The PABSEC participation in the Winter Session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Strasbourg, 22-26 January 2024
PABSEC Secretary General Mr. Asaf Hajiyev took part in the Winter Session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), which was held in Strasbourg from 22 to 26 January 2024.
On the first day of the session, parliamentarians elected the President of the Assembly, Mr. Theodoros Roussopoulos (Greece), and 19 Vice-Presidents, and appointed committee members.
The President of the Republic of Cyprus Mr. Nikos Christodoulides, the President of Montenegro Mr. Jakov Milatovic and the Prime Minister of Liechtenstein Mr. Daniel Risch addressed the participants of the Assembly. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Education and Sports of Liechtenstein, Chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, Ms. Dominique Hasler, and the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Ms. Marija Pejčinović Burić, presented the information on the activities and answered the questions.
During the session, PACE elected the representative of Ireland, Mr. Michael O'Flaherty, as the new Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights.
During the Winter Session, the following issues were discussed: “Recent developments in the Middle East: Hamas’ terrorist attack on Israel and Israel’s response”, “Allegations of systemic torture in places of detention in Europe”, “Media freedom in the participating states and ensuring the safety of journalists”, “Globalization in times of crisis and war: the role of the OECD since the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine”, “Migration and asylum in election campaigns”, “Child abuse in institutions in Europe”, “The situation of the children of Ukraine”,
Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General, met with Ms. Despina Chatzivassiliou-Tsovilis, PACE Secretary General. The issues of holding a meeting of the Secretaries General of the PACE and the PABSEC member states in Istanbul in cooperation with the PABSEC in September 2024 were discussed. The topic and program of the joint event will be determined later.