PACE session to center on terrorism and developments in Chechnya

PACE session to center on terrorism and developments in Chechnya

TASS
October 3, 2004 Sunday

By Yuri Ulyanovsky

STRASBOURG

Struggle against terrorism is put into the section “urgent debate” of
the agenda of the PACE autumn session.

The discussion of the political and humanitarian situation as well as
the state of human rights in the Chechen Republic figure as the second
item on the agenda of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of
Europe, which will be held on October 4-8 in Strasbourg.

The key reporter on this issue will be human right commissioner of the
Council of Europe Alvaro Gil-Robles who made a trip to Chechnya in
September where he participated in a scientific conference on human
rights in the republic.

The session will also examine problems of the changing climate in the
world within the Kyoto Protocol and the development of the world
economy. Speakers on this topic will include executive director of the
UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Klaus Toepfer, director-general of the
World Trade Organisation Supachai Panitchpak and deputy
secretary-general of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and
Development Berglind Asgeirsdottir.

The session will also discuss operation of democratic institutions in
Serbia and Montenegro as well as in Azerbaijan, observance by Armenia
of taken obligations and participation of women in elections.

Invited speakers to the session include Turkish Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan, president of the Pan-African parliament Gertrude
Mongella and Monaco Crown Prince Albert whose speech will be a
preliminary to the ceremony of admitting the principality to the
Council of Europe.