Speech by President Giovanni Di Stasi
At the International Conference on European parliamentarianism: history and present
(St Petersburg, 28 April 2006)

Mr Chairman,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
UvazhAyemye dAmy i gospodA,

2006 is a year of important anniversaries for Russia, and therefore Europe as a whole. These days, we are marking one hundred years since the first Russian elected parliament – the State Duma – has come into being. This happened as a result of a concerted effort, armed struggle – indeed, a revolution – of all circles of the Russian society. One century ago, for the first time in its history, Russia established a democratic model crowned with a body which represented the power of people – and meant to serve justice for the people.

More than two hundred years before the first Duma was established, French scientist Blaise Pascal said: “Justice and power must be brought together, so that whatever is just may be powerful, and whatever is powerful may be just.” It is heartening to see that, having gone through the turmoil of history, wars and dictatorships, our continent – including Russia – has regained the sense of responsibility before its citizens, the understanding that the ultimate power and legitimacy – and the ultimate justice – lies with our people. In 1949, there were ten countries which founded the Council of Europe; today, our Organisation unites under one roof 46 European democracies.

In just a few days, we will be marking another important anniversary – ten years since Russia has joined the Council of Europe, a family of European democracies. The fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of the Communist regimes in Europe have given our Organisation a historic chance to fulfil its pan-European mission of uniting our whole continent on the basis of the shared values of democratic pluralism, respect for human rights and the rule of law. Russia’s membership in the Council of Europe has been a very important component to complete the picture. Throughout these ten years, the Russian Federation has been a very active member in all main bodies of the Council of Europe – the Committee of Ministers, the Parliamentary Assembly and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities which I represent. This is why I cannot but welcome, and look forward to, the forthcoming Russian Chairmanship of our Committee of Ministers, which will begin in May.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

When we speak about European parliamentarianism, we often think about, and refer to, national parliaments. However, for us in the Council of Europe Congress, creating a Europe without dividing lines means more cohesion not only at the national but also at the regional and municipal level, decentralisation of power and the transfer of competences – and means – to the level closest to the citizens. As a body representing more than 200,000 territorial communities on our continent, we are well aware that Europe is a quilt patched up with regions, cities, towns and villages – places where people live and work. Creating a Europe without dividing lines today also means acknowledging the current political, economic and social shift towards the territorial level, a strong move towards decentralization, leading to a major change in the national and local balance, making it a must to develop interregional, inter-territorial cooperation and joint action. In the Russian Federation, with its vast territory and more than 80 subjects – regions – you understand it more than anybody else. In fact, our Congress has been engaged with the question of Russian federalism even before this country joined the Council of Europe, and we are pursuing our work in this field.

We see regional and local self-government as the essential pillars of any democratic society, complementing national parliamentarianism, being the first line of defense of human rights and the rule of law, and the best level for delivering good governance with the most tangible results felt by our citizens. Democracy, indeed, started at the local level – in Agora Square, in Athens, the place where the citizens could communicate their wishes to the authorities and make public decisions. We must always remember that without local and regional democracy the democratic edifice of our societies always has a risk of collapsing. On the contrary, a well functioning local and regional democracy is a solid guarantee for the democratic stability of our continent.

Municipalities and regions are also the level where the people’s participation in democratic processes begins – as does their disenchantment with democratic institutions and elected representatives. As we speak today about the need to enhance participatory democracy and citizens’ involvement – one of the main priorities set by the Third Summit of Council of Europe Heads of State and Government in Warsaw last May – we must not forget the famous saying “Think globally – act locally”. This is why the Council of Europe Congress has been, for a long time, actively involved with the issues of the democratic participation of, for example, young people and foreign residents in the public and political life at regional and local level.

As I said at the outset, the spirit and objective of parliamentarianism is to provide a possibility of consultation between the authorities and the citizens. In this regard, regions and municipalities represent an important link – a bridge, if you wish – for such consultation between the local and national levels. In fact, the need for such a link, and for such consultation, was recognised by an assembly of European national parliamentary delegations – the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly – as far back as 1957, when the Assembly convened the very first Conference of Local Authorities. In the 1990s, this Conference evolved to become the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities. It comes as no surprise that the Congress and its members, local and regional elected representatives, have always been maintaining close ties with the Assembly – and thus national parliaments. Some Congress members are also members of their countries’ delegations to the Assembly, adding to the dynamics of the relationship between the first and second chambers of Parliament – often referred to as the lower and upper chambers. The role of the second chamber, and its interaction with the first chamber, deserves our close attention – with more and more regions in Europe acquiring legislative power, the number of bicameral national parliaments is also on the increase. Russia is no exception, of course – the role of the Federation Council, representing Russia’s regional level of government, is as important, as it should be, as that of the State Duma.

The Council of Europe is not new to the issue of regional parliamentarianism. Already in 1978, it held a major conference on the problems of regionalisation, in Bordeaux, France. In the Bordeaux Declaration, the conference participants stressed that regionalisation does not only promote “Unity in Diversity” but is also one of the conditions of European Unity itself. The conference pointed out that there can be no real European community in a system in which the rich regions become richer and the poor regions poorer, and underlined that regionalisation is essential if the wide economic and social disparities between the various parts of Europe are to be corrected.

Today, in United Europe, we have a historic chance to achieve this, a unique opportunity to advance inter-regional and transborder cooperation across our continent – while respecting territorial integrity and sovereignty of the central State. This is why the Congress is currently working on a proposal to set up a Centre on inter-regional and transborder cooperation here in St Petersburg – a kind of a clearing house for cooperation and joint action between European regions, a Centre which will work to achieve greater political, economic and social cohesion for the benefit of 800 million Europeans. We count on the active support of national governments, parliaments and regions – of all of you – to make this Centre a reality, to make St Petersburg – Peter the Great’s oknO v EvrOpu – a meeting point between the CIS countries and Europe, a truly European capital like Strasbourg and Brussels.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

At the beginning of my speech, I quoted Blaise Pascal about the need to bring power and justice together. This is not an abstract notion because, as representatives elected by the people, we rely in our work on their trust and their support. We will lose their trust if we are not just. We will lose their support if we do not act for their benefit at all levels – national, regional and local. Because parliamentarianism is the incarnation of representative democracy – the power of the people, the only system capable of ensuring sustained development and well-being of our societies – the system which was established thousands of years ago in Agora Square, by the citizens of Athens.

As I wish this conference every success, I would like to conclude by saying: May our power be always just. And may our justice be always powerful.

Thank you.