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118-728: The award was established in 2013 by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe , the Václav Havel Library and the Charta 77 Foundation and is awarded in memory of Václav Havel , former President of Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic . It replaces the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Human Rights Prize , which was created in 2009 and awarded every two years. The prize

236-568: A motion by the Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development a year prior, the Assembly passed a resolution and an accompanying recommendation on children's right to physical integrity. These documents argued that while PACE had addressed forms of child abuse such as sexual violence and domestic violence, it was also necessary to address what they called "non-medically justified violations of children's physical integrity which may have

354-562: A 'multi-lingual talking shop'." Its development since its foundation shows how the European Union 's structures have evolved without a clear 'master plan'. Tom Reid of The Washington Post has said of the union that "nobody would have deliberately designed a government as complex and as redundant as the EU". Even the Parliament's three working locations , which have switched several times, are

472-548: A President or his Commission, but the threat to do so has produced concessions to Parliament on the Commission's composition or on policy commitments. As described above, when the Barroso Commission was put forward, the Parliament forced the proposal to be withdrawn and changed to be more acceptable to Parliament. That pressure was seen as an important sign by some of the evolving nature of the Parliament and its ability to make

590-464: A great deal of indirect influence, through non-binding resolutions and committee hearings , as a "pan-European soapbox " with the ear of thousands of Brussels-based journalists . There is also an indirect effect on foreign policy ; the Parliament must approve all development grants, including those overseas. For example, the support for post-war Iraq reconstruction, or incentives for the cessation of Iranian nuclear development , must be supported by

708-401: A long-lasting impact on their lives". They called for a ban on the most harmful practices, such as female genital mutilation, while also calling for increased dialogue on other procedures they viewed as harmful, such as infant male circumcision, intersex medical interventions, and body piercings. While none of the above documents called for an outright ban on male circumcision, they did call for

826-706: A member state. In the months since, the Assembly has on several occasions debated the consequences of Russia's aggression against Ukraine, including the legal consequences, and the practical support it can give to Ukraine. In October 2022, for example, it adopted a resolution declaring the Russian regime a "terrorist" one, while in January 2023 it unanimously demanded the setting up of an international criminal tribunal in The Hague to prosecute Russian and Belarusian political and military leaders who "planned, prepared, initiated or executed"

944-541: A month, but sometimes there are additional sessions in Brussels, while the Parliament's committee meetings are held primarily in Brussels, Belgium. In practice, the Parliament works three weeks per month in Brussels and one week (four days) in Strasbourg. The Parliament, like the other EU institutions, was not designed in its current form when it first met on 10 September 1952. One of the oldest common institutions, it began as

1062-523: A path towards membership for former Communist countries with its "Special Guest status", paving the way for the historic reconciliation of European nations under one roof. In two reports for the Assembly in 2006 and 2007, Swiss Senator and former Prosecutor Dick Marty revealed convincing evidence that terror suspects were being transported to, held and tortured in CIA-run "secret prisons" on European soil. The evidence in his first report in 2006 – gathered with

1180-482: A result of various agreements or lack of agreements. Although most MEPs would prefer to be based just in Brussels, where it conducts the bulk of its work, at John Major 's 1992 Edinburgh summit , France engineered a treaty amendment whereby the European Parliament's official seat is in Strasbourg. The body was not mentioned in the original Schuman Declaration . It was assumed or hoped that difficulties with

1298-536: A series of rulings by the European Court of Human Rights , as well as a comprehensive US Senate report – threw the first real light on a dark chapter in US and European history in the aftermath of the 11 September attacks , kicked off a series of national probes, and helped to make torture on European soil less likely. In April 2014, after the Russian parliament's backing for the annexation of Crimea and Russo-Ukrainian War ,

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1416-434: A text, which they do (or not) through successive readings up to a maximum of three. In its first reading, Parliament may send amendments to the Council which can either adopt the text with those amendments or send back a "common position". That position may either be approved by Parliament, or it may reject the text by an absolute majority , causing it to fail, or it may adopt further amendments, also by an absolute majority. If

1534-451: A vote of 116 in favour, 62 against and 15 abstentions. As a result, the Russian delegation which included Pyotr Olegovich Tolstoy as its head, returned to PACE with its full rights after a gap of five years. In response, the Ukrainian delegation protested before the Assembly, and announced Ukraine would leave the institution. Ukraine returned to PACE in January 2020. On 25 February 2022 -

1652-605: Is an instrument which is applicable to a particular person or group. Institutions may also issue recommendations and opinions which are merely non-binding, declarations. The Parliament and the Council are also the Union's budgetary authority since the Budgetary Treaties of the 1970s and the Lisbon Treaty . The EU budget is subject to a form of the ordinary legislative procedure with a single reading giving Parliament power over

1770-684: Is awarded at a special ceremony which takes place during the autumn plenary session of the Parliamentary Assembly in Strasbourg . The former Czech First Lady, Dagmar Havlová , is invited to attend. Each year, the Václav Havel Library organises a conference in Prague in honour of the prizewinner. The agreement on the creation of the award was signed at the Czernin Palace in Prague on March 25, 2013 by

1888-427: Is now regarded as a major achievement of the Council of Europe as a whole, and it now joins others in pressing for abolition worldwide. Over the decades, the Assembly has been at the forefront of supporting democratic change in successive waves of European nations at key moments in their history, negotiating their entry into the Council of Europe "club of democracies" (as the Assembly has a veto on any new member joining

2006-711: Is one of a number that are awarded by different institutions of the Council of Europe and should not be confused with the Václav Havel Prize for Creative Dissent , with which it has no connection. The prize is decided by a jury consisting of the President of the Parliamentary Assembly and six independent personalities with expertise in human rights issues. The jury draws up a shortlist of three nominees in September each year, before deciding on an overall winner in October. The prize

2124-596: Is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions . Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts European legislation, following a proposal by the European Commission . The Parliament is composed of 720 members (MEPs), after the June 2024 European elections, from a previous 705 MEPs. It represents

2242-420: Is one of the two statutory bodies of the Council of Europe, along with the Committee of Ministers , the executive body representing governments, with which it holds an ongoing dialogue. However, it is the Assembly which is usually regarded as the "motor" of the organisation, holding governments to account on human rights issues, pressing states to maintain democratic standards, proposing fresh ideas and generating

2360-581: Is seen as the birth of the modern European Parliament, with Parliament's 50 years celebrations being held in March 2008 rather than 2002. The three communities merged their remaining organs as the European Communities in 1967, and the body's name was changed to the current "European Parliament" in 1962. In 1970 the Parliament was granted power over areas of the Communities' budget , which were expanded to

2478-542: Is strong. In 2007, this became evident when the Parliamentary Assembly voted on a report compiled by Anne Brasseur of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party on the rise of Christian creationism , bolstered by right-wing and populist parties in Eastern Europe. In 2018, an online archive of all speeches made to the Parliamentary Assembly by heads of state or government since its creation in 1949 appeared on

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2596-810: Is the body's speaker and presides over the multi-party chamber. The five largest political groups are the European People's Party Group (EPP), the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D), Patriots for Europe (PfE), the European Conservatives and Reformists Group (ECR), and Renew Europe (Renew). The last EU-wide election was held in 2024 . The Parliament's headquarters are officially in Strasbourg , France, and has its administrative offices in Luxembourg City . Plenary sessions are normally held in Strasbourg for four days

2714-514: The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe . The liberals gave support after Barroso gave them a number of concessions; the liberals previously joined the socialists' call for a delayed vote (the EPP had wanted to approve Barroso in July of that year). Once Barroso put forward the candidates for his next Commission, another case of MEPs opposing a particular nominee arose. Bulgarian nominee Rumiana Jeleva

2832-546: The Bolkestein directive in 2006. In practice, most legislation is adopted at the first reading stage after the Parliament and the Council, having set out their initial positions, then negotiate a compromise text. These negotiations take place in so-called "trilogue" meetings, in which the Commission is also present. In a few areas, special legislative procedures apply. These include justice and home affairs, budget and taxation, and certain aspects of other policy areas, such as

2950-579: The Common Assembly of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). It was a consultative assembly of 78 appointed parliamentarians drawn from the national parliaments of member states, having no legislative powers. The change since its foundation was highlighted by Professor David Farrell of the University of Manchester : "For much of its life, the European Parliament could have been justly labelled

3068-430: The Council of Europe 's ministerial body to go further and to "immediately" expel Russia from the Council because of its aggression against Ukraine. It is the first time in its history that the Assembly has made such a call. As the debate was drawing to a close, the Russian authorities submitted a formal letter announcing that it was withdrawing from the Council; however, as the expulsion procedure had already begun, this

3186-523: The Council of Europe 's three core statutory aims, defending human rights , promoting democracy and upholding the rule of law . Judges of the European Court of Human Rights are elected by PACE from a list of three candidates nominated by each member state which has ratified the European Convention on Human Rights . A 20-member committee made up of parliamentarians with legal experience – meeting in camera – interviews all candidates for judge on

3304-554: The European Council in 1992. It stated the Parliament would retain its formal seat in Strasbourg, where twelve sessions a year would be held, but with all other parliamentary activity in Brussels. This two-seat arrangement was contested by the Parliament, but was later enshrined in the Treaty of Amsterdam . To this day the institution's locations are a source of contention. The Parliament gained more powers from successive revisions of

3422-514: The GRECO like all its member states is also a matter of criticism. In 2013, The New York Times reported that "some council members, notably Central Asian states and Russia, have tried to influence the organisation's parliamentary assembly with lavish gifts and trips". According to the report, said member states also hire lobbyists to fend off criticism of their human rights records. PACE members have been implicated in corruption scandals relating to

3540-564: The High Representative . MEPs did not manage to get everything they demanded. However, they got broader financial control over the new body. In December 2017, Politico denounced the insufficient racial diversity among Members of the European Parliament. The subsequent news coverage contributed to create the Brussels So White movement to campaign to rectify this situation. On gender balance, some 37 percent of MEPs were women in

3658-473: The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict , European politicians were paid off and received lavish gifts and paid trips . In 2018, an independent investigation found "strong suspicions of corruptive conduct involving members of the Assembly" and named a multiple members as having breached the Assembly's Code of Conduct. Following a series of hearings, it sanctioned many of the members or former members mentioned in

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3776-467: The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe or Pan-African Parliament which are appointed. After that first election, the parliament held its first session on 17 July 1979, electing Simone Veil MEP as its president. Veil was also the first female president of the Parliament since it was formed as the Common Assembly. As an elected body, the Parliament began to draft proposals addressing

3894-491: The right of initiative (i.e. the right to formally initiate the legislative procedure) in the way that most national parliaments of the member states do, as the right of initiative is a prerogative of the European Commission. Nonetheless, the Parliament and the Council each have the right to request the Commission to initiate the legislative procedure and put forward a proposal. The Parliament is, in protocol terms,

4012-460: The "first institution" of the European Union (mentioned first in its treaties and having ceremonial precedence over the other EU institutions), and shares equal legislative and budgetary powers with the Council (except on a few issues where special legislative procedures apply). It likewise has equal control over the EU budget . Ultimately, the European Commission, which serves as the executive branch of

4130-530: The "right to life" included in the European Convention on Human Rights implied a ban on state killing. In 1989 the Assembly took the decision to make ending executions a condition of Council of Europe membership - just before a wave of central and eastern European nations joined the organisation. Today, the death penalty has been abolished in law in all 46 member states in peacetime, though some continue to allow it in time of war. Though rare calls are occasionally heard for its reintroduction, abolition continent-wide

4248-498: The 1920s by the great pioneer of European unity, Count Richard von Coudenhove-Kalergi , and in a 1955 letter to the Council of Europe he proposed it again. However it was not until the early 1970s that the question was taken up by the Assembly's Committee on Regional Planning and Local Authorities. The parliamentarians saw an anthem as the next logical step, after the creation of the European flag in 1955 and Europe Day in 1964, to "spread

4366-426: The 1980s, before it was given any formal right to veto their appointment. Since it became an elected body, the membership of the European Parliament has expanded when new nations have joined (the membership was also adjusted upwards in 1994 after German reunification ). Following this, the Treaty of Nice imposed a cap on the number of members to be elected: 732, later raised to 751 by the Treaty of Lisbon . Like

4484-524: The 1992 Treaty of Maastricht , the Member States gave the Parliament the right to approve or reject an incoming Commission. In the 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam , they gave it the right to approve or reject an incoming President of the Commission. In 2004, following the largest trans-national election in history, the European Council proposed as Commission President a candidate, José Manuel Barroso , from

4602-550: The 2014-19 Parliament and 40 percent in the 2019-24 Parliament, a greater proposition than in most national Parliaments in Member States In January 2019, MEPs supported proposals to boost opportunities for women and tackle sexual harassment in the European Parliament. In 2022, four people were arrested because of corruption. This came to be known as the Qatar corruption scandal at the European Parliament . In October 2023,

4720-469: The Anti-Defamation League. In 2015, PACE passed a resolution on religious freedom and tolerance that referenced its previous resolution on circumcision and reiterated its view that the procedure should only be performed under appropriate medical conditions. Though some outlets reported that PACE had retracted its anti-circumcision stance, PACE clarified that it had neither cancelled nor replaced

4838-481: The Assembly also uses German and Italian as working languages. Each parliamentarian has separate earphones and a desk on which they are able to select the language which they would like to listen to. When foreign guests wish to address the Assembly in languages other than its working languages, they are invited to bring their own interpreters. The Assembly has a total of 612 members in total – 306 principal members and 306 substitutes – who are appointed or elected by

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4956-530: The Assembly decided to suspend the Russian delegation's voting rights as well as the right of Russian members to be represented in the Assembly's leading bodies and to participate in election observation missions. However, the Russian delegation remained members of the Assembly. The sanction applied throughout the remainder of the 2014 session and was renewed for a full year in January 2015, lapsing in January 2016. The sanction applied only to Russian parliamentarians in PACE,

5074-493: The Assembly's main achievements are: Unlike the European Parliament (an institution of the European Union ), the Assembly does not have the power to create binding laws. However, it speaks on behalf of 700 million Europeans and has the power to: Important statutory functions of PACE are the election of the judges of the European Court of Human Rights , from a list of three candidates submitted by governments, as well as

5192-435: The Assembly's website, in either of the two official languages of the Council of Europe, English or French. According to the prize regulations, sponsors must give details of the candidate's work to defend human rights, and provide supporting documentation. Three candidates are shortlisted in September, with the final selection being made in October, just ahead of an award ceremony in Strasbourg. Parliamentary Assembly of

5310-425: The Assembly's website, the fruit of the two-year project entitled "Voices of Europe". At the time of its launch, the archive comprised 263 speeches delivered over a 70-year period by some 216 Presidents, Prime Ministers, monarchs and religious leaders from 45 countries, but it continues to expand, as new speeches are added every few months. Some very early speeches by individuals considered to be "founding figures" of

5428-422: The Assembly, both were adopted firstly by the Council of Europe , and - several years later - by the European Union . Both are now known worldwide as symbols of Europe . Various proposals for a flag were submitted to the Council of Europe in the early 1950s and on 25 September 1953 the Assembly officially adopted a version with fifteen stars, which represented the number of Council of Europe member states at

5546-597: The British would be resolved to allow the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe to perform legislative tasks. A separate Assembly was introduced during negotiations on the Treaty as an institution to counterbalance and monitor the executive while providing democratic legitimacy. The wording of the ECSC Treaty demonstrated leaders' desire for more than a normal consultative assembly by allowing for direct election and using

5664-418: The Commission accountable, rather than being a rubber stamp for candidates. Furthermore, in voting on the Commission, MEPs also vote along party lines, rather than national lines, despite frequent pressure from national governments on their MEPs. This cohesion and willingness to use the Parliament's power ensured greater attention from national leaders, other institutions and the public – reversing

5782-522: The Commission's powers but did agree to respond within three months. Most requests are already responded to positively. During the setting up of the European External Action Service (EEAS), Parliament used its control over the EU budget to influence the shape of the EEAS. MEPs had aimed at getting greater oversight over the EEAS by linking it to the Commission and having political deputies to

5900-465: The Commission; and the right to question members of those institutions (e.g. "Commission Question Time " every Tuesday). Regarding written and oral questions, MEPs voted in July 2008 to limit questions to those within the EU's mandate and ban offensive or personal questions. The Parliament also has other powers of general supervision, mainly granted by the Maastricht Treaty . The Parliament has

6018-490: The Council does not approve these, then a " Conciliation Committee " is formed. The committee is composed of the Council members plus an equal number of MEPs who seek to agree a compromise. Once a position is agreed, it has to be approved by Parliament, by a simple majority. This is also aided by Parliament's mandate as the only directly democratic institution, which has given it leeway to have greater control over legislation than other institutions, for example over its changes to

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6136-421: The Council has the power in some intergovernmental matters). In Community matters , this is a power uniquely reserved for the European Commission (the executive). Therefore, while Parliament can amend and reject legislation, to make a proposal for legislation, it needs the Commission to draft a bill before anything can become law. The value of a right of initiative has anyway been questioned by noting that in

6254-449: The Council of Europe The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe ( PACE ) is the parliamentary arm of the Council of Europe , a 46-nation international organisation dedicated to upholding human rights, democracy and the rule of law. The Assembly is made up of 306 members drawn from the national parliaments of the Council of Europe's member states, and meets four times a year for week-long plenary sessions in Strasbourg . It

6372-564: The Council of Europe on 16 March 2022. In January 2024, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe resolved to not ratify the credentials of the Azerbaijani delegation, thereby preventing the Azerbaijani delegates from participating in the work of the Assembly. Parliaments with Partner for Democracy status, pledge to work towards certain basic values of the Council of Europe, and agree to occasional assessments of their progress. In return, they are able to send delegations to take part in

6490-534: The Council of Europe's parliamentary body, and Russia continued to be a full member of the organisation as a whole. In response, the Russian parliamentary delegation suspended its co-operation with PACE in June 2014, and in January 2016 – despite the lapsing of the sanctions – the Russian parliament decided not to submit its delegation's credentials for ratification, effectively leaving its seats empty. It did so again in January 2017, January 2018 and January 2019. On 25 June 2019, after an eight-hour debate which ended in

6608-552: The Court and assesses their CVs before making recommendations to the full Assembly, which elects one judge from each shortlist in a secret vote. Judges are elected for a period of nine years and may not be re-elected. Although the European Convention does not, in itself, require member states to present a multi-sex shortlist of potential appointees, in a 2004 resolution PACE decided that it "will not consider lists of candidates where

6726-590: The Czech Foreign Ministry. Winners of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Human Rights Prize , which preceded the Václav Havel Human Rights Prize: An annual "call for candidates" is issued in January each year. At least five "sponsors" must nominate candidates for the Prize, ahead of an annual deadline, normally fixed for the end of April. Nominations are made online, via a page on

6844-511: The EU treaties, notably through the extension of the ordinary legislative procedure (originally called the codecision procedure), and the right to approve international agreements through the consent procedure. In 1999, the Parliament forced the resignation of the Santer Commission . The Parliament had refused to approve the Community budget over allegations of fraud and mis-management in

6962-520: The EU's Commission-led international negotiations and have a right to information on agreements. Parliament did not secure an explicit vote over the appointment of delegation heads and special representatives for foreign policy, but it was agreed that they will appear before parliament after they have been appointed by the High Representative . Parliament wanted a pledge from the Commission that it would automatically put forward legislation when parliament requests. Barroso considered this an infringement on

7080-403: The EU, is accountable to Parliament. In particular, Parliament can decide whether or not to approve the European Council's nominee for President of the Commission , and is further tasked with approving (or rejecting) the appointment of the Commission as a whole. It can subsequently force the current Commission to resign by adopting a motion of censure . The president of the European Parliament

7198-446: The European Commission. A notable example was on the Bolkestein directive in 2006, when the Parliament voted by a large majority for over 400 amendments that changed the fundamental principle of the law. The Financial Times described it in the following terms: That is where the European parliament has suddenly come into its own. It marks another shift in power between the three central EU institutions. Last week's vote suggests that

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7316-427: The European Council having to make its proposal to Parliament in light of the results of the European elections. Barroso gained the support of the European Council for a second term and secured majority support from the Parliament in September 2009. Parliament voted 382 votes in favour and 219 votes against (117 abstentions) with support of the European People's Party , European Conservatives and Reformists Party and

7434-456: The European anthem. The proposal found favour with the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers , which formally adopted the anthem in 1972. It was subsequently taken up by the EU in 1985. In 1973 Swedish PACE member Astrid Bergegren first put forward a motion inviting member states to abolish the death penalty. Momentum built in the following years, and by 1980 the Assembly was calling on Europe's parliaments to abolish it, and insisting that

7552-481: The European idea" and - after initial discussion of a possible Europe-wide competition - the committee decided that a piece of music without words would overcome the problem of multiple languages in Europe. The committee agreed Beethoven was "justly regarded as one of the great European geniuses", and that his tune "had universal value". In a resolution adopted on 8 July 1971, the Assembly formally proposed "Ode to Joy" as

7670-441: The European institutions, even if they were not heads of state or government at the time, are also included (such as those by Winston Churchill and Robert Schuman ). Addresses by eight monarchs appear in the list (such as King Juan Carlos I of Spain , King Albert II of Belgium and Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg ) as well as the speeches given by religious figures (such as Pope John Paul II ) and several leaders from countries in

7788-629: The Investigative Body's report, either by depriving them of certain rights, or by excluding them from the Assembly's premises for life. Following the flight of Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians in 2023, PACE adopted a motion which stated that "it regrets the fact that Members of the European Parliament have accepted and failed to declare trips to Azerbaijan, visits to the Nagorno-Karabakh region and luxury hotel stays that were organised and paid for by Azerbaijani officials." In October 2013, following

7906-461: The Middle East and North Africa (such as Shimon Peres , Yasser Arafat , Hosni Mubarak , Léopold Sédar Senghor or King Hussein of Jordan ). The full text of the speeches is given in both English and French, regardless of the original language used. The archive is searchable by country, by name, and chronologically. The official languages of the Council of Europe are English and French , but

8024-399: The Parliament adopted a resolution to condemn "Hamas' despicable terrorist attacks against Israel". The Parliament and Council have been compared to the two chambers of a bicameral legislature. However, there are some differences from national legislatures ; for example, neither the Parliament nor the Council have the power of legislative initiative (except for the fact that

8142-594: The Parliament. Parliamentary support was also required for the transatlantic passenger data-sharing deal with the United States. Finally, Parliament holds a non-binding vote on new EU treaties but cannot veto it. However, when Parliament threatened to vote down the Nice Treaty, the Belgian and Italian Parliaments said that if it did so, they would veto the treaty on the European Parliament's behalf. With each new treaty,

8260-494: The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe have been: In January 2021, the Assembly elected Despina Chatzivassiliou-Tsovilis as Secretary General of the Assembly, serving a five-year term beginning in March 2021. She heads an 80-strong multi-national secretariat based in Strasbourg, and is the first woman to hold the post since the Assembly's creation in 1949, as well as the first person of Greek nationality. European Parliament The European Parliament ( EP )

8378-459: The Parliamentary Assembly. On 16 April 2024, the Parliamentary Assembly voted in favour of Kosovo's membership, with 131 votes in favour, 29 against, and 11 abstentions. Two representatives of the Turkish Cypriot community have been invited to participate in the deliberations of the assembly as observers without the right to vote. The Assembly has six political groups. The Presidents of

8496-478: The President according to the treaties. Following the approval of the Commission President, the members of the Commission are proposed by the President in accord with the member states. Each Commissioner comes before a relevant parliamentary committee hearing covering the proposed portfolio. They are then, as a body, approved or rejected by the Parliament. In practice, the Parliament has never voted against

8614-625: The President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Jean-Claude Mignon , Marta Smolíková for the Václav Havel Library and Professor František Janouch for the Charta 77 Foundation. The event was hosted by the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic Karel Schwarzenberg . Half of the €60,000 prize is contributed by the Parliamentary Assembly and half by

8732-565: The Qatari and Azerbaijani governments. Qatargate is an ongoing scandal, involving allegations that PACE officials, lobbyists and their families have been influenced by the governments of Qatar , Morocco and Mauritania , engaging in corruption, money laundering, and organized crime. Multiple PACE officials have been implicated in a money-laundering scheme organized by the Azerbaijani government. In exchange for (A) whiteashing Azerbaijan's poor human rights record and (B) lobbying for Azerbaijan in

8850-409: The commission. The two main parties took on a government-opposition dynamic for the first time during the crisis which ended in the Commission resigning en masse, the first of any forced resignation, in the face of an impending censure from the Parliament. The Parliament had always had the right to dismiss the European Commission in a vote of censure, but it initially had no role in its appointment. In

8968-421: The day after Russia's invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022 - Russia's membership in the Council of Europe was suspended by the Council of Europe's ministerial body, having consulted the Assembly earlier on the same day. Suspension does not have the same legal status as full expulsion. On 15 March, following an all-day debate at an Extraordinary Session, the Parliamentary Assembly adopted a resolution calling on

9086-444: The directly elected MEPs, in spite of their multitude of ideological, national and historical allegiances, have started to coalesce as a serious and effective EU institution, just as enlargement has greatly complicated negotiations inside both the Council and Commission. In 2007, for the first time, Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini included Parliament in talks on the second Schengen Information System even though, in this field at

9204-432: The entire budget (before 2009, its influence was limited to certain areas) on an equal footing to the Council. If there is a disagreement between them, it is taken to a conciliation committee as it is for legislative proposals. If the joint conciliation text is not approved by the Council, the Parliament may adopt the budget definitively, but only by a three-fifths majority. The Parliament is also responsible for discharging

9322-408: The first time since 1994 . The voting age is 18 in all EU member states except for Malta , Belgium , Austria and Germany , where it is 16, and Greece , where it is 17. The European Parliament has legislative power in that the adoption of EU legislation normally requires its approval, and that of the Council, in what amounts to a bicameral legislature. However, it does not formally possess

9440-519: The fiscal aspects of environmental policy. In these areas, the Council or Parliament decide law alone after consulting the other (or with its consent). There are different types of European Union law#Legislation . The strongest act is a regulation , an act or law which is directly applicable in its entirety. Then there are directives which bind member states to certain goals which they must achieve. They do this through their own laws and hence have room to manoeuvre in deciding upon them. A decision

9558-480: The functioning of the EU. For example, in 1984, inspired by its previous work on the Political Community, it drafted the "draft Treaty establishing the European Union" (also known as the 'Spinelli Plan' after its rapporteur Altiero Spinelli MEP). Although it was not adopted, many ideas were later taken up in other treaties. Furthermore, the Parliament began holding votes on proposed Commission Presidents from

9676-494: The help of investigative journalists and plane-spotters among others – suggested that a number of Council of Europe member states had permitted CIA "rendition flights" across their airspace, enabling the secret transfer of terror suspects without any legal rights. In a second report in 2007, Marty showed how two member states – Poland and Romania – had allowed "secret prisons" to be established on their territory, where torture took place. His main conclusions – subsequently confirmed in

9794-444: The implementation of previous budgets based on the annual report of the European Court of Auditors . It has refused to grant discharge only twice, in 1984 and in 1998. On the latter occasion it led to the resignation of the Santer Commission ; highlighting how the discharge power gives Parliament a great deal of power over the Commission. Parliament also makes extensive use of its budgetary, and other powers, elsewhere; for example in

9912-435: The institution such as more speaking time for rapporteurs, increased committee co-operation and other efficiency reforms. The Lisbon Treaty came into force on 1 December 2009, granting Parliament powers over the entire EU budget , making Parliament's legislative powers equal to the Council's in nearly all areas and describing Parliament's vote on an incoming Commission President Commission President as an "election", with

10030-528: The issue of a uniform voting systems to be decided at a later date. For its sessions the assembly, and later the parliament, until 1999 convened in the same premises as the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe : the House of Europe until 1977, and the Palace of Europe until 1999. In 1979, its members were directly elected for the first time . This sets it apart from similar institutions such as those of

10148-575: The largest political party (the EPP). The Parliament approved him by 431 votes to 251. However, when it came to the vote on the Commission as a whole, MEPs raised doubts about some of the nominees following their performance in the public hearings of them conducted by Parliament's committees. Most notably, the Civil Liberties committee rejected Rocco Buttiglione for the post of Commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security over his views on homosexuality. That

10266-409: The leading officials of the Council of Europe. In general the Assembly meets four times per year in Strasbourg at the Palace of Europe for week-long plenary sessions. The nine permanent committees of the Assembly meet all year long to prepare reports and draft resolutions in their respective fields of expertise. The Assembly sets its own agenda, but its debates and reports are primarily focused on

10384-480: The list does not include at least one candidate of each sex" unless there are exceptional circumstances. As a result, around one-third of the current bench of 46 judges are women, making the Court a leader among international courts on gender balance. At its very first meeting, in the summer of 1949, the Parliamentary Assembly adopted the essential blueprint of what became the European Convention on Human Rights , selecting which rights should be protected and defining

10502-420: The momentum for reform. The Assembly held its first session in Strasbourg on 10 August 1949, embodying at that time the hopes of many Europeans who, in the aftermath of World War II , saw European unity as the best way of preventing a return to the devastation of war, a "safety net" to prevent gross human rights violations such as the horrors of The Holocaust , and a democratic bulwark against tyranny. Among

10620-457: The national legislatures of the member states 85% of initiatives introduced without executive support fail to become law. Yet it has been argued by former Parliament president Hans-Gert Pöttering that as the Parliament does have the right to ask the Commission to draft such legislation, and as the Commission is following Parliament's proposals more and more Parliament does have a de facto right of legislative initiative. The Parliament also has

10738-460: The national parliament of the delegation concerned. The few members who are appointed as rapporteurs, when they are carrying out work for the Assembly, have their costs covered by the Council of Europe. Some notable former members of PACE include: The special guest status of the National Assembly of Belarus was suspended on 13 January 1997. The Russian Federation ceased to be a member of

10856-441: The old resolution and that they had never called for infant circumcision to be banned in the first place. Although the Council of Europe is a human rights watchdog and a guardian against discrimination, it is widely regarded as becoming increasingly divided on moral issues because its membership includes mainly Muslim countries (Turkey and Azerbaijan) as well as Eastern European countries, among them Russia, where social conservatism

10974-517: The organisation, it has used this power to negotiate with applicant countries the conditions on which they join). In the 1950s it led the way in embracing recently defeated Germany, in the 1960s it took a strong stand during the Greek crisis, and in the 1970s it welcomed post-Franco Spain and Portugal into the democratic fold. Above all, it played a key role after the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989, creating

11092-407: The other institutions, the Parliament's seat was not yet fixed. The provisional arrangements placed Parliament in Strasbourg , while the Commission and Council had their seats in Brussels. In 1985 the Parliament, wishing to be closer to these institutions, built a second chamber in Brussels and moved some of its work there despite protests from some states. A final agreement was eventually reached by

11210-402: The outline of the judicial mechanism to enforce them. Its detailed proposal, with some changes, was eventually adopted by the Council of Europe 's ministerial body, and entered into force in 1953. Today, seventy years later, the European Court of Human Rights – given shape and form during the Assembly's historic post-war debates – is regarded as a global standard-bearer for justice, protecting

11328-473: The parliaments of Kyrgyzstan , Jordan , Morocco and Palestine hold "Partner for Democracy" status with the Assembly – which allows their delegations to take part in the Assembly's work, but without the right to vote – and there are also observer delegates from the Canadian , Israeli and Mexican parliaments. The costs of participation in the Assembly – mainly travel and accommodation expenses – are borne by

11446-406: The parliaments of each member state . Delegations must reflect the balance in the national parliament, so contain members of both ruling parties and oppositions. The population of each country determines its number of representatives and number of votes. This is in contrast to the Committee of Ministers , the Council of Europe's executive body, where each country has one vote. While not full members,

11564-469: The power to set up a Committee of Inquiry, for example over mad cow disease or CIA detention flights – the former led to the creation of the European veterinary agency . The Parliament can call other institutions to answer questions and if necessary to take them to court if they break EU law or treaties. Furthermore, it has powers over the appointment of the members of the Court of Auditors and

11682-493: The powers of the Parliament, in terms of its role in the Union's legislative procedures , have expanded. The procedure which has slowly become dominant is the " ordinary legislative procedure " (previously named "codecision procedure"), which provides an equal footing between Parliament and Council. In particular, under the procedure, the Commission presents a proposal to Parliament and the Council which can only become law if both agree on

11800-425: The previous decline in turnout for the Parliament's elections. The Parliament also has the power to censure the Commission by a two-thirds majority which will force the resignation of the entire Commission from office. As with approval, this power has never been explicitly used, but when faced with such a vote, the Santer Commission then resigned of their own accord . There are other control instruments, such as:

11918-494: The procedure to be regulated and debated, and an accompanying report referred to the practice as a "human rights violation". This condemnation received criticism from religious groups and figures, such as Shimon Peres , the president of Israel at the time, as well as the Anti-Defamation League , which argued that circumcision was an accepted medical procedure and that the resolution interfered with religious freedom and

12036-470: The requirement of Commission to submit reports to the Parliament and answer written and oral questions from MEPs; the requirement of the President-in-office of the Council to present its programme at the start of their presidency ; the obligation on the President of the European Council to report to Parliament after each of its meetings; the right of MEPs to make requests for legislation and policy to

12154-529: The rights of citizens in 46 European nations and beyond, and paving the way for the gradual convergence of human rights laws and practice across the continent. The Assembly continues to elect the judges of the Court. The Assembly was at the origin of both the Flag of Europe , the twelve yellow stars on a blue background, and the Anthem of Europe , an arrangement of Ludwig van Beethoven 's Ode to Joy. Having been proposed by

12272-528: The second-largest democratic electorate in the world (after the Parliament of India ), with an electorate of around 375 million eligible voters in 2024. Since 1979, the Parliament has been directly elected every five years by the citizens of the European Union through universal suffrage . Voter turnout in parliamentary elections decreased each time after 1979 until 2019 , when voter turnout increased by eight percentage points, and rose above 50% for

12390-464: The setting up of the European External Action Service , Parliament had a de facto veto over its design as it has to approve the budgetary and staff changes. The President of the European Commission is proposed by the European Council on the basis of the European elections to Parliament. That proposal has to be approved by the Parliament (by a majority of members of the Parliament) who thereby "elect"

12508-427: The small hours, the Assembly voted to change its rules, to make clear that its members should always have the right "to vote, to speak and to be represented", acceding to a key Russian demand and paving the way for the return of a Russian parliamentary delegation. Within hours the Russian parliament had presented the credentials of a new delegation, which – despite being challenged – were approved without any sanction by

12626-467: The term "representatives of the people". Its early importance was highlighted when the Assembly was given the task of drawing up the draft treaty to establish a European Political Community . By this document, the Ad Hoc Assembly was established on 13 September 1952 with extra members, but after the failure of the negotiated and proposed European Defence Community (French parliament veto), the project

12744-406: The time, MEPs only needed to be consulted on parts of the package. After that experiment, Frattini indicated he would like to include Parliament in all justice and criminal matters, informally pre-empting the new powers they were due to gain in 2009 as part of the Treaty of Lisbon . Between 2007 and 2009, a special working group on parliamentary reform implemented a series of changes to modernise

12862-507: The time. However "a difficulty arose" in the Council of Europe's ministerial body over the number of stars after West Germany objected that one was for the Saarland region, which was then under French control and did not rejoin Germany until 1957. It would have agreed to fourteen stars, but this was in turn unacceptable to France. Two years later, after further consultations, the twelve-star version

12980-535: The war. In June 2023, as the International Olympic Committee signalled it was considering allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes to take part in the Paris 2024 Olympics as "neutral individuals", the Assembly urged the continuation of a total ban. The European Parliament has had criticism over its prodigality and for being too complacent with conflicts of interest. Its refusal to become full member of

13098-472: The whole budget in 1975. Under the Rome Treaties, the Parliament should have become elected. However, the Council was required to agree a uniform voting system beforehand, which it failed to do. The Parliament threatened to take the Council to the European Court of Justice ; this led to a compromise whereby the Council would agree to elections, but with each Member State using its own electoral system, leaving

13216-453: The work of the Assembly and its committees, but without the right to vote. The Assembly of Kosovo has been invited to designate a delegation to take part in the work of the Assembly and its committees as observers without the right to vote. On 24 April 2023, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe approved Kosovo's application for membership, allowing the application to progress to

13334-478: Was anti-Semitic. In response to these criticisms, Liliane Maury Pasquier of the Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development wrote an op-ed in The Washington Post arguing that medical evidence against circumcision was presented in the Assembly's hearings and that the child's right to physical integrity overrode the parents' right to religious freedom. This op-ed was further criticized by

13452-748: Was dropped. Instead, the European Economic Community and Euratom were established in 1958 by the Treaties of Rome . The Common Assembly was shared by all three communities (which had separate executives) and it renamed itself the European Parliamentary Assembly . The first meeting was held on 19 March 1958 having been set up in Luxembourg City, it elected Schuman as its president and on 13 May it rearranged itself to sit according to political ideology rather than nationality. This

13570-547: Was forced to step down by Parliament due to concerns over her experience and financial interests. She only had the support of the EPP which began to retaliate on left wing candidates before Jeleva gave in and was replaced (setting back the final vote further). Before the final vote on the Commission, Parliament demanded a number of concessions as part of a future working agreement under the new Lisbon Treaty. The deal includes that Parliament's president will attend high level Commission meetings. Parliament will have an observer seat in

13688-424: Was no longer legally possible. The Assembly's debate continued and - in a unanimous vote of 216 in favour, 0 against and 3 abstentions - the Assembly called for Russia's full expulsion. The following day, 16 March, at an extraordinary meeting, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe acceded to the Assembly's request, and decided that Russia should cease to be a member from that same day, after 26 years as

13806-486: Was the first time the Parliament had ever opposed an incoming Commissioner and, despite Barroso's initial insistence upon Buttiglione, the Parliament forced Buttiglione to be withdrawn. A number of other Commissioners also had to be withdrawn or reassigned before Parliament voted to allow the Barroso Commission to take office. The Parliament also became more assertive in amending legislative proposals put forward by

13924-403: Was unanimously approved by both bodies of the Council of Europe, with twelve being regarded as a symbol of perfection, and no longer related to the number of states in the organisation. The institutions of the European Union began using the flag in 1986. Propositions for an anthem for Europe began almost as soon as the Council of Europe was created in 1949. "Ode to Joy" had been suggested in

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