Recent and Current Events
19/06/2021 - 21/06/2021
Yerevan - A delegation of the Venice Commission will accompany the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) election observation delegation to advise on the legal framework of the early parliamentary elections held on 20 June 2021 in Armenia.
The delegation will hold meetings with other international observers, representatives of the political parties, media and civil society.
The delegation will observe the opening, voting and counting processes of the elections.
18/06/2021
Strasbourg, Council of Europe - Today the Venice Commission jointly with the OSCE/ODIHR issued the Urgent opinion on the revised draft amendments to the Election Code of Georgia.
The revised draft amendments to the Election Code of Georgia have been prepared in close cooperation between the ruling party and several opposition parties, which is particularly noteworthy against the background of the parliamentary boycott by all elected opposition parties after the October 2020 parliamentary elections and of the fact that most of the opposition parties had therefore not participated in... read more
PACE - hearing on balanced gender representation in the Assembly
09/06/2021
The Equality Committee and the Rules of Procedure Committee held a joint hearing on gender representation in the Parliamentary Assembly on 3 June 2021.
A representative of the Venice Commission provided expert input showing that gender-balanced representation in elected bodies is on the way of becoming an international standard, and how it can effectively be promoted in practice through appropriate legislation.
08/06/2021
In the framework of the preparation of the joint urgent opinion on the revised amendments to the Election Code of Georgia, the Venice Commission’s rapporteurs and OSCE/ODIHR expert held online meetings with representatives of the following authorities and other interlocutors:
• the Central Election Commission,
• the political parties which signed the 19 April 2021 agreement and several parties who did not,
• civil society and diplomatic community present in Georgia.
This urgent opinon is prepared under the Quick response Mechanism in the framework of the EU/Co... read more
07/06/2021
Kyiv - The Venice Commission President, Mr Gianni Buquicchio, held an exchange of views with the President of Ukraine, Mr Volodymyr Zelensky, and with the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada, Mr Dmytro Razumkov, on the pending judicial reforms in Ukraine.
07/06/2021 - 08/06/2021
Kyiv – The President of the Venice Commission, Mr Gianni Buquicchio, Honorary President of the Commission, Ms Hanna Suchocka, and the Secretary of the Venice Commission, Ms Simona Granata-Menghini, represented the Commission at the high-level “Zero Corruption Conference”, organised by the Anti-Corruption Action Centre of Ukraine.
07/06/2021
The Hague - The Venice Commission participated in the online conference to mark the 25th anniversary of The Hague Recommendations regarding the Education Rights of National Minorities, which was first published in 1996.
REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA - Countering misuse of administrative resources in electoral period – Online awareness raising event with electoral stakeholders and media representatives
04/06/2021
The Electoral Assistance Division of the DG-II the Council of Europe, the Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Moldova and its Centre for Continuous Electoral Training co-organise an online awareness raising event with electoral stakeholders and media representatives on “Countering the misuse of administrative resources during electoral processes”.
Mr Richard Barrett, Irish member of the Venice Commission, will intervene on “The international framework on combating the misuse of administrative resources during electoral processes”.
04/06/2021
The first Steering Committee meeting of the Central Asia Rule of Law Programme 2020-2023 took place online on 4 June 2021.
High level officials from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan as well as representatives of the European Union and the Council of Europe took part in the meeting. Representatives of the Venice Commission in charge of the implementation of the Programme’s component entitled “Promote efficient functioning of state institutions and public administration in Central Asia” also participated in the event.
The participants o... read more
01/06/2021
Strasbourg, Council of Europe – Today the Venice Commission issued the urgent opinion on the Reform of Fair Trial Requirements relating to Substantial Administrative Fines in Malta.
This urgent opinion was requested by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Governance of Malta, Mr Edward Zammit Lewis.
28/05/2021
The Electoral Assistance Division of the Council of Europe, the Centre for Continuous Electoral Training of the Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Moldova and the National Institute of Justice of the Republic of Moldova co-organised a webinar for judges and election commissioners on “Election dispute resolution by the Moldovan courts – International and national framework on the use of administrative resources during electoral processes”.
Mr Eirik Holmøyvik, Norwegian substitute member of the Venice Commission, intervened on “Election dispute resolution – good Europea... read more
28/05/2021
In the framework of the preparation of the draft opinion on the constitutional amendments adopted by the Hungarian parliament in December 2020, on 17, 18, 21 and 28 May 2021 the Commission’s rapporteurs held a series of online meetings with the representatives of the following authorities and other interlocutors:
• Minister of Justice;
• Minister of Family Affairs;
• Ministry of Human Resources;
• Supreme Court (Kuria);
• Political parties;
• Data Protection and Freedom of Information Authority, and
• NGOs.
The draft opinion will be submitte... read more
27/05/2021
The 6th coordination meeting of the UniDem project for the southern Mediterranean took place via videoconference on 27 May 2021. This annual meeting gathers national coordinators representing Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine* and Tunisia. Participants took stock of the UniDem Med 2020 seminars and discussed their respective priorities as regards modernisation of public administration. During the meeting, the participants determined the topics, dates and venues of the next UniDem Med seminars in 2021.
The UniDem seminars were established for the Southern Mediterra... read more
26/05/2021
In the framework of the preparation of the draft opinion on the draft law on the conflict of interests, on 25 and 26 May 2021 the Commission’s rapporteurs held a series of online meetings with the Minister of Justice of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as with the MPs in Parliament from the majority and opposition parties, Agency on the Prevention of Corruption, the Conflict of Interests Commission, representatives of the civil society and the international community.
The draft opinion will be submitted for adoption during the 127th plenary session (2-3 July 2021).
25/05/2021
The Venice Commission and the World Conference on Constitutional Justice participated in the 9th Conference of Head of Institutions of the Association of Francophone Constitutional Courts on "Collegiality" (online).
25/05/2021
The Venice Commission is pleased to announce the publication of the issue 3/2020 of the e-Bulletin on Constitutional Case-Law, including a number of cases relating to Covid-19.
The e-Bulletin reports three times a year on the case-law of constitutional courts and courts with equivalent jurisdiction, including case-law of the European Court of Human Rights, the Court of Justice of the European Union and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.
The e-Bulletin is sent to liaison officers of these courts and to subscribers by e-mail three times a year, each mailing reports... read more
21/05/2021
The Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia Mr Kakha Kuchava requested an urgent opinion of the Venice Commission on the draft (revised) amendments to the Election Code of Georgia.
On 25 May 2021, the Bureau of the Venice Commission authorised the preparation of this urgent opinion to be issued prior to the next Plenary Session of July 2021.
The opinion will be prepared under the Quick response Mechanism in the framework of the EU/CoE joint programme Partnership for Good Governance, co-funded by the Council of Europe and the European Union and implemented by the Council of... read more
BELGIUM - Hearing of the Institutional Affairs Committee of the Senate
21/05/2021
A member of the Venice Commission participated in a hearing of the Belgian Senate on three special bills amending the special law on the Belgian Constitutional Court. He contributed to the debate on the issue of the composition of Constitutional Courts from a viewpoint of comparative law.
19/05/2021
Following the request for an opinion by the PACE Legal Affairs and Human Rights Committee dated 18 December 2020 on the compatibility with international human rights standards of a series of Bills introduced to the Russian State Duma between 9 and 23 November 2020, to amend laws affecting so-called "foreign agents", the Commission’s rapporteurs held a series of online meetings on 7 and 17 May 2021.
First, the rapporteurs exchanged views with the Chairman of the Committee of the Federation Council on Constitutional Legislation and State Construction and with the Chairman of the Inte... read more
14/05/2021
In the framework of the preparation of the draft opinion on the draft law for dismantling the section for the investigation of offences committed within the judiciary, on 12 and 14 May 2021 the Commission’s rapporteurs held a series of online meetings with the representatives of the following authorities and other interlocutors:
• Minister of Justice
• Parliament
• High Court of Cassation and Justice – President and other representatives
• Superior Council of Magistracy
• Professional associations of judges and prosecutors
• Head of the Anti-Corruption Dire... read more
11/05/2021 - 12/05/2021
The Venice Commission is organising in cooperation with the Ibero-American Federation of Ombudsmen (FIO) an online Conference on "The Venice Principles and Ombudsman Institutions in the protection of Human Rights in Latin America and Europe", on 11-12 May 2021.
The main objective is to raise awareness of the "Venice Principles" in Latin America and to strengthen a common tradition of democracy, human rights, rule of law and good governance in Latin America as well as to compare the regional experience with the European one. The Conference is an opportunity to make the "Venice Princ... read more
11/05/2021
The National Electoral Chamber of Argentina organised a two-day online training event on "Elections and risks of misinformation: Good practices in digital campaigns and social networks" held on 11 and 13 May 2021.
Ms Simona Granata-Menghini, Secretary of the Venice Commission, participated in the panel discussion of 13 May.
The event was opened by Mr Santiago Corcuera, President of the National Electoral Chamber of Argentina, and was closed by Mr Alberto Dalla Via, Judge at the National Electoral Chamber of Argentina and representative of this country on the Venice Comm... read more
11/05/2021
On 27 April 2021, the Minister of Justice of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mr Josip Grubesa, requested an opinion of the Venice Commission on the draft law on the prevention of conflicts of interest in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The draft opinion will be submitted for adoption at the 127th plenary session of the Commission (2-3 July 2021).
The draft opinion will be prepared under the Expert Coordination Mechanism in the framework of the EU/CoE joint programme Horizontal Facility II, co-funded by the Council of Europe and the European Union and implemented by ... read more
10/05/2021
Strasbourg, Council of Europe – Today the Venice Commission issued the Urgent opinion on the revised draft amendments to the Law on the State Prosecution Service of Montenegro.
This urgent opinion was requested on 26 April 2021 by Deputy Prime Minister Abazović and is a follow-up to the opinion adopted by the Venice Commission at its 126th Plenary Session (19-20 March 2021) on a previous version of these amendments (CDL-AD(2021)012).
09/05/2021
In the framework of the preparation of the urgent opinion on fair trial requirements in relation to substantial administrative fines in Malta, between 26 April – 3 May 2021 the rapporteurs held a series of online meetings with the following authorities and other interlocutors:
• Parliamentary majority
• Parliamentary opposition
• Ministry for Justice, Equality and Governance
• Attorney General
• Police Commissioner
• Ombudsman
• Malta Financial Services Authori... read more
06/05/2021
Strasbourg, Council of Europe – Today the Venice Commission and the Directorate General of Human Rights and Rule of Law of the Council of Europe issued the Urgent Opinion on the draft Law amending certain provisions of the Code of Administrative Offences and the Criminal Code of Ukraine regarding the liability of public officials for inaccurate asset declaration (no. 4651, of 27 January 2021).
The urgent opinion was requested by letter dated 12 March 2021 by the Chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Mr Dmytro RAZUMKOV.
05/05/2021
Strasbourg, Council of Europe – Today the Venice Commission and the Directorate General of Human Rights and Rule of Law of the Council of Europe issued the Urgent opinion on the draft law on amendments to some laws of Ukraine on the procedure for electing (appointing) members of the High Council of Justice and on the activities of disciplinary inspectors of the High Council of Justice.
The urgent opinion was requested by letter dated 15 March 2021 by the Chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Mr Dmytro RAZUMKOV.
04/05/2021 - 05/05/2021
At its meeting on 27 January 2021, the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights decided to request a Venice Commission opinion on the compatibility with international human rights standards of Law no. 7262 on the Prevention of Financing of the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction recently passed by Turkey’s National Assembly, amending, inter alia, the Law on Associations (No. 2860) and Law on Aid Collection (No. 5253).
Following this request, the rapporteurs held virtual meetings with the five parliamentary groups.
The draft opinion will be submitted for adopt... read more
30/04/2021
Council of Europe, Strasbourg – Today the Venice Commission and OSCE/ODIHR issued their urgent joint opinion on the draft amendments to the Election Code of Georgia, following an urgent request for assistance by the then Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia, Mr Archil TALAKVADZE, addressed to the OSCE/ODIHR on 9 March 2021.
Proposed amendments to the Election Code include some positive changes but raise some new concerns which add to long-standing fundamental issues that remain unaddressed. A more comprehensive and systemic reform is still needed.
This urgent opinion ... read more
29/04/2021
Strasbourg – The Venice Commission of the Council of Europe has issued the urgent opinion on the amendments to the Organic Law on Common Courts of Georgia.
The request for the urgent opinion came from the Speaker of the Georgian Parliament, Mr Archil Talakvadze, by letter dated 8 April 2021.
The Venice Commission welcomes the amendments to the Organic Law on Common Courts, which are crucial for the selection and appointment of Supreme Court judges, currently taking place in Georgia. Having taken several of the Venice Commission’s previous recommendations into account, th... read more
28/04/2021
On 26 April 2021 the Deputy Prime Minister of Montenegro, M. Dritan Abazović, requested an urgent opinion of the Venice Commission on the revised draft amendments to the Law on the State Prosecution Service of Montenegro. This request follows up to the opinion issued by the Commission in March 2021 on the previous version of the amendments (see CDL-AD(2021)012).
The Venice Commission’s Bureau has accepted such request and the urgent opinion will be issued in due course.
ALBANIA – parliamentary election – legal assistance to the PACE election observation mission
24/04/2021 - 26/04/2021
Tirana - A delegation of the Venice Commission accompanied the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) election observation delegation to advise on the legal framework of the parliamentary election held on 25 April 2021 in Albania.
The delegation held meetings with other international observers, representatives of the political parties, media and civil society.
The delegation observed the opening, voting and counting processes of the elections.
23/04/2021
Council of Europe, Strasbourg - "I am extremely alarmed by the present situation in the Republic of Moldova.
I call on all state institutions to exercise restraint, to enter into a dialogue and to de-escalate this worrying situation in order to ensure the operation of the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova, which is what the Moldovan people deserves especially when confronted with the current health and economic crisis.
Today’s declaration of the Parliament that it does not recognise the Opinion of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Moldova of 15 April 2... read more
22/04/2021 - 23/04/2021
Berlin – The Venice Commission is invited to participate in the Conference of the Presidents of the Constitutional Courts of the Member States of the Council of Europe. The event is organised by the German Presidency of the Council of Europe (November – May 2021).
22/04/2021 - 23/04/2021
Tashkent – Following an invitation by the Minister of Justice of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Mr. Ruslanbek Davletov, the President of the Venice Commission’s President, Mr. Gianni Buquicchio, addressed the International Legal Forum “Tashkent Law Spring”.
The 2021 edition of this biennial Forum is entitled “Law 4.0. The vision of law in the age of fourth industrial revolution” and it was held as a video conference. The event was organised by the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Uzbekistan. A number of high ranking officials from different countries, international organisation... read more
22/04/2021
Strasbourg – The Venice Commission and the OSCE/ODIHR have issued an joint urgent opinion on amendments to the Electoral Code and related legislation of Armenia. Having examined the conformity of the procedure of their elaboration, as well as the conformity of the amendments with international standards, the opinion concludes that the package is to be broadly welcomed, as it addresses the majority of previous recommendations. At the same time, the opinion suggests a series of key recommendations aimed at improving the draft amendments submitted.
The opinion was requested by the Spe... read more
21/04/2021
The OSCE/ODIHR, the Venice Commission and the Kyiv Office of the Council of Europe as well as the National Democratic Institute organised an online roundtable discussion of the Joint Opinion on the draft law on political parties in Ukraine, adopted last March by the Venice Commission.
The rapporteurs presented the conclusions of the opinion and the Working Group of the Verkhovna Rada informed the participants on the latest developments concerning the draft law.
21/04/2021
Upon request of the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Mr Dmytro Razumkov to assess the draft law No 4561 amending provisions of the Code of Administrative Offenses and the Criminal Code of Ukraine regarding the liability of public officials for inaccurate asset declaration (reg. No. 4651 of 27 January 2021), the rapporteurs of the Venice Commission held a series of meetings with the representatives of the following Ukrainian authorities:
• The Office of the President of Ukraine,
• The Parliamentary Committee on Law Enforcement,
• The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine... read more
European Committee on Democracy and Governance (CDDG) - 13th meeting
15/04/2021 - 16/04/2021
The Venice Commission participated in the 13th meeting - via videoconference - of the European Committee on Democracy and Governance (CDDG). A representative of the Commission presented the Principles for a fundamental rights-compliant use of digital technologies in electoral processes, adopted in December 2021.
13/04/2021
The Centro de Estudios Políticos y Constitucionales and the Venice Commission organised a seminar to highlight the interaction between Spain and the Commission since the Commission’s origins, in Europe and in Latin America.
12/04/2021 - 13/04/2021
In the framework of the preparation of a joint Venice Commission – OSCE/ODIHR urgent opinion on the electoral reform in Georgia, the rapporteurs and experts met online with the representatives of the political parties and the Central Electoral Commission, as well as with of the civil society and international community present in Georgia.
At its 126th Plenary Session (online, 19-20 March 2021), the Venice Commission authorised the preparation of this urgent opinion to be issued prior to the next Plenary Session. This opinion is prepared under the Quick response Mechanism in the fra... read more
08/04/2021
On 1 April 2021, the Venice Commission’s Bureau authorised the preparation of an urgent opinion on the planned reform – either through an amendment of the Constitution or through a legislative amendment of the Interpretation Act - of fair trial requirements related to substantial administrative penalties in Malta.
This urgent opinion was requested on 29 March 2021 by the Minister of Justice of Malta.
The opinion will be published before the 127th Plenary Session.
08/04/2021
By letter dated 23 February 2021 the President of the National Assembly of Bulgaria requested an opinion of the Venice Commission on the “Law supplementing the Criminal Procedure Code” on the creation of special mechanism for investigation of the Prosecutor General or his/her deputy.
The draft opinion will be submitted for adoption at the 127th plenary session of the Commission.
08/04/2021 - 09/04/2021
In the framework of the preparation of a joint Venice Commission – OSCE/ODIHR urgent opinion on draft amendments to the Electoral Code and related legislation of Armenia, the rapporteurs and experts met online with the representatives of the following stakeholders:
• Prime Minister’s Office,
• Deputy Minister of Justice,
• Central Electoral Commission,
• Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs of the National Assembly,
• political parties seated in parliament and extra-parliamentary parties, and
• Corruption Prevention Commission.
The... read more
07/04/2021
The Ombudsman of the Kingdom of Morocco, in cooperation with the Venice Commission, is organising an international webinar on "The UN Resolution of 16 December 2020 "The role of ombudsman institutions in the promotion and protection of human rights, good governance and the rule of law" - and the Council of Europe standards".
The aim of the webinar is to present the UN Resolution that established the Venice Principles as the new global standard for ombudsmen, as well as to present the Council of Europe's standards in this field.
07/04/2021
By letter dated 29 March 2021 the Minister of Justice Mr Stelian-Christian ION requested an opinion of the Venice Commission on the draft law for dismantling the Section for the Investigation of Offences committed within the Judiciary.
The draft opinion will be submitted for adoption at the 127th plenary session of the Commission.
07/04/2021
By letter dated 17 March 2021 the Human Rights Defender of Armenia requested an opinion of the Venice Commission on the compatibility of the Armenian legislation related to the independence of the Ombudsman institution staff with the applicable international standards.
The draft opinion will be submitted for adoption at the 127th plenary session of the Commission.
06/04/2021
By letter dated 12 March 2021 the Chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Mr Dmytro RAZUMKOV requested an urgent opinion of the Venice Commission on the draft law amending provisions of the Code of Administrative Offenses and the Criminal Code of Ukraine regarding the liability of public officials for inaccurate asset declaration (reg. No. 4651, of 27 January 2021).
At its 126th Plenary Session (online, 19-20 March 2021), the Venice Commission authorised the preparation of this urgent opinion to be issued prior to the next Plenary Session.
06/04/2021
The Venice Commission experts participated in the Donors’ Partners Coordination Council Working Group for Rule of Law and Human Rights for Kyrgyz Republic. Representatives of the Kyrgyz NGOs and national legal experts also attended the event.
Following a presentation of the Joint Opinion of the Venice Commission and ODIHR on the Draft Constitution of the Kyrgyz Republic, the rapporteurs of the Commission and ODIHR experts had an exchange of views with members of the Working Group and Kyrgyz participants on the constitutional reform process and up-coming referendum organized on 11 A... read more
01/04/2021
Following an urgent request for opinion dated 15 March 2021 by the Chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Mr Dmytro RAZUMKOV on the draft law on amendments to some laws of Ukraine on the procedure for electing (appointing) members of the High Council of Justice and on the activities of disciplinary inspectors of the High Council of Justice, the rapporteurs met with the following interlocutors:
• Chairperson and members of the Parliamentary Committee on Legal Policy;
• Deputy Head of the President’s Office of Ukraine, chairperson of the working group on the judiciary ref... read more
31/03/2021 - 05/04/2021
Sofia - A delegation of the Venice Commission accompanied the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) election observation delegation to advise on the legal framework of the parliamentary election scheduled on 4 April 2021 in Bulgaria.
The delegation held meetings with other international observers, representatives of the political parties, media and civil society.
The delegation observed the opening, voting and counting processes of the elections.
31/03/2021
By letter dated 25 February 2021 the Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands Ms Khadija ARIB requested an opinion of the Venice Commission on the rule of law in the Netherlands, i.e. on the legal protection of citizens, in particular under administrative law (including scope, legal protection, test of reasonableness and the role of the Council of State) and on the system of checks and balances in theory and practice, including the Houses of the States General and the judiciary.
26/03/2021
The OSCE/ODIHR and the Venice Commission are preparing jointly an opinion on the draft amendments to the Election Code of Georgia, following an urgent request for assistance by the Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia, Mr Archil TALAKVADZE, addressed to the OSCE/ODIHR on 9 March 2021.
26/03/2021
By letter dated 15 March 2021 the Minister of Labor and Social Policy of Republic of North Macedonia requested an opinion of the Venice Commission on the draft law on gender equality.
The draft opinion will be submitted for adoption at the 127th plenary session of the Commission in July 2021.
26/03/2021
By letter dated 15 March 2021 the Chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Mr Dmytro RAZUMKOV requested an urgent opinion of the Venice Commission on the draft law on amendments to some laws of Ukraine on the procedure for electing (appointing) members of the High Council of Justice and on the activities of disciplinary inspectors of the High Council of Justice.