Transcript BPW Tullamore

BPW Europe Leadership
Summit
ÁINE FEENEY
BPW INTERNATIONAL REP TO INGO CONFERENCE OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE
BPW IRELAND NATIONAL REP TO NWCI
Promoting Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law
Intergovernmental Organisation
47 member states
IN BRIEF
Decision-making
body: Committee of Ministers
(=Foreign ministers of the member
states)
Consultative bodies: Parliamentary
Assembly; Congress of Local and
Regional Authorities; Conference
of INGOs; Commissioner for Human
Rights
Main legal instrument: European
Court of Human Rights (ECtHR)
Legal basis: European
Convention on Human Rights
(ECHR) plus more than 200
Conventions, Additional Protocols
and Partial Agreements
Administration: Secretary General
plus Secretariat
Annual budget: € 300 million
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https://www.youtube.com/watch
?feature=player_embedded&v=7S
KqVzlHc9o
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HUMAN RIGHTS
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In accordance with the European
Convention on Human Rights 1953 – ECHR:
Human Rights, as they are put down in the
ECHR, cover basic rights and freedoms like
the right to life; the right to liberty and
security; the right to a fair trial; the right to
freedom of thought, conscience and
religion or the right to freedom of expression.
They also ban certain things like; torture;
discrimination; slavery and forced labour or
punishment without law.
DEMOCRACY
A democracy is –
among other things,
based on free and fair
elections, a pluralistic
media environment
and a parliament,
which holds the actual
power and is made up
by different political
parties.
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RULE OF LAW

A state, governed by the rule of law, is –
among other things – based on a
constitution, its judicial authorities hold fair
trials and it punishes its citizens neither
arbitrarily nor excessively, but in
accordance with the law.
Council of Europe Structure
8 key institutions
Committee of Ministers
The Committee of Ministers meets only once a year for a plenary session. During the rest of
the year, the Foreign Ministers – who constitute the Committee of Ministers – are represented
in Strassburg by their ambassadors.
These ambassadors are, therefore, called Permanent Representatives, and the Embassies of
the Council of Europe member states in Strassburg are Permanent Representations.
THE PARLIAMENTARY
ASSEMBLY
is a consultative body of the Council
of Europe. Since many of the
important instruments were
conceived by the Assembly, it is
often called the Council of Europe’s
“engine”.
The Parliamentary Assembly is
responsible for the election of the
Secretary General of the Council of
Europe, its Human Rights
Commissioner and the judges at the
European Court of Human Rights.
Parliamentary Assembly
Contd
The Assembly brings together 318
delegates (plus 318 substitutes), who
are elected members of parliament
in their respective countries and are
organised in the following five
political groups:
1.
the Socialist Group (SOC)
2.
the Group of the European
People’s Party (EPP/CD)
3.
the Alliance of Liberals and
Democrats for Europe (ALDE)
4.
the European Democrat Group
(EDG)
5.
the Group of the Unified
European Left (UEL)
SECRETARIAT
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On behalf of the Committee of Ministers and under the aegis of the various Council of Europe
bodies, 2,200, in part highly specialised officials from different fields of expertise draft, organise,
coordinate and oversee all activities of the whole organisation.
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The Secretariat is divided into three Directorates-General:
1.
Directorate-General I (Human Rights and Rule of Law)
2.
Directorate-General II (Democracy)
3.
Directorate-General DGA (Administration)
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Unlike the Permanent Representatives of the Committee of Ministers and the diplomats under their
authority, who only work in Strazbourg for a couple of years, before they are posted to a different job
in a different country, the officials in the Secretariat of the Council of Europe remain at the
organisation. Some of the executive staff members have been working for the Council of Europe for
decades, know the organisation inside out and exert considerable influence on it.
Congress of Local and
Regional Authorities
It consists of a chamber of Local authorities
and a chamber of Regional authorities,
whose all in all 318 delegates (plus 318
substitutes) are elected members of local or
regional political bodies in their respective
countries.
The Congress is striving to strengthen the
cooperation between the Council of
Europe member states and to promote
civic rights and liberties at the local and
regional level within its member states. In
this context, the Congress provides the
Committee of Ministers with valuable input.
The Congress holds plenary sessions twice a
year and its members engage in the
following three committees:
Monitoring committee - Governance
committee - Current Affairs committee
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HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSIONER

The creation of the Council of Europe’s
Commissioner for Human Rights is based on a
resolution adopted by the Committee of Ministers
in 1999. As an independent body, the
Commissioner works towards protecting Human
Rights and raising public awareness in regard to
them, in the 47 Council of Europe member states.
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The Commissioner visits the Council of Europe’s
member states in order to gain information from
political stakeholders, NGOs and members of civil
society on site. He meets with leading politicians
and participates in round-table talks.
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The Commissioner is elected by the Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe for a
nonrecurring six-year term of office. In April 2012,
Nils Muižnieks from Latvia was elected Council of
Europe Human Rights Commissioner, becoming
the successor of Thomas Hammarberg from
Sweden (2006-2012) and Alvaro Gil-Robles from
Spain (1999-2006).
EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN
RIGHTS
Every member state sends one judge to the Court.
Each of these judges is democratically elected by
the members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the
Council of Europe. In turn, the Parliamentary
Assembly consists of democratically elected
members of the national parliaments of all member
states. In every court case judged by the Small
Chamber (7 judges) or the Grand Chamber (17
judges), the judge from the country in question is part
of the chamber’s panel.
The Court defends and protects human rights. It does
so on the legal basis of an international treaty –
the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
The human rights, as they are set up within this treaty,
are due to every human being, criminal and
respectable citizen alike.
Conference of INGOS
Agora
INGO CONFERENCE

The Conference of INGOs is a consultative body of the Council of Europe.

It unites more than 400 internationally operating non-governmental
organisations from all areas of civil society.
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These organisations have participatory status at the Council of Europe: They
have to be representative within their respective fields, they have to share the
Council of Europe’s values, and they have to contribute to the Council of
Europe’s work by providing it with their knowledge upon request.
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The INGO Conference meets for a plenary session in Strassburg twice a year. In
between sessions, the Conference remains in constant contact with the political
bodies of the Council of Europe and the Secretariat through its Standing
Committee.
The Council of Europe’s work benefits extensively from contacts and cooperation with the dynamic elements of society, as represented by
NGOs. One of the main challenges currently facing the Organisation is to
strengthen NGOs and civil society and to develop participatory
democracy on a pan-European basis.
The Council of Europe’s relations with NGOs focus on the following:
I. Relations with international NGOs (INGOs): this can seen as the Council
of Europe’s statutory relations with NGOs through the INGOs holding
participatory status, known collectively as the Conference of INGOs of
the Council of Europe. Through this status INGOs are now actively
contributing to the decision-making process at the Council of Europe and
to the implementation of its programmes, thus ensuring their relevance to
the expectations of Europeans.
II Civil Society Initiatives and Programmes with partner NGOs: civil society initiatives and
co-operation programmes aim at strengthening the role of civil society in a pluralist
democracy, in particular to improving relations between NGOs and public authorities.
Since the introduction of consultative status for INGOs in 1952, the Council of Europe has
developed even closer and fruitful relations with NGOs as representatives of civil society.
The introduction of participatory status in 2003 has enabled INGOs to increase active
participation in the policies and work programme of the Council of Europe, and to
reinforce co-operation between the Council of Europe and the various associations in
member States.
Mandate of the Conference of INGOs
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The Conference of INGOs is the chief body representing the INGOs enjoying
participatory status with the Council of Europe and as such identifies the general
action needed to organise its participation in the Council of Europe “quadrilogue”,
ensure that participatory status functions correctly, and so help to affirm the political
role of civil society at the Council of Europe. It decides on policy lines and defines and
adopts action programmes.
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The Conference of INGOs is chaired by its President in office, whom it elects every
three years. The current President of the Conference of INGOs, Ms Anna Ruka, who
was elected in January 2015 for her first term of office of three years.
Session Schedules
Winter Session – January Each year
Summer Session – June Each year
Current priorities
and objectives of
the Conference
of INGOs
The Standing Committee of the
Conference of INGOs of the
Council of Europe adopted the
aims and objectives of the
Conference of INGOs at its
meeting in Strasbourg on 26
January, 2015. Promoting the
Council of Europe's values,
giving substance to
participatory democracy and
developing the political role of
the Conference of INGOs
constitute the three main
priorities.
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HR Committee – Working Group on the Istanbul
Convention
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Chair Betty Doornenbal, Since Jan 2015 Anne
Negre
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The committee of the parties to the
Convention held their first meeting 4/ 5th May,
2015
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Total number of ratifications – 18 (10 ony
required for implementation)
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Democracy, Social Cohesion and Global
Challenges Committee – Education Working
Group– Living together project
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Chair – Prof Karl Donart
Working Groups
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Working Group A – Human Rights Co-development and Migration,
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Working Group B – Interfield Co-operation for the Protection of Children
against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse,
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Working Group C – Abolition of Torture making particular reference to the
torture conference which had taken place the previous November,
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Working Group D – Human Rights Defenders and
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Working Group E - Fighting against Hate Speech.
Effectiveness of the COE Conference
Parliamentary Assembly
Democratic Decision Making
Representation
Effective Lobbying
400 NGO’S represented
Collaborative Representation
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used
when we created them………Albert Einstein
May, 2015