Venice Commission to deal with the limits to freedom of expression
during its 76th plenary session

Strasbourg, 14.10.2008 – The Council of Europe’s European Commission for
Democracy through Law ("Venice Commission") will be meeting in Venice on
17 and 18 October 2008 (Scuola Grande di San Giovanni Evangelista).

The Commission will adopt a report on blasphemy, religious insult and
incitement to religious hatred. In the report the Commission will take a
position on whether criminal sanctions are necessary to protect the
right of certain persons to respect for their religious beliefs or
whether there exist other ways of doing so without unduly restricting
freedom of expression.

At the request of the Parliamentary Assembly the Commission will start
to examine recently adopted constitutional amendments in Albania and the
Turkish rules on the prohibition of political parties. The respective
opinions will be adopted at the next session of the Commission in
December.

Other points submitted for adoption include:
* the amicus curiae brief for the European Court of Human Rights on the
compatibility of certain provisions of the Constitution of Bosnia and
Herzegovina with the European Convention of Human Rights;

* opinions on electoral legislation of Armenia and Moldova;
* joint opinions with OSCE-ODIHR on freedom of assembly and freedom of
religion in Kyrgyzstan;
* the opinion on the draft law on the Constitutional Court of
Montenegro;
* the report on constitutional issues related to the ratification of the
Statute of the International Criminal Court;
* the report on legislative initiative.

On the margins of the meeting a ceremony will be held to launch the
publication of the Liber Amicorum for Antonio La Pergola, the late
President of the Commission

For more information on the Venice Commission <;

PRESS RELEASE
Council of Europe Press Division
Ref: 725a08
Tel: +33 (0)3 88 41 25 60
Fax:+33 (0)3 88 41 39 11
pressunit@coe.int
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From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress