Introduction of the debate on transfrontier cooperation

Speech by Ian Micallef

Brdo, Slovenia, 10 June 2009

Introduction of the debate on Belarus: progress of local and regional democracy and prospects of future cooperation

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Council of Europe can rightly boast a truly pan-European dimension with its 47 member states, but the picture will not be complete as long as the sole exception from the family of European democracies, Belarus, remains outside our remit.

We all know the reasons for the current situation which put the request of Belarus for membership in the Council of Europe “on hold” for so many years. However, during this period the Council has been maintaining contact with different political forces and civil society in Belarus, and the Congress is no exception: as far back as June 2001, we granted observer status to the Lev Sapieha Foundation, a non-governmental organisation whose representatives have attended several Congress sessions since then, along with, on some occasions, representatives of the Belarusian authorities. The Congress also organised, or participated in, a number of seminars and conferences which discussed, among other things, possible cooperation with Belarus.

Today, the time has come to examine possibilities for positive engagement of Belarusian authorities in cooperation with the Council of Europe and its entities, and I am convinced that this process must be based on the solid engagement at local and regional level. Indeed, territorial democracy is a foundation of any democratic system, and promoting democratic processes at grassroots level creates a solid basis for democratic change.

This process has already begun. Belarus has been admitted to the Eastern Partnership project of the European Union; the Political Affairs Committee of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly has just recommended restoring the Special Guest status of the Belarusian Parliament; two days ago, the Council of Europe opened its Information Point in Minsk. Prospects of cooperation with Belarus are being discussed across the board within both the EU and the Council of Europe, in an effort to move the country towards democratisation.

Against this background, the Congress must move forward with a specific programme for developing cooperation with local and regional authorities in Belarus. As I said during the round table on the future of Belarus-EU relations, organised by the EU Committee of the Regions, in Brussels on 27 May, democratic local self-government is the way to help Belarus' citizens to have a better life with more autonomy and more democracy, as well as better economic conditions and prospects. What we need is a straightforward dialogue with the Belarus' national authorities, leading to their engagement in cooperation projects on local and regional self-government.

It is in this spirit that we granted observer status, in December last year, to the Council for Cooperation of Local Self-Government Bodies in Belarus, which operates under the authority of the Council of the Republic (upper chamber) of the Belarus National Assembly. The Council’s President, Mr Boris BATURA, who is also President of the Council of the Republic of Belarus, addressed the 16^th Plenary Session of the Congress in March. During that time, we agreed to organise a round table on the conformity of the Belarus’ legislation with the European Charter of Local Self-Government, and provide a Council of Europe expert assessment of the draft law on local self-government in Belarus.

In our view, these initial steps, which could be taken in close cooperation with the Lev Sapieha Foundation, should lead to broader cooperation between the Congress and the political forces and civil society in Belarus at local level in order to promote democratic changes in that country.

Following his visit in March, Mr BATURA and I exchanged correspondence and discussed several components of a draft cooperation project, developed by the Congress Secretariat and entitled “Local democracy in Belarus”. These components include: the organisation of a round table in Minsk on the European Charter of Local Self-Government and related Council of Europe standards; assistance in the establishment of a national association of local authorities in Belarus; and training of local and regional elected representatives. As part of this project, the Congress could also assist in giving an expert opinion on draft legislation in Belarus related to local self-government.

The objective of our debate today is to discuss these proposals and other ways of promoting territorial self-government in Belarus and developing cooperation with Belarus’ authorities. I should also mention in this regard that the Association of Local Democracy Agencies, ALDA, started an 18-month project last May for the development of non-state actors and local authorities in Belarus. This project is funded by the European Union.

I am pleased to welcome as participants in this debate representatives of the two Belarusian organisations which enjoy observer status with the Congress:

Mr Anatoly RUBINOV, Vice-President of the Council for Cooperation of Local Self-Government Bodies in Belarus;

and Ms Galina VEREMEJCHIK, member of the Board of the Lev Sapieha Foundation. It is my understanding Ms VEREMEJCHIK is representing the Foundation’s President, Mr Miroslav KOBASA, who had an unforeseen difficulty and was unable to attend this meeting today, and that she will make a presentation on his behalf.

I also welcome Ms Sinikka HURSKAINEN, President of the Subcommittee on Belarus within the Political Affairs Committee of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly.

In addition, Ann BESKOW, a Standing Committee member from Sweden, will contribute to our debate with a presentation on the role of national associations of local and regional authorities in territorial self-government.

And now, I am giving the floor to Mr Anatoly RUBINOV.