Motion for a resolution | Doc. 13842 | 01 July 2015

Creating a Europe without dividing lines

Signatories: Mr Tobias ZECH, Germany, EPP/CD ; Ms Boriana ÅBERG, Sweden, EPP/CD ; Mr Pedro AGRAMUNT, Spain, EPP/CD ; Mr Viorel Riceard BADEA, Romania, EPP/CD ; Mr Axel E. FISCHER, Germany, EPP/CD ; Ms Tina GHASEMI, Sweden, EPP/CD ; Ms Dzhema GROZDANOVA, Bulgaria, EPP/CD ; Mr Gábor HARANGOZÓ, Hungary, SOC ; Mr Attila KORODI, Romania, EPP/CD ; Ms Elvira KOVÁCS, Serbia, EPP/CD ; Mr Olof LAVESSON, Sweden, EPP/CD ; Mr Zsolt NÉMETH, Hungary, EPP/CD ; Mr Joseph O'REILLY, Ireland, EPP/CD ; Mr Cezar Florin PREDA, Romania, EPP/CD ; Mr Maximilian REIMANN, Switzerland, ALDE ; Mr Senad ŠEPIĆ, Bosnia and Herzegovina, EPP/CD ; Mr Serhiy SOBOLEV, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Egidijus VAREIKIS, Lithuania, EPP/CD ; Mr Jordi XUCLÀ, Spain, ALDE ; Ms Svitlana ZALISHCHUK, Ukraine, EPP/CD

This motion has not been discussed in the Assembly and commits only those who have signed it.

A declared aim of the Council of Europe at the celebration of its 50th anniversary in 1999 was "… to create a Europe without dividing lines and at the same time preserve Europe’s greatest treasure, its linguistic, ethnic, national and cultural diversity". According to Order 488 of the Parliamentary Assembly the aim was to set up the general requirements for membership. Additionally, for each applicant country the Assembly elaborated specific preconditions for membership. These requirements became binding with the ratification of accession documents for each particular country including the relevant "declarations" and "letters". A similar situation arose when these countries decided to become members of the European Union.

However, the procedure seems to have halted here. The requirements and obligations taken in a high number of cases have not become reality in any case. In a number of cases there has been an increase of ethnic tensions in some of Council of Europe member States.

There is a need to act in time instead of reacting too late.

The Assembly should therefore research how each member State is faring after twenty or more years in honouring its obligations listed the Assembly opinions. Every law or agreement has only as much value as the extent to which it is honoured. There are serious deficiencies in this respect. The respect and dignity of the Council of Europe at present and in the future depends on us: can we guarantee that obligations will be respected.

In Europe there are no first and second class citizens and countries. The same scale should be applied to all member States, regardless of political colour, nationality or religion. The above-mentioned aim must concern all of us, because it concerns also the legitimacy of our institutions.