COUNCIL OF EUROPE/
WESTERN EUROPEAN UNION (WEU)/
ORGANISATIONF OF SECURITY CO-OPERATION IN EUROPE (OSCE)
COMHAIRLE NA HEORPA/WEU/OSCE/EURO-MED
PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE
ATTENDANCE OF MEMBERS OF THE OIREACHTAS AT PLENARY
SESSION AND COMMITTEES OF THE ASSEMBLY
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe can be considered the oldest
international parliamentary assembly with a pluralistic composition of democratically
elected members of parliament. The Assembly is one of the two statutory organs of
the Council of Europe, which also includes a Committee of Ministers (the Minister of
Foreign Affairs, meeting usually at the level of their deputies). The Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe held its first session on 10 August 1949. The
Council of Europe started with ten member states, which included Ireland, it now has
46 members. The statutory aim of the Council of Europe is to achieve greater unity
among its members through debates, agreements and common action. Ireland’s
delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly numbers 8 (4 full members and 4 substitute
members).
The First Part of the 2004 ordinary session of the Assembly was held in Strasbourg
from 26 – 30 January and was attended by Deputies Noel Davern, Jim O’Keeffe, G.V.
Wright and Senators Brendan Daly, Jim Higgins and Paschal Mooney.
Among the reports debated during the part-session were:
 3rd Annual report on the activities of the Council of Europe Commissioner for
Human Rights
 Realising Strasbourg's potential as a European capital
 Functioning of democratic institutions in Azerbaijan
 Political prisoners in Azerbaijan
 Contested Credentials of the parliamentary delegations of Ireland and Malta
 Honouring of obligations and commitments by Armenia
 Situation in Cyprus
 Functioning of democratic institutions in Georgia
 Improving the prospects of developing countries: a moral imperative for the
world
 Economic aspects of European Union enlargement: the crucial years ahead
 Consequences of European Union enlargement for freedom of movement
between Council of Europe member states
 Candidates to the European Court of Human Rights
Debates under urgent procedure:
 The constitutional crisis in Ukraine
 Terrorism: a threat to democracies
The Assembly was also addressed by the following:
 Mr Alvaro Gil-Robles, Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of
Europe
D:\687298560.doc



Mr Tassos Papadopoulos, President of Cyprus
Mr Mikheil Saakashvili, President of Georgia
Mr Sergio Páez Verdugo, President of the Council of the Inter-Parliamentary
Union
The Second Part of the 2004 ordinary session of the Assembly was held in Strasbourg
from 26 – 30 April and was attended by Deputies Noel Davern, Brendan Howlin,
G.V. Wright and Senators Ann Ormonde and Paschal Mooney.
Among the reports debated during the part-session were:
 A European Migration Observatory / Agency
 Budgets and Expenditure of the Council of Europe for the financial year 2005
 The Principality of Monaco's application for membership of the Council of
Europe
 Contested credentials of the parliamentary delegation of Serbia and
Montenegro
 Euthanasia
 Situation of European prisons and pre-trial detention centres
 Election of judges to the European Court of Human Rights
 Disappeared persons in Belarus
 Strengthening of the United Nations
 Future of social security in Europe
Debates under urgent procedure:
 Armenia
 Situation in Kosovo
 Cyprus
The Assembly was also addressed by the following:
 Mr Ivo Sanader, Prime Minister of Croatia
 Mr Jan Peter Balkenende, Prime Minister of the Netherlands
 Mr Ilham Aliyev, President of Azerbaijan
The Third Part of the 2004 ordinary session of the Assembly was held in Strasbourg
from 21 – 25 June and was attended by Deputies G.V. Wright, Brendan Howlin and
Jim O’Keeffe and Senators Ann Ormonde and Paschal Mooney.
Among the reports debated during the part-session were:
 The euro and the Greater Europe
 Composition of the Bureau of the Assembly
 Honouring of obligations and commitments by Turkey and Implementation of
decisions of the European Court of Human Rights by Turkey
 Contribution of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
(EBRD) to economic development in central and eastern Europe
 Domestic slavery: servitude, au pairs and mail-order brides
 Honouring of obligations and commitments by Bosnia and Herzegovina
 Conflict prevention and resolution: the role of women
 Europe-wide ban on corporal punishment of children
D:\687298560.doc




Monopolisation of the electronic media and abuse of power in Italy
Italian law on legitimate suspicion
Situation of refugees and displaced persons in the Russian Federation and
some other CIS countries
Management of water resources in Europe
Debate under urgent procedure :
 The Council of Europe's contribution to the settlement of the situation in Iraq
The Assembly was also addressed by the following:
 Mr Jean-Claude Trichet, President of the European Central Bank
 Mr Kjell Magne Bondevik, Prime Minister of Norway
 Mr Robert Kocharian, President of Armenia
The Fourth Part of the 2004 ordinary session of the Assembly was held in Strasbourg
from 3 – 8 October and was attended by Deputies Noel Davern, Brendan Howlin,
G.V. Wright, Jim O’Keeffe and Senators Ann Ormonde and Paschal Mooney.
Among the reports debated during the part-session were:
 The Doha Development Agenda: world trade at a crossroads
 Functioning of democratic institutions in Serbia and Montenegro
 European strategy for the promotion of sexual and reproductive health and
rights
 Women's participation in elections
 OECD and the world economy
 The political situation in the Chechen Republic: measures to increase the
democratic stability in accordance with Council of Europe standards
 Global warming: beyond Kyoto
 Georgian-Russian relations
 Campaign to combat domestic violence against women in Europe
Debate under urgent procedure:
 Challenge of terrorism in Council of Europe member states
The Assembly was also addressed by the following:
 H.S.H. Crown Prince Albert of Monaco
 Mr Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Prime Minister of Turkey
 Mr Alu Alkhanov, President of the Chechen Republic
During the 2004 ordinary session Members of the delegation also attended meetings
of the Assembly’s Committees of which they are members.
Senator Brendan Daly attended a meeting of the Committee on Legal Affairs and
Human Rights in Paris from 8 – 9 January .
Deputy Tony Gregory attended a meeting of the Committee on Migration, Refugees
and Population in Paris from 18 – 20 January.
D:\687298560.doc
Deputy Jim O’Keeffe attended a meeting of the Committee on Economic Affairs and
Development in London from 22 – 23 January and in Paris from 24 – 25 March. He
also attended a meeting of the Monitoring Committee in Paris from 2 – 3 March.
Deputy Noel Davern attended meetings of the Political Affairs Committee from 24 –
25 May in Paris, in Oslo from 6 – 8 September and in Paris from 17 –18 November.
Deputy Brendan Howlin attended a meeting of the Subcommittee on International Economic
Relations in Strasbourg from 2 –4 March, a meeting of the Committee on Culture, Science
and Education in Paris from 8 – 10 September and a meeting of the Subcommittee on
Cultural Heritage in Paris from 1 – 2 December.
Senator Paschal Mooney attended meetings of the Committee on Equal Opportunities
for Women and Men in Paris from 10 – 11 March, in Prague from 23 – 24 May and
again in Paris from 9 – 10 December. He attend a meeting of the Committee on Legal
Affairs and Human Rights in Paris from 17 – 18 November, a meeting of the
Subcommittee on Cultural Heritage in Paris from 1 – 2 December and a meeting of
the Committee on Social, Health and Family Affairs in Paris on 17 December.
Deputy G.V. Wright attended meetings of the Committee on Environment,
Agriculture and Local and Regional Affairs in Paris from 31 March – 2 April, 7 –8
September, 3 – 4 November and 8 – 9 December.
Senator Ann Ormonde attended a meeting of the Committee on Social, Health and Family
Affairs in Paris from 31 May – 2 June.
PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY OF THE WESTERN EUROPEAN UNION
ATTENDANCE OF MEMBERS OF THE OIREACHTAS AT PLENARY
SESSIONS AND COMMITTEES OF THE ASSEMBLY
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Western European Union, which is based in Paris,
convened for the first time in 1955. At present the Assembly comprises 187 parliamentary
representatives from 28 WEU countries. Ireland became an observer at the WEU in the mid90’s and since then we have been represented by four Oireachtas members (2 observers and 2
substitute observers) who attend at plenary sessions of the Assembly twice a year and at
meetings of the various Committees of the WEU Assembly.
The First Part of the Fiftieth Session of the Assembly of the Western European Union
was held in Paris from 2 - 4 June, 2004 and was attended by Deputies Michael
Noonan and Ned O’Keeffe.
Among the reports debated during the part session were:
 Rapidly deployable European land forces
 Parliamentary scrutiny of the ESDP and CFSP - debates and replies to
parliamentary questions
 European cooperation on informing the public about defence issues
 The European Union's stabilisation missions in south-east Europe
 Security and defence in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania
D:\687298560.doc


Chemical, biological and radiological terrorism
The European Security and Defence Policy following EU and NATO
enlargement
The Assembly was also addressed by the following:
 Mr Struck, Minister for Defence of Germany
 Mr Leon-Gross, State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Spain
The Second Part of the Fiftieth Session of the Assembly of the Western European
Union was held in Paris from 29 November – 1 December 2004 and was attended by
Deputies Michael Noonan, Ned O’Keeffe, Joe Jacob and Jack Wall.
Among the reports debated during the part session were:
 European security policy fifty years after the signing of the modified Brussels
Treaty
 The European Constitution: parliamentary follow-up and public opinion
 Opinion on the budgets of the WEU ministerial organs for 2004
 Stability and security in the South Caucasus
 Transatlantic cooperation in the field of defence technology
 Cooperation on defence systems procurement in Europe
 Unmanned combat air vehicles and military aeronautics of the future
 The space dimension of the ESDP
 The deployment of European forces in the Balkans

The Assembly was also addressed by the following:
 Mr Luc Frieden, Minister for Justice, the Treasury, the Budget and Defence,
Luxembourg
 Mr Elmar Mammadyarov, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan
 Mr Alessandro Minuto Rizzo, Deputy Secretary-General of NATO
 Mr Bernard Bot, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands
 Mr George Iacovou, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Cyprus
 Mr Olivier Kamitatu, Speaker of the National Assembly of the Democratic
Republic of Congo
During the year Members of the delegation also attended meetings of the Assembly’s
Committees of which they are members.
Deputies Jack Wall, Michael Noonan and Ned O’Keeffe attended joint meetings of
the Committees in Valencia from 8 – 10 February 2004.
Deputy Jack Wall attended meetings of the Defence Committee in Oslo from 8 – 11
March, in Paris from 9 – 10 May, in Paris from 8 – 9 September, in Paris from 7 –9
November.
Deputy Michael Noonan attended meetings of the Committee on Parliamentary and
Public relations in Paris from 6- 7 April and in Madrid from 5 – 7 May.
Deputy Joe Jacob attended a meeting of the Presidential Committee in Paris from 12 –
14 December.
D:\687298560.doc
Deputy Ned O’Keeffe attended meetings of the Committee on Technological and Aerospace
in Oslo from 8 – 11 March, in Madrid from 5 – 7 May, in Paris from 10 – 11 October.
EURO-MEDITERRANEAN PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY
ATTENDANCE BY MEMBERS OF THE OIREACHTAS AT THE
INAUGURAL SESSION OF THE PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY
The Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly is the parliamentary institution of
the Barcelona process. The purpose of the Assembly is to bring parliamentary
support, impetus and influence to the consolidation and development of the Barcelona
process.
The inaugural session of the Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly (EMPA)
was held in Vouliagmeni near Athens on 22 and 23 March 2004 and was attended by
Deputy Michael Mulcahy and Deputy Paul Kehoe.
PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY OF THE ORGANISATION OF SECURITY COOPERATION IN EUROPE (OSCE)
ATTENDANCE OF MEMBERS OF THE OIREACHTAS AT PLENARY SESSIONS
AND COMMITTEES OF THE ASSEMBLY
The Parliamentary Assembly of the OSCE is composed of 317 parliamentarians from
55 OSCE Member States. The Standing Committee is composed of the Heads of
National Delegations, the President of the Assembly, the nine Vice-Presidents, the
Treasurer, the Chairs of the three General Committees on Political Affairs and
Security, Economic Matters and Human Rights. The OSCE Assembly’s primary task is
to facilitate inter-parliamentary dialogue, an increasingly important aspect of the
overall effort to meet the challenges of democracy throughout the OSCE area.
Deputies Dan Wallace and Denis Naughten attended the Third Winter Meeting of the
Assembly in Vienna from 19 – 20 February 2004. The Assembly was briefed on
current OSCE developments by senior officials including the OSCE Chairman-inOffice, Mr. Solomon Passy, Bulgarian Foreign Minister and Secretary General, Mr. Jan
Kubis. The three General Committees also discussed reports related to the main
theme of the upcoming Annual Session in Edinburgh, "Co-operation and Partnership:
Coping with New Security Threats".
The Thirteenth Annual Session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly took place in
Edinburgh from 5 - 9 July and was attended by Deputies Dan Wallace, Dinny
McGinley, John Gormley, Ollie Wilkinson and Tom McEllistrim. The Assembly met in
4 plenary sessions together with meetings of the Standing Committee, the General
Committee on Political Affairs and Security, the General Committee on Economic
Affairs, Science, Technology and Environment and the General Committee on
Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions. President of the OSCE
Parliamentary Assembly, Mr. Bruce George M.P presided over the Assembly. The Rt.
Hon. Peter Hain, Leader of the House of Commons and OSCE Chairperson-in-Office,
Mr. Solomon Passy, Bulgarian Foreign Minister also addressed the Assembly.
D:\687298560.doc