Strasbourg, 11 October 2004

Restricted CDL-PV(2004)003syn Or. Engl.

 

EUROPEAN COMMISSION FOR DEMOCRACY THROUGH LAW

(VENICE COMMISSION)

 

60^th PLENARY SESSION

(Venice, 8-9 October 2004)

 

S Y N O P S I S

 

The Commission

 

-          adopted the opinion[1] on Human Rights in Kosovo: possible establishment of review mechanisms, following an exchange of views with Mr Jean-Christian Cady, Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary General for Police and Justice, and with Lieutenant-colonel Thomas Toussaint, Chief Legal Adviser of KFOR;

 

-          held an exchange of views with Lord Paddy Ashdown, the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, who welcomed the preparation by the Commission, upon a request from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, of an opinion on the powers of the High Representative and the constitutional situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina;

 

-          adopted the amicus curiae opinion on the interpretation of Articles 125 and 136 (appointment of highest judges) of the Constitution of Albania ;

 

-          adopted the joint recommendations of the Venice Commission and OSCE/ODIHR on the electoral law and the electoral administration in Albania;

 

-          adopted the opinion on the law on the procedure for conducting gatherings, meetings, rallies and demonstrations in the Republic of Armenia;

 

-          held an exchange of views with Mr Tigran Torossyan, Vice-Speaker of the National Assembly of Armenia, on the constitutional reforms in Armenia and the time-frame for co-operation with the Commission on this matter;

 

-          adopted, following an urgent request from the Parliamentary Assembly, its opinion on the referendum scheduled for 17 October 2004 in Belarus;

 

-          adopted the opinion on the law on amendments to the law on the Ombudsman of Bosnia and Herzegovina;

 

-          adopted the opinion on new draft amendments to the Constitution of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina;

 

 

-          adopted the opinion on the draft law of Georgia on restitution of housing and property to the victims of the Georgian-Ossetian conflict;

 

-          was informed by Mr Khetsuriani about the follow-up to the Commission’s opinion on the draft constitutional law of Georgia on the status of Adjara;

 

-          was informed about a request from the Parliamentary Assembly on the compatibility of the Italian laws on the media (“the Gasparri law”) and on conflict of interest (“the Frattini law”) with the standards of the Council of Europe and in particular the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights;

 

-          was informed about the preparation of a study on the national remedies for excessive length of judicial proceedings, following a request from the Romanian authorities;

 

-          adopted the opinion on the draft Constitutional law of the Russian Federation on modification and amendments to the Federal Constitutional Law of the Russian Federation providing for the introduction of a written procedure before that Court;

 

-          was informed about the preparation of a report on the supremacy of international Human Rights Treaties, following a request by the Turkish authorities;

 

-          adopted the opinion on the Procedure for amending the Constitution of Ukraine;

 

-          adopted the opinion on the draft law on the status of indigenous (autochthonous) peoples of Ukraine;

 

-          adopted the opinion on the law on the office of the Public Prosecutor of Ukraine;

 

-          held an exchange of views with Ambassador Landman, Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to the Council of Europe, and with Ambassador Pietro Lonardo, Permanent Representative of Italy to the Council of Europe, on co-operation between the Committee of Ministers and the Venice Commission;

 

-          held an exchange of views with Mr Jurgens, Member of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights, on co-operation with the Assembly, and was informed of the signing of the co-operation agreement with the Assembly;

 

-          held an exchange of views with Mr Adel Omar Sherif, Deputy Chief Justice of the Supreme Constitutional Court of Egypt, on future co-operation with this court;

 

-          held an exchange of views with Mr Young-chul Yun, President of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Korea, on recent constitutional developments in the Republic of Korea and the possible accession of that country to the Venice Commission;

 

-          held an exchange of views with the Rt. Hon. Lord Woolf of Barnes, Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales, on recent constitutional developments in the United Kingdom;

 

-          concluded a co-operation agreement with the International Association of Constitutional Lawyers;

 

-          was informed of the results of the meeting of the National Co-ordinators of the UniDem Campus Trieste for the training of civil servants;

 

-          confirmed the date of its next Plenary session (3-4 December 2005).