of 20 March 2021 on the Compatibility with European
Standards of certain Criminal Law Provisions used to prosecute peaceful demonstrators and
members of the “Coordination Council”;
11.1.10. abolish the death penalty as soon as possible, starting with a moratorium;
11.2. the member States of the Council of Europe to:
11.2.1. explore mechanisms for facilitating dialogue between the authorities and the opposition
for resolving the political crisis;
Resolution 2372 (2021)
2
11.2.2. demand, in their dealings with the Belarusian authorities, at all levels, the immediate
release of all political prisoners and the ceasing of the campaign of repression against protesters
and their families and make any economic, financial and political co-operation conditional on
this;
11.2.3. support the ongoing efforts at international level to call to account the perpetrators of
serious human rights violations committed in Belarus by State officials who enjoy impunity,
including by exercising the universal jurisdiction provided for in their criminal legislation or, where
applicable, by introducing this possibility in their legislation;
11.2.4. continue to take in the victims of repression who have been forced into political exile
and support Belarusian civil society, including political prisoners' families, and provide study
grants for Belarusian students who have been expelled from their faculties;
11.2.5. use their “Magnitsky laws” which make it possible to impose targeted sanctions on
perpetrators of human rights violations and also presumed perpetrators of such violations in
Belarus, and pass such laws where necessary;
11.3. the competent institutions of the European Union to:
11.3.1. demand, in their dealings with Belarus, at all levels, the immediate release of all
political prisoners and the ceasing of the campaign of repression against protesters and their
families, and make any economic and financial co-operation conditional on this;
11.3.2. strengthen their co-operation with Belarusian civil society, give support to political
prisoners' families and provide study grants for Belarusian students who have been expelled
from their faculties;
11.3.3. support the initiative developed within the European Parliament aimed at creating a co-
ordination platform federating efforts at international level to combat impunity for the perpetrators
of human rights violations in Belarus, by gathering, analysing and assessing relevant information
and tip-offs, with a view to these being used to help national law enforcement authorities
exercise universal jurisdiction and to impose targeted sanctions via the “Magnitsky mechanisms”
that exist or are to be created; strengthen personalised sanctions against those perpetrating
human rights violations, including police, prosecutors and judges.
Resolution 2372 (2021)
3
Resolution 2373 (2021)1
Provisional version
Discrimination against persons dealing with chronic and long-
term illnesses
Parliamentary Assembly
1. Chronic and long-term illnesses are non-communicable diseases that often require long and expensive
treatment for the community. They are the main causes of general and premature mortality. They alter the
lives of at least a third of the European population. This percentage increases with age as these diseases
strike the most vulnerable more frequently. They are more common in women than in men and are particularly
frightening when children are concerned. The prevalence of multi-morbidity is increasing due to the ageing of
the population, but also to the combined effects of poverty, pollution and global warming.
2. Chronic and long-term illnesses are obstacles to dignity, well-being and self-fulfilment. Often difficult to
diagnose, they can be particularly disabling in their most critical expressions, when they are not fatal. They are
a source of multiple discrimination and hinder the affected who may be deprived of their autonomy, their
participation and their full integration into society. Because of their direct and indirect effects, they harm the
“full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and all fundamental freedoms”, fall within the scope of the United
Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and involve obligations on the part of
the States Parties to the convention.
3. Through their various public policies (health, social, research, employment, education, etc.), the
authorities are able to limit the number and consequences of chronic and long-term illnesses. The CRPD
offers an innovative vision of disability and disabilities. It makes full and effective participation and inclusion in
society a priority. Some countries have indeed taken up this challenge, applying different strategies. Others
have chosen to deny the existence of these diseases, at the risk of leaving patients to face their vulnerabilities
alone and maintaining inequalities.
4. Neither are chronic and long-term illnesses the result of a reasoned choice. It is thus not acceptable
that they are considered by certain actors in society as risk factors. In order to fight against the arbitrariness
suffered by patients, it is necessary not only to adopt the paradigm shift proposed by the CRPD, but also to
systematically tackle the obstacles and discrimination caused by these diseases, which prevent patients from
living their lives, and to rally around a common objective: the preservation of their dignity and well-being. The
voice of patients must be heard throughout the preparation, implementation and evaluation of public policies
related to chronic and long-term diseases. Patients cannot be satisfied with equality when their wish is
primarily to preserve their right to well-being and self-fulfilment. It is not for them to adapt to society, but for
society to adapt to them, with due regard for reasonable accommodation and the principles of equality and
non-discrimination.
5. Each individual is called to contribute to the general well-being, without hindrance. In order to remedy
the profound social disadvantage and discrimination experienced by people with chronic and long-term
illnesses, the Parliamentary Assembly reminds Council of Europe member States of their commitments made
on the occasion of the ratification of the CRPD. It invites them to continue their efforts in the fight against
1. Assembly debate on 21 April 2021 (13th sitting) (see Doc. 15208, report of the Committee on Social Affairs, Health
and Sustainable Development, rapporteur: Ms Martine Wonner; and Doc. 15230, opinion of the Committee on Equality
and Non-Discrimination, rapporteur: Ms Béatrice Fresko-Rolfo). Text adopted by the Assembly on 21 April 2021
(13th sitting).
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exclusion, by adopting strategies that revive the spirit that marked the birth of our public health systems and
are aimed at strengthening the role of the welfare State, in order to improve the effectiveness and resilience of
health systems, and ensuring universal access to health. The current health crisis has reminded us that
administrations must be prepared to respond to the unexpected while being attentive to changes in society
and eliminating obsolete regulations. The Assembly invites Liechtenstein to accede to the CRPD so that no
European country remains outside this framework, which is innovative and adapted to the needs expressed
by people encountering obstacles in their immediate social and physical environment.
6. The Assembly urges member States, on the basis of the provisions contained in the CRPD and
examples of good practice resulting from co-operation between peers:
6.1. to strengthen the capacities of screening and prevention concerning chronic and long-term
illnesses and to adopt a holistic approach, which is regularly reviewed and adjusted, and involves all
sectors of the administration for the well-being of individuals, the fight against inequalities and the
taking into account of vulnerabilities. The authorities must fight against diagnostic delays so that, after a
certain period, which should not be longer than one year, each patient is able to exercise their rights
again without hindrance;
6.2. to support and develop the offer of care and services allowing the preservation of well-being and
self-fulfilment, while allocating sufficient resources and funds to achieve this objective, which is
legitimate for everyone within the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights, in particular when
it comes to the professional sphere, by strengthening the resources of occupational medicine, which is
often the patient's first interlocutor at the time of diagnosis or return to work. Adaptation of the
workstation should be offered where possible. The Assembly calls once again on the national
authorities to establish access to universal health care;
6.3. to ensure that the obstacles preventing chronic and long-term patients from exercising their
legitimate right to dignity, well-being and self-fulfilment are subject to sufficiently dissuasive sanctions to
enable patients to exercise their rights to well-being and fulfilment, in their professional or private life;
6.4. to conduct, in partnership with civil society, evidence-based and effective awareness-raising
campaigns on chronic and long-term illnesses among the general public, ensuring the right to a normal
life through the full enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms;
6.5. to involve all stakeholders in policy development, evaluation and implementation, including
people with chronic and long-term illnesses and their families, including by sharing the results of impact
evaluations. The real consequences of certain diseases still seem too little-known (Lyme disease, etc.).
7. The Assembly suggests that member States do more to control the removal of obstacles to the rights of
patients living with chronic and long-term illnesses, in order to encourage actors in the private sector to share
the same approach with a view to fighting against discrimination suffered by patients because of their status. It
calls on the national authorities not only for the adoption of a clear definition of the right to be forgotten but
also for the effective and uniform implementation of this protection. It recommends the evaluation of patient
protection systems.
8. The Assembly stresses the important role of parliaments. It invites them to promote the principles
contained in the CRPD, to adopt legislation in line with the convention, to ensure the allocation of sufficient
budgetary resources, to encourage the public authorities to adopt appropriate national strategies and action
plans, and to demand accountability for their effective implementation. It also encourages parliamentarians to
contribute to awareness-raising actions on an individual basis.
9. The Assembly recognises that people with chronic and long-term illnesses and their families are
severely and disproportionately impacted by the measures taken to combat the novel coronavirus during the
current pandemic. Thus, it calls on member States to pay particular attention to their needs, in view of these
circumstances, including after their recovery, insofar as Covid-19 could be the cause of chronic illnesses.
10. Finally, in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic and in anticipation of the revision of Directive
2000/78/EC, the Assembly encourages the European Union to accede to the European Social Charter
(revised) (ETS No. 163) before extending its powers in the area of health, in order to monitor and improve the
state of health in the European Union. It also reiterates its encouragement to the remaining Council of Europe
member States to sign and ratify, as soon as possible, the revised European Social Charter.
Resolution 2373 (2021)
2
Resolution 2374 (2021)1
Provisional version
Post-monitoring dialogue with Montenegro
Parliamentary Assembly
1. Montenegro joined the Council of Europe in 2007. It was subject to the full monitoring procedure until
2015. The Parliamentary Assembly refers to its Resolution 2030 (2015) on the honouring of obligations and
commitments by Montenegro, in which it decided to close the monitoring procedure and to open a post-
monitoring dialogue on four key issues, namely the independence of the judiciary, the trust in the electoral
process, the fight against corruption and the situation of media. The Assembly also mandated itself to follow
up on developments in the field of the rights of minorities and the fight against discrimination, as well as in the
field of the situation of refugees and internally displaced persons.
2. The Assembly commends the Montenegrin authorities for demonstrating their sustained political will
and commitment to fully respecting their obligations, as confirmed by their continued co-operation with Council
of Europe monitoring mechanisms, legal experts and the European Commission for Democracy through Law
(Venice Commission). The Assembly also welcomes the level of their involvement in the post-monitoring
dialogue.
3. The Assembly reiterates that Montenegro continues to play a positive role in the stabilisation of the
region and is a reliable and constructive partner, involved in several regional and multilateral initiatives.
4. In light of the developments that have occurred since 2015, the Assembly has assessed progress made
in the four key areas and other outstanding fields of concern identified in 2015.
5. As regards the independence of the judiciary, the Assembly:
5.1. welcomes the implementation by the Montenegrin authorities of constitutional amendments
related to the judiciary, which were adopted in July 2013, and the setting up of a comprehensive legal
framework regulating the courts, the State prosecutors’ offices, the Judicial Council and judges, the
Prosecutorial Council, and the Constitutional Court; acknowledges the important scale of the changes
that this framework introduced in the judiciary, and that they were mostly implemented in line with the
recommendations of the Venice Commission;
5.2. commends the Montenegrin authorities for the genuine improvement of the training for judicial
professions, notably thanks to the Centre for Training in Judiciary and State Prosecution, which should
have long-lasting effects on the professionalism of new magistrates, and thereby on the efficiency of the
justice system;
5.3. deeply regrets the re-appointments by the Judicial Council in 2019 and 2020 of several
Presidents of basic courts and the President of the Supreme Court, who already served two terms or
more. The limitation of elections to two terms, which was enshrined in the Constitution since 2013 and
in the law, and which was aimed at preventing the over-concentration of powers within the judiciary, has
been violated in its spirit, if not in its letter;
1. Assembly debate on 21 April 2021 (13th sitting) (see Doc. 15132, report of the Committee on the Honouring of
Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring Committee) and Doc. 15132
addendum, co-rapporteurs: Mr Damien Cottier and Mr Emanuelis Zingeris). Text adopted by the Assembly on 21 April
2021 (13th sitting).
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5.4. notes that, after wrong signals were sent in 2018 with regard to the transparency of judges’
selection and appointments, the Judicial Council seemed to have improved its procedure of selection in
2020;
5.5. deeply regrets, as the European Commission and the Group of States against Corruption
(GRECO) also did, that no progress has been made in reviewing the disciplinary framework for judges
and prosecutors.
5.6. commends the decision of the Montenegrin authorities to request the opinion of the Venice
Commission on the draft laws amending the Law on the State Prosecutor’s Office and the Law on the
Prosecutor’s Office for Organised Crime and Corruption and to suspend their adoption until after the
opinion is issued; and calls on them to fully implement the recommendations formulated by the Venice
Commission and, in particular, not to ignore those related to the security of tenure and the risk of
politicisation of lay members of the Prosecutorial Council.
6. As regards trust in the electoral process, the Assembly:
6.1. is concerned that, apart from the voters’ register, no progress has been made in the
implementation of the five requirements set by Resolution 2030 (2015);
6.2. strongly emphasises that the parliament is the arena where political competition should take
place, that boycotting its work does not comply with the European way to compete, and that reforming
the legal framework on electoral campaigns cannot take place in an inclusive manner, if major parties
from the opposition do not take part in it;
6.3. recalls that every political group in the parliament shares the responsibility to create an
atmosphere and a culture of parliamentarian democracy.
6.4. commends the political maturity demonstrated by both the new majority and the new opposition
in the immediate aftermath of the elections held in August 2020, that allowed for a peaceful shift of
power and urges them to continue on this positive trend; at the same time, regrets that the electoral
legal framework remained largely unchanged during the last general elections, despite the repeated
recommendations of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for
Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE/ODIHR) to address its flaws and limitations, and that
practices contrary to OSCE/ODIHR principles were once again observed during these elections,
notably in the fields of abuse of State resources, independent media coverage and campaign financing.
7. As regards the fight against corruption, the Assembly:
7.1. takes note of the implementation of the Law on Prevention of Corruption and the Law on
Prevention of Conflict of Interests, as well as of preventive policies set up by the Agency for the
Prevention of Corruption;
7.2. regrets that the Law on the Financing of Political Entities and Election Campaigns had limited
effects on the prevention and the sanction of illegal donations, as stated by the ad hoc Committees of
the Bureau of the Assembly for the observation of the parliamentary elections in 2016 and the
presidential election in 2018;
7.3. welcomes the passing of the Law on the Special Public Prosecutor’s Office, which is tasked with
fighting corruption and organised crime, the continuous increase of its means, as well as those of the
Special Police Unit, and the recent results obtained against Montenegrin crime groups thanks to the
increased participation in international police co-operation;
7.4. takes note of the ‘initial track record’, as stated by the European Commission, of investigations,
prosecution and final convictions in corruption cases;
7.5. congratulates the Montenegrin authorities for having satisfactorily implemented 12 out of 14
recommendations made by GRECO in the Third Evaluation Round on transparency of party funding,
and 8 out of 11 in the Fourth Evaluation Round on corruption prevention in respect of members of
parliament, judges and prosecutors, concluded in December 2019;
7.6. is however concerned with the assessment by the European Commission that the criminal
justice system appears generally lenient, with sentences, fines and asset recoveries disproportionately
low compared with the gravity of the crime.
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8. As regards the situation of media, the Assembly:
8.1. welcomes the visible efforts of both the prosecutors and the judges to address the attacks
against journalists; moreover welcomes the efforts by the police forces to arrest the perpetrators and
suspects of such attacks, as well as the public support by the government to the Commission for
monitoring actions of the competent authorities in the investigation of cases of threats and violence
against journalists, assassinations of journalists and attacks on media property, and the recent and
adequate involvement of the parliament in debating the reports of this Commission;
8.2. remains very concerned, however, by the threats and violence against journalists, recently
demonstrated in several cases;
8.3. strongly welcomes the ongoing efforts by the Montenegrin authorities to revise the legal
framework on media in close co-operation with the Council of Europe;
8.4. regrets the dismissals in 2017 and 2018 of members of the Councils of the national public
broadcasting (RTCG) and the Agency for Electronic Media, by the parliament following investigations
led by the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption for they could be seen as political interferences;
8.5. is particularly worried by the tendency of public entities to restrict access to public documents,
that contradicts the acute need for transparency in Montenegro and the access to information for the
media; the Assembly fully recognises that the freedom of expression needs to be regulated but it
stresses that this regulation must be in line with European standards and that the concept of ‘abuse of
the right of information’ is not appropriate.
9. As regards the rights of minorities and the fight against discrimination, the Assembly:
9.1. welcomes the implementation of the mechanism for the prevention of torture under the Optional
Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment of the United Nations and the mechanism for the protection against discrimination under
the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. It also notes that, for the latter,
the competencies of the Protector of Human Rights and Freedoms (Ombudsman) were clarified in
2017;
9.2. welcomes the adoption in 2017 of the Law on Minority Rights and Freedoms, that complied with
four out of five recommendations of the Venice Commission;
9.3. expresses its satisfaction at the very positive opinion on Montenegro of the Advisory Committee
on the Framework Convention for the protection of national minorities from the Council of Europe in
March 2019 and calls upon the Montenegrin authorities to undertake urgent efforts towards Roma and
Egyptians mentioned in the opinion;
9.4. commends Montenegro for setting a good example for the whole region when it comes to the
level of protection provided to LGBTI persons, and welcomes the adoption of the law on life partnership
of same-sex partners by the parliament in July 2020.
10. As regards the situation of refugees and internally displaced persons, the Assembly takes note of the
positive opinion of the Advisory Committee on the progress made by Montenegro in resolving the issue of
displaced persons, mostly Roma and Egyptians, arrived in Montenegro in the late 1990s and almost
completing the regularisation of their legal status.
11. As regards the Law on Freedom of Religion or Belief and the Legal Status of Religious Communities
(Law on Freedom of Religion) passed in December 2019, the Assembly:
11.1. emphasises that the regulation of religious communities is a matter of national sovereignty, that
should be exercised without any foreign interference;
11.2. regrets that the part of the Law related “to property rights” created a very divisive climate, while
most of the provisions constitute a genuine progress compared to the previous legal framework, as
stated by the Venice Commission in its opinion on the draft law;
11.3. is fully aware of the understandable concerns of members of the Serbian Orthodox Church,
given the large extent of possible transfers of property from the Church to the Montenegrin State, on the
ground of ‘culture heritage’, which means possibly most of all religious properties built before 1918;
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3
11.4. welcomes the adoption of amendments to the law on 28 December 2020, as a solution that both
respects democracy and the rule of law, and focuses on the controversial provisions, while retaining
those that constitute a genuine progress; at the same time, regrets that the consultation of all religious
communities on these amendments was not fully inclusive.
12. In this context, the Assembly resolves to continue a post-monitoring dialogue with Montenegro in the
following areas:
13. As regards the independence of the judiciary, the Assembly will closely monitor:
13.1. the implementation of recommendation v. of GRECO’s Fourth Evaluation Round, and in
particular the implementation of the spirit of the constitutional and legislative changes regarding the
limitation of two-terms for Presidents of Courts; this last implementation could be achieved by a change
in the legal framework, or by a change of practice initiated by the judiciary itself;
13.2. whether the transparency in the selection of magistrates and in their appointments continues to
be applied;
13.3. whether the enforcement of the code of ethics and disciplinary accountability for magistrates are
enhanced.
14. As regards trust in the electoral process, the Assembly will monitor progress in re-starting, just after the
elections, a comprehensive and inclusive process on reforming the electoral framework, in line with the
recommendations of OSCE/ODIHR and the Venice Commission, and in line with the recommendations of the
Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, especially when it comes to holding local elections in a single day
and at least six months from parliamentary elections.
15. As regards the fight against corruption, the Assembly will monitor progress in:
15.1. addressing the loopholes in the criminal justice system, that makes it appear as generally
lenient;
15.2. addressing the risks pointed out both by the Venice Commission and by the European
Commission of de facto control of the executive power in investigations led by the Special Police Unit
under the supervision of the Special Public Prosecutor’s Office, given the hierarchical link between the
Special Police Unit members, including its head, and the Police Directorate;
15.3. building on the initial track records in the fight against corruption and organised crime.
16. As regards the situation of media, the Assembly will closely monitor progress in:
16.1. changing irreversibly the climate of impunity around attacks against journalists, by continuing to
address them directly, but also by enforcing transparency in cases where competent authorities failed
to investigate properly and in due time;
16.2. refraining from restricting access to information;
16.3. revising the mechanisms that are currently addressing political interferences in the media,
including the composition of the RTCG and the Agency for Electronic Media.
17. As regards the Law on Freedom of Religion, the Assembly will monitor whether the implementation of
the law will be in line with European standards, as well as the recommendations of the Venice Commission.
18. As regards the situation of minorities, the Assembly will closely monitor the investigations into
allegations of hate crimes and ethnically and religiously motived attacks that took place since the
announcement of the August elections results.
19. The Assembly resolves to assess the progress made in the aforementioned areas after the general
elections held in 2020.
Resolution 2374 (2021)
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Resolution 2375 (2021)1
Provisional version
The arrest and detention of Alexei Navalny in January 2021
Parliamentary Assembly
1. Alexei Navalny is a Russian opposition politician and anti-corruption campaigner. On 17 January 2021,
he returned to Russia from Germany following treatment for alleged poisoning. He was arrested on arrival
under a warrant issued for having breached the terms of a suspended sentence passed in 2014 in the so-
called Yves Rocher case. On 2 February 2021, the Simonovskiy District Court of Moscow converted the
suspended sentence into a sentence of two years and eight months in prison. Since 12 March 2021,
Mr Navalny has been held at Penal Colony no. 2 in Pokrov, east of Moscow.
2. The Parliamentary Assembly recalls that in its 2017 judgment in the case of Navalnyye v. Russia, the
European Court of Human Rights held that the conviction of Mr Navalny (and that of his brother) in the Yves
Rocher case had violated the prohibition on punishment without law (article 7 of the European Convention on
Human Rights, ETS No. 5), as the relevant offences had been “extensively and arbitrarily construed”,
inconsistent with the essence of the offence; and violated his right to a fair trial (article 6), since the domestic
courts had acted so arbitrarily as to fundamentally undermine the fairness of the trial. The Court called for the
criminal proceedings to be reopened, and for the domestic courts to be obliged to remedy the aforementioned
violations.
3. The Assembly notes that in April 2018, the Russian Supreme Court reopened the criminal proceedings
but found no grounds to quash or change Mr Navalny’s conviction, asserting that the relevant offences had
been fully established and all procedural requirements had been met. It further notes that the Russian
Government has claimed that the Navalnyye judgment has been fully executed, referring to the Supreme
Court’s decision and its own payment to Mr Navalny of the just satisfaction and legal costs and expenses
awarded by the European Court of Human Rights.
4. It recalls that the European Court of Human Rights has ultimate jurisdiction over all questions of
interpretation and application of the European Convention on Human Rights. It further recalls that States
parties to the Convention are obliged to execute in full the judgments of the Court.
5. The Assembly notes that, in March 2021, the Committee of Ministers adopted a decision on the
implementation by the Russian Federation of the Navalnyye judgment of the European Court of Human
Rights. The Committee of Ministers expressed “grave concern” that the reopening of the proceedings had not
remedied the violations and “profound concern” that Mr Navalny’s suspended sentence had been converted
into a prison sentence. It urged the authorities to take “all possible measures to quash” Mr Navalny’s
conviction and to release him without delay. It further decided to return to the case at its next meeting in June
2021, when it would consider adopting an interim resolution should Mr Navalny not by then have been
released.
1. Assembly debate on 22 April 2021 (14th sitting) (see Doc. 15270, report of the Committee on Legal Affairs and
Human Rights, rapporteur: Mr Jacques Maire). Text adopted by the Assembly on 22 April 2021 (14th sitting).
See also Recommendation 2202 (2021).
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6. It recalls that the Committee of Ministers is competent under the European Convention on Human
Rights to supervise the execution of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights, including by
determining when a respondent State has implemented all the necessary measures. It further recalls the
procedural tools available to the Committee of Ministers under article 46 of the Convention, should there be a
problem of interpretation of a judgment or should a respondent State refuse to execute it.
7. The Assembly notes that in February 2021, the European Court of Human Rights granted an interim
measure requiring the Russian Government to release Mr Navalny with immediate effect, “having regard to
the nature and extent of the risk to [Mr Navalny’s] life … and seen in the light of the overall circumstances of
[his] current detention”. The Assembly, recalling its Resolution 1991 (2014) “Urgent need to deal with new
failures to co-operate with the European Court of Human Rights” reaffirms that interim measures are legally
binding.
8. The Assembly notes with grave concern that Mr Navalny’s medical condition is said to have
deteriorated significantly since he was detained. It notes that the prison medical service has diagnosed
Mr Navalny as suffering from multiple herniated spinal discs, and that an independent medical specialist has
stated that Mr Navalny’s current treatment by the prison medical service – which Mr Navalny has largely
declined to accept – is “contraindicated, undesirable and ineffective” and could cause further serious health
problems. Mr Navalny’s requests to be examined by a specialist of his choice have not been granted.
Mr Navalny has been on hunger strike since 31 March 2021. The Assembly considers that despite the
Russian authorities’ claim that Mr Navalny’s current health condition is “satisfactory”, the apparent failure to
provide Mr Navalny with adequate medical care in prison may raise issues under article 3 of the European
Convention on Human Rights (prohibition on inhuman treatment or punishment).
9. The Assembly considers that further issues under the European Convention on Human Rights may be
raised by other aspects of Mr Navalny’s detention conditions, including that he is reportedly disturbed by
prison guards repeatedly during the night, causing cumulative sleep deprivation; he is reportedly strip-
searched prior to meeting his lawyers; and his lawyers have complained of extensive limitations on their
access to their client. The Assembly considers that the broadcasting of videos of Mr Navalny in detention,
including one made by a prison monitor accompanied by a film crew from a State-funded media outlet and
others apparently recorded by prison guards and prison surveillance cameras, may raise issues under article
8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (respect for private life).
10. The Assembly notes that Mr Navalny has been categorised as an escape risk, despite having returned
to Russia voluntarily; and has been cited for numerous disciplinary infractions in prison but has reportedly
been denied access to his personal file, despite having a right to contest these citations. The Assembly notes
with concern that these two considerations may result in Mr Navalny being denied early release, for which he
may become eligible in the near future.
11. The Assembly notes that Mr Navalny and his lawyers have repeatedly written to the relevant
authorities, including the prison administration, the federal service for the execution of sentences, the
prosecutor general, and the human rights ombudsman. It notes that only the ombudsman has replied to any of
these letters, refuting all complaints about Mr Navalny’s medical and detention conditions on the basis of
information from the prison service, a prison monitor who had accused Mr Navalny of faking his symptoms,
and a prison monitor whose confrontational meeting with Mr Navalny was broadcast on State-funded media.
The Assembly considers that these circumstances raise questions about the effectiveness of the domestic
mechanisms for addressing complaints concerning Mr Navalny’s medical condition and conditions of
detention.
12. The Assembly therefore:
12.1. expresses its full support for the position of the Committee of Ministers as set out in its March
2021 decision;
12.2. calls on the Russian Federation:
12.2.1. to intensify its co-operation with the Committee of Ministers in order to achieve full
implementation of the Navalnyye judgment;
12.2.2. further to the Committee of Ministers’ decision and the interim measure granted by the
European Court of Human Rights, to release Mr Navalny immediately and in any event before
the next ‘human rights’ meeting of the Committee of Ministers in June 2021;
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12.2.3. pending his release, to provide Mr Navalny with all necessary medical care, including
examination and treatment by a doctor of his choice, and to ensure that his rights under the
European Convention on Human Rights and domestic law are fully respected;
12.3. invites the Committee for the Prevention of Torture or Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment (CPT) to conduct a monitoring visit to the detention facility where Mr Navalny is being held;
calls on the Russian Federation to authorise promptly the publication of any report resulting from such a
visit;
12.4. calls on the Russian delegation to the Assembly to co-operate fully with the rapporteur in the
exercise of his mandate to ensure follow-up to the present resolution, in accordance with the
Assembly’s Rules of Procedure;
12.5. resolves to continue to follow closely the situation of Mr Navalny.
Resolution 2375 (2021)
3
Resolution 2376 (2021)1
Provisional version
The functioning of democratic institutions in Turkey
Parliamentary Assembly
1. Since Turkey was put under the parliamentary monitoring procedure in April 2017, the Parliamentary
Assembly has been closely following the developments in this country in a spirit of dialogue and co-operation
with the authorities. Regrettably, a number of issues of concern have remained unaddressed by the Turkish
authorities despite the recommendations based on the findings of the Council of Europe monitoring
mechanisms. Notably, the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission) had
identified structural deficiencies encompassed in the constitutional amendments that established the
presidential system in 2017. The most serious issues of concern include the lack of independence of the
judiciary, the lack of sufficient safeguards for the separation of powers and checks and balances, restrictions
on freedom of expression and the media, the abusive interpretation of the anti-terror legislation, non-execution
of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights, restrictions applied to the protection of human and
women’s rights and infringement of the fundamental rights of politicians and (former) members of parliament
from the opposition, lawyers, journalists, academics and civil society activists.
2. In the past years, the Assembly has been concerned about the constant deterioration of the rights of
opposition politicians and of their ability to exercise their elected mandates, thus seriously undermining the
functioning of democratic institutions in Turkey. The Assembly resorted to organise three urgent procedure
debates entitled “The worsening situation of opposition politicians in Turkey: what can be done to protect their
fundamental rights in a Council of Europe member State?” (Resolution 2260 (2019) of January 2019), the
“New crackdown on political opposition and civil dissent in Turkey: urgent need to safeguard Council of
Europe standards” (See Resolution 2347 (2020) of October 2020) and the present debate on “The functioning
of democratic institutions”. This debate was triggered by worrying developments over recent months, notably
the lifting of parliamentary immunities, the attempt to close the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) and the
decision to withdraw from the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against
Women and Domestic Violence (CETS No.210, the Istanbul Convention) announced by the President.
3. On 20 March 2021, the President of the Republic signed a presidential decision withdrawing from the
Istanbul Convention. This convention was opened for signature during the Turkish Presidency of the
Committee of Ministers in Istanbul ten years ago. The Grand National Assembly was the first parliament in
Europe to ratify it in 2012 by a unanimous vote, thus playing a pioneering and leading role in promoting this
convention across Europe, which has become the gold standard in the fight against violence against women
and domestic violence. In Turkey, the ratification of the convention was a push factor leading to the adoption
of Law No. 6284 on Protection of Family and Prevention of Violence Against Women in 2012 by the Turkish
parliament.
4. The Assembly deeply regrets that this presidential decision was taken without any parliamentary debate
and on account of misleading narratives which run counter to the very objective of the Istanbul Convention. It
underlines that it is urgent to hold a discussion on the Istanbul Convention that is based on facts – not on
politically motivated misconceptions and myths. The Assembly stresses that parliaments are the place where
societal and human rights issues must be debated in Council of Europe member States. The Istanbul
1. Assembly debate on 22 April 2021 (14th sitting) (see Doc. 15272, report of the Committee on the Honouring of
Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring Committee), co-rapporteurs:
Mr Thomas Hammarberg and Mr John Howell). Text adopted by the Assembly on 22 April 2021 (14th sitting).
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Convention has therefore ensured that parliaments are directly involved in the monitoring of the convention,
as well as its implementation. In respect to Turkey, the Assembly notes that all major opposition parties,
including the Republican People's Party (CHP), the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) and the Good Party
(IYI), women’s organisations and individual citizens have expressed their attachment to being part of the
Istanbul Convention by seizing the State Council to annul the presidential decision of 20 March 2021.
5. Without prejudice to the decision of the State Council, the Assembly encourages the Turkish Grand
National Assembly to engage in a meaningful debate in parliament, liaise with civil society organisations active
in this field, remain committed to the fight against violence against women and domestic violence and ensure
that all measures are taken to protect the victims, prosecute the perpetrators, prevent violence against women
and promote gender equality, as required by the positive obligations of member States under the European
Convention of Human Rights (ETS No. 5). In this respect it welcomes the creation, on 9 March 2021, of an ad
hoc parliamentary committee on “Researching the causes of violence against women to determine the
necessary policies”.
6. The Assembly underlines that even though the Turkish national legislation may be sufficient to combat
violence against women, withdrawing from the Istanbul Convention implies that Turkey can no longer benefit
from its provisions relating to international co-operation in criminal matters and seek co-operation from other
States parties to bring the perpetrators of crimes against women to justice. The withdrawal also sends a
message to the international community about a deprioritisation of the fight against violence against women.
The Assembly sincerely hopes that a way will be found for Turkey to reintegrate the convention.
7. The Assembly recalls that violence against women is widespread in all societies and cannot be justified
on any grounds. It concerns all segments of society, beyond political and societal lines. Recalling its
Resolution 2289 (2019) on The Istanbul Convention on violence against women: achievements and
challenges, the Assembly reaffirms for its part its commitment to promote the ratification and implementation
of the Istanbul Convention in Europe, and beyond, notably through its “Network of Women free from violence”
and reiterates its full support to civil society organisations promoting and protecting women’s rights. For the
Assembly, withdrawing from a human-rights based convention (unanimously) ratified by the parliament
constitutes a step backwards for the country. At the European level, it weakens the multilateral co-operation
promoted by the 47 Council of Europe member States and prevents the country benefiting from the added-
value of an independent monitoring mechanism (the Group of Experts on Action against Violence against
Women and Domestic Violence – GREVIO).
8. The Assembly notes with concern that the unilateral decision of the President to withdraw from an
international treaty without any consultation of the parliament or the society has triggered speculative debates
about possible withdrawals from other international treaties, including the European Convention of Human
Rights. This could affect the country’s legal stability and predictability. While the ratification and denunciation
of treaties are a matter of national sovereignty, the Assembly notes that the unprecedented withdrawal from a
major Council of Europe convention has raised many questions and concerns about its democratic processes.
In light of these developments, a reflection should be launched about standards that should govern the
ratification and withdrawal from international treaties in democratic societies, beyond the minimal legal and
constitutional conditions. The Assembly therefore asks the Venice Commission to prepare a comparative
study and possible guidelines about the modalities that should govern the ratification and withdrawal from
Council of Europe conventions.
9. Another adverse development relates to the weak framework for the protection of parliamentary
immunity in Turkey, already highlighted in previous Assembly resolutions. The Assembly notes with concern
that one third of the parliamentarians are currently targeted by legal proceedings and could see their immunity
lifted. Opposition parliamentarians are overwhelmingly concerned by these procedures, and parliamentarians
from the HDP Party are disproportionally targeted – they account for 75% of the proceedings, mostly under
terrorism-related charges. Three members of the HDP lost their mandates in 2020 and 2021 following final
convictions for terrorism, while nine HDP parliamentarians currently face aggravated life sentences for their
alleged organisation of the “Kobane protests” in October 2014.
10. On a positive note, the Assembly welcomes the return to the parliament of CHP parliamentarian Enis
Berberoğlu following two rulings of the Constitutional Court which found that his rights to be elected and
engage in political activities had been violated. The Assembly recalls that in a country governed by rule of law,
lower courts must abide by rulings of the Constitutional Court. It deplores however the new proceedings which
were launched in the meantime to again strip Mr Berberoğlu’s immunity.
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2
11. At the same time, the Assembly is appalled by the conviction of HDP parliamentarian Ömer Faruk
Gergerlioğlu to 2,5 years in prison for “making propaganda for a terrorist organisation” after re-tweeting a
news article – who was not incriminated – in August 2016. This conviction was upheld by the Supreme Court
of Cassation in February 2021 and the execution of the sentence was not suspended until the end of
Mr Gergerlioğlu’s mandate – contrary to customary practice. As a result, Mr Gergerlioğlu lost his mandate
after the sentence was read out in parliament on 17 March 2021 and he was detained on 27 March 2021.
12. The Assembly regrets that the Constitutional Court did not have the possibility to review the pending
individual application lodged by Mr Gergerlioğlu before the execution of the sentence became effective, thus
resulting in a loss of parliamentary mandate with immediate effect. The Assembly asks the Turkish authorities
to ensure harmonised judiciary practice pertaining to the execution of convictions of MPs with due respect to
their parliamentary immunity and to ensure a speedy examination of individual applications by the
Constitutional Court which, in the past, has been instrumental in redressing the violation of rights of
parliamentarians and allowed their return to parliament.
13. The Assembly is concerned that opposition parliamentarians seem to be subject to a possible stripping
of immunity on a routine basis for their statements or publications. The Assembly notes with great concern
that one third of the parliamentarians, including the leaders of the two main opposition parties in parliament,
are subject to such procedures. This is highly problematic and creates prejudice to ensuring the sound
functioning of a parliament. In addition, it has a chilling effect discouraging dynamic debate, which is essential
for a properly functioning democracy. The Assembly therefore urges the Turkish authorities to put an end to
the judicial harassment of parliamentarians and refrain from submitting numerous summaries of proceedings
seeking the undue lifting of their immunity which gravely impedes the exercise of their political mandate.
14. The Assembly cannot but reiterate its concerns about restrictions to freedom of expression, which
impedes the exercise of political mandates. It regrets that no progress was made regarding the interpretation
of the anti-terrorism legislation which is not in line with the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights.
As a result, a high number of convictions are pronounced based on a too wide interpretation of this legislation
or of controversial provisions of the Criminal Code. The Assembly urges the Turkish authorities to address the
“pervasive problems regarding [the] independence and impartiality” of the judiciary system noted by the
Committee of Ministers in March 2021 – and prevent politically motivated rulings that contradict Council of
Europe standards.
15. The Assembly underscores the primordial role played in a democratic regime by political parties. It is
therefore extremely concerned about the steps taken by the Supreme Court of Cassation, at the request of
the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), to close the second largest opposition party in Turkish Parliament and
to ban 687 HDP members for their alleged ties to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). The Assembly notes
that the indictment of 17 March 2021 was returned by the Constitutional Court to the Supreme Court of
Cassation for serious deficiencies on 31 March 2021.
16. The Assembly recalls that it had opposed the closure of the ruling party (namely the AK Party) in its
Resolution 1622 (2008) “Functioning of democratic institutions in Turkey: recent developments” in which it had
stressed that “the dissolution of political parties should be regarded as an exceptional measure to be applied
only in cases where the party concerned uses violence or threatens civil peace and the democratic
constitutional order of the country”.
17. The Assembly also recalls that political parties enjoy the freedoms and rights enshrined in Article 11
(freedom of assembly and association) and Article 10 (freedom of expression) of the European Convention of
Human Rights. Closures of political parties are a drastic measure which should only occur as a last resort in
strictly defined situations. The Assembly remains confident that the Constitutional Court will be guided by the
strict regulations governing the closure of political parties in Turkey, the case-law of the European Court of
Human Rights – where exceptions set out in Article 11 need to be strictly construed, with a limited margin of
appreciation of Contracting States – and by the 1999 Guidelines on prohibition and dissolution of political
parties and analogous measures of the Venice Commission.
18. Whatever the outcome of this pending procedure, the Assembly underscores that the launch of a
lawsuit against the second largest opposition party combined with continuous harassment and arrests of its
members, elected representatives and leaders is an alarming signal in itself reflecting the difficulties faced by
the opposition. This seriously undermines the functioning of democratic institutions and political pluralism at
national and local levels. In this respect, the Assembly regrets the lack of any progress in the re-instatement of
the 48 dismissed mayors (out of 59) from the HDP elected in March 2019, in contradiction with the Council of
Europe standards, or in revising the legislation so as to ensure its compliance with the European Charter of
Local Self-Government (ETS No.122).
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19. The Assembly recalls that the proper functioning of democratic institutions in a representative
democracy requires fair election procedures, a sound legal basis and safe environment for the functioning of
political parties, guaranteed freedom of expression and media that allow for the expression of opposition
viewpoints and for democratic transitions of power. The Assembly notes that reforms of the Law on the
political parties and electoral legislation are envisaged. It encourages the Turkish authorities to seize this
opportunity to address the long-lasting issues of concerns raised by the Assembly and the Venice
Commission in previous years:
19.1. concerning the electoral law, the Assembly welcomes the intention expressed by the authorities
to lower the election threshold (presently 10%) which is the highest in Europe. This has been a long-
lasting request from the Assembly. The Assembly asks the Turkish authorities, when revising the
election legislation, to take into account the need to ensure fair electoral processes conducted in an
environment conducive to freedom of expression and freedom of the media;
19.2. at the same time, the Assembly recalls that a genuinely pluralistic democracy requires that
parties across the political spectrum are able to operate and reflect the opinions of the voters in their
diversity, including minorities;
19.3. in order to increase good governance and a level playing field in politics, the Assembly
encourages the Turkish authorities, in line with the recommendations contained in the two compliance
reports published by the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO, Third and Fourth Rounds of
Evaluation) in March 2021, to improve the legal and regulatory framework and in particular to:
19.3.1. take resolute action to strengthen transparency in the financing of political parties and
election campaigns, where considerable progress is yet to be made;
19.3.2. improve the prevention of corruption in respect of members of parliament, judges and
prosecutors, in particular by adopting a law on ethical conduct for members of parliament,
enhancing the transparency of the legislative process;
19.3.3. introduce structural changes which would ensure judicial independence, including the
revision of the composition of the Council of Judges and Prosecutors which does not comply
with European standards with regard to the independent self-governing body of the judiciary,
and allows the executive to have a strong influence on a number of key matters regarding the
running of the judiciary.
20. The Assembly recalls the concerns already highlighted with respect to freedom of expression and the
media, and to the situation of journalists. The Assembly remains concerned about the high number of
journalists who remain in prison, are prosecuted for working as journalists or resolve to self-censorship. In this
context, the Assembly draws attention to some meaningful developments:
20.1. the Assembly welcomes the decision of the Constitutional Court of 8 April 2021 repealing a
statutory decree article that set the basis for the closures of media outlets on the ground of “posing a
threat to national security” and reversing a provision that paved the way for the seizure of the properties
that were shut down;
20.2. the Assembly welcomes two Chamber’s rulings (not final) of the European Court of Human
Rights of 13 April 2021 related to the cases Ahmet Hüsrev Altan v. Turkey and Murat Aksoy v. Turkey,
concerning two journalists arrested after the failed coup due to their publications, their alleged
membership to the Gülen Movement and their alleged preparation of a coup. While Murat Aksoy has
been released from pre-trial detention in 2017, renowned journalist and novelist, Ahmet Altan, has been
in jail since 2016. The Court found, notably, a violation of their rights to freedom of expression, liberty
and security of the two plaintiffs due to lack of evidence, lack of reasonable suspicion and lack of
access to their files. The Assembly welcomes the swift decision taken by the Supreme Court of
Cassation to release Ahmet Altan on the following day.
21. The Assembly expect the Turkish authorities to undertake the necessary reforms to address the above-
mentioned concerns. It takes good note of the launch of the Human Rights Action Plan on 2 March 2021
prepared in consultation with Council of Europe and other relevant international bodies. It aims notably at
strengthening the right to a fair trial, protecting and strengthening freedom of expression, association and
religion and promoting legal predictability and transparency. The Assembly encourages the authorities, to fine-
tune the scope of this action plan so as to address pressing human rights and rule of law issues, including the
strengthening of the independence of the judiciary, the revision of the too widely interpreted anti-terror law and
the protection of human rights defenders, in co-operation with the Council of Europe. The Assembly also
invites the authorities to ensure that the action plan will be accomplished by a detailed roadmap with specific
actions to be taken to achieve its goals.
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22. In the meantime, the Assembly expects the Turkish authorities to take concrete and meaningful steps
and thus abide by its Council of Europe obligations. The Assembly in particular urges the immediate release
of former HDP co-chair Selahattin Demirtaş and philanthropist Osman Kavala in application of the rulings of
European Court of Human Rights of 2020 and subsequent decisions of the Committee of Ministers which is
supervising their implementation. The Assembly recalls that the Court ruled that there was, in both cases, a
violation of article 18 of the Convention and that the sentences were pursuing an ulterior purpose:
Mr Demirtaş’s detention sought to stifle pluralism and limit freedom of political debate, while Mr Kavala’s
detention aimed at silencing him and acted as a dissuasion to other human rights defenders.
23. The Assembly also insists that civil society activists need to be able to operate in a safe and free
environment. The Assembly remains concerned by on-going procedures targeting human rights activists, and
calls upon the authorities to:
23.1. drop the charges against the members of the “Büyükada trial”, Öztürk Türkdoğan, Chair of the
Human Rights Association and, in general, ensure that human rights activists, including LGBT and
women’s activists, can exercise their freedom of expression and assembly without undue judicial
pressure;
23.2. refrain from incriminating, prosecuting and arresting peaceful demonstrators, students and
LGBT people, in particular those protesting the appointment of the rector of Boğaziçi University or the
withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention;
23.3. repeal or revise, in line with the relevant recommendations of the Venice Commission, the
provisions contained in the 2020 “Law on the Prevention of Financing of the Proliferation of Weapons of
Mass Destruction”, providing for the possible temporary suspension of NGO leaders facing terror-
related investigations and their replacement by government-appointed trustees, which further restrict
NGOs activities and freedom of association in the name of counter-terrorism, as highlighted by the
Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights.
24. The Assembly strongly reiterates its call on the Turkish authorities to put an end to laws and practices
that contravene democratic standards, to revise its legislation and constitutional framework in order to ensure
the separation of powers, to restore freedom of speech and media freedom, to restrict the interpretation of its
anti-terror legislation, and to implement the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights.
25. The Assembly strongly encourages the Turkish authorities to make use of the Council of Europe
expertise in order to elaborate and implement the reforms needed to restore the independence of the
judiciary, reinstate proper checks and balances which are an essential condition in a democratic society
governed by the rule of law. The Assembly expects the Turkish authorities to live up to the democratic
aspirations of its vibrant civil and political society, genuinely committed to democracy, to act and speak out
freely and safely.
26. The Assembly also resolves, in the framework of the monitoring procedure for Turkey, to follow the
developments in the country concerning democracy, rule of law and human rights. It urges the Turkish
authorities to engage in a meaningful and constructive dialogue and to assess progress made in a
comprehensive monitoring report to be presented in the course of a future part-session of the Assembly.
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