14th Congress Plenary Session
30 May-1st June
Presentation of the report on the state of the Congress By Halvdan Skard, Congress President 30 May, 2007
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear colleagues,
Dear friends,
Over the past year, our Congress has consolidated itself as one of the main pillars within the Council of Europe. We are unique body representing more than 200,000 territorial communities of Europe. We are now mandated to support and monitor the state and development of local and regional self-government in the now 47 member states of the Council of Europe.
We can proudly say that the Congress has become the truly pan-European watchdog of and spokesman for territorial democracy. This we are in partnership with national governments, which recognised this role of the Congress by adopting its revised Charter at the beginning of this month. The changes of the Charter are the next item of our agenda today.
The Congress has set its priorities for 2007-2008, which are appended to the report before you. They are aimed at strengthening territorial democracy, promoting interregional and transborder cooperation, empowering territorial communities, setting up and assisting associations of local authorities and their networks, providing expertise to governments on legislation concerning territorial self-government, advising the Committee of Ministers and the Parliamentary Assembly on matters relating to local democracy, and fostering intercultural and interreligious dialogue.
The Congress has continued its monitoring activities. We follow application of the European Charter of Local Self-Government in member states. As you know we have country-by-country reports, exchanges with government officials on the follow-up given to Congress recommendations, and observation of local and regional elections. We have recently begun discussions on the procedure of compliance by member states with Congress recommendations.
Over the past year, the Congress has made an important contribution to the Memorandum of Understanding between the Council of Europe and the European Union. We contributed to the Parliamentary Assembly’s first-ever debate on the state of human rights and democracy in Europe. In this session, we are preparing our contribution to the Forum on the Future of Democracy, to be held in Stockholm/Sigtuna in June.
Of course, we continue to pursue and increase cooperation with our partners. Members of the EU Committee of the Regions, are now participating in Congress election observation missions.
Furthermore, the Congress stepped up cooperation with national associations of local authorities. We consult them on Congress texts and engage them to a larger extent in our work. Also representatives of local authorities’ associations are invited to take part in Congress election observation missions.
We have been expanding our activities in South-East Europe. In South Caucasus the Congress has been mounting action in favour of associations of local authorities in Georgia and in Azerbaijan, with Armenia to follow.
Substantial progress has been made in setting up Euroregions of a new type. The Adriatic Euroregion has become operational, with the establishment of the Adriatic Council based in Pula, Croatia. Work has continued on the Black Sea Euroregion. In addition, a conference will be held in Tromso, Norway, on cooperation in the Baltic Sea and the High North.
The Congress continues its work beyond European borders, on the southern rim of the Mediterranean.
The Congress has already been actively involved in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. We are looking for ways in which European towns could help local authorities and their associations in that region. We are now launching a project aimed at promoting dialogue and cooperation between Israeli and Palestinian towns, as part of City Diplomacy.
In the same spirit, the Congress has been tapping into Morocco and the rest of Maghreb, seeking to share our values, experiences and best practices. In this context, the City Diplomacy project which I has just mentioned is aimed at engaging municipalities in dialogue and joint action for peace and stability. Again, the Congress can provide a unique forum for an exchange of ideas and a platform for cooperation and joint activities.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Over the past year, the Congress has also been actively participating in various European projects, among which are the Network of Cities for Local Integration Policies (CLIP), Cities for Children, Cities for Peace, and the Berlin Process for disadvantaged urban neighbourhoods. We have also joined in Council of Europe campaigns to fight trafficking in human beings and domestic violence against women. The Declaration against trafficking is available on-line for signature by cities and regions, and poster campaigns to stop domestic violence against women are being carried out in numerous European municipalities.
Last but not least, the year 2007 marks the 50th anniversary of local democracy in the Council of Europe. A round table on this occasion will be held here in a few minutes. The idea of a European Local Democracy Week will be launched in October 2007, during the Conference of European Ministers responsible for local and regional government.
However, we need to go beyond our regular activities. The growing importance of territorial democracy today reinforces by consequence the role of our Congress, a role which must be exploited to the full extent and increased even more. We must now build upon our achievements if we are to succeed in our mission, at the heart of our cities and our regions, of bringing ever more participatory democracy to our 800 million fellow Europeans.
Fellow members of Congress. We are in a period of continuing developments. Our predecessors have achieved much. Now we are building on their accomplishments and pursuing their goals, while we at the same time set our own priorities and develop our own visions. How for we have come, is confirmed in our new Charter and our priorities for 2007-2008. This Plenary Session will bring us new steps forward. I would like to point out that all of this is only made possible by the individual and concerted effort by all delegates. But I am sure hat you all agree that we would have been helpless without our secretariat, under the able leadership of our now Secretary General Ulrich Bohner. They do an amazing and impressive job with scarce resources. So to all, delegates and secretariat included, I ask you to convey your thanks by an applause.