The Committee of Ministers is the Council of Europe's decision-making body. It comprises the Foreign Affairs Ministers of all the member states, or their permanent diplomatic representatives in Strasbourg. It is both a governmental body, where national approaches to problems facing European society can be discussed on an equal footing, and a collective forum, where Europe-wide responses to such challenges are formulated. In collaboration with the Parliamentary Assembly, it is the guardian of the Council's fundamental values, and monitors member states' compliance with their undertakings. Read More...
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) consists of a number of individual representatives from each member State, with a President elected each year from among them for a maximum period of three sessions. The present President is Lluís Maria DE PUIG (Spain, SOC). He was elected in January 2008.
Whilst in the Committee of Ministers each member State has one vote, in the Parliamentary Assembly the number of representatives and consequently of votes is determined by the size of the country. The biggest number is eighteen, the smallest two. As there are an equal number of representatives and substitutes, the total number of members of the Assembly is therefore 636, plus 18 Observers. Read more ...
-The Congress is therefore a political assembly composed of representatives holding an electoral mandate as members of a local or regional authority appointed each by a specific procedure. Its 318 full members and 318 substitute members, representing over 200 000 European municipalities and regions, are grouped by national delegation and by political group. Thus the Congress offers an ideal forum for dialogue where representatives of local and regional authorities discuss common problems, compare notes about their experiences and then put their points of view to the national governments.
- As promoter of local and regional democracy, since its inception it has produced a body of international treaties such as the European Charter of Local Self-Government, which has become the authoritative international treaty in this sphere. Likewise, a draft European Charter of Regional Democracy is expected to supplement this machinery in order to establish the fundamental principles of regional democracy more firmly while taking account of the specific circumstances of the member states. Read more...
The European Court of Human Rights is an international court set up in 1959. It rules on individual or State applications alleging violations of the civil and political rights set out in the European Convention on Human Rights. Since 1998 it has sat as a full-time court and individuals can apply to it directly.
In almost fifty years the Court has delivered more than 10,000 judgments. These are binding on the countries concerned and have led governments to alter their legislation and administrative practice in a wide range of areas. The Court’s case-law makes the Convention a powerful living instrument for meeting new challenges and consolidating the rule of law and democracy in Europe. Read more...
The Commissioner for Human Rights is an independent institution within the Council of Europe, mandated to promote the awareness of and respect for human rights in 47 Council of Europe member states.
- foster the effective observance of human rights, and assist member states in the implementation of Council of Europe human rights standards; - promote education in and awareness of human rights in Council of Europe member states; - identify possible shortcomings in the law and practice concerning human rights; - facilitate the activities of national ombudsperson institutions and other human rights structures; and - provide advice and information regarding the protection of human rights across the region.
The Conference of INGOs is the chief body representing the INGOs enjoying participatory status with the Council of Europe and as such identifies the general action needed to organise its participation in the Council of Europe “quadrilogue”, ensure that participatory status functions correctly, and so help to affirm the political role of civil society at the Council of Europe. It decides on policy lines and defines and adopts action programmes.
The Conference of INGOs meets in Strasbourg three to four times a year during the ordinary sessions of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. Read more...