Recent and Current Events
18/09/2019 - 19/09/2019
Tirana – In the framework of the preparation of the opinion on a draft law concerning immovable property, which aims to finalise transitional ownership processes, a delegation of the Venice Commission will visit Albania from 18 to 19 September 2019.
The delegation will meet MPs, representatives of several Ministries (Justice, Interior, Finance and Economy, Europe and Foreign Affairs and others), the Ombudsman and the State Advocate, representatives of the Albanian judiciary, civil society as well as representatives of the international community present in the country.
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16/09/2019 - 17/09/2019
Yerevan - a delegation of the Venice Commission will visit Armenia in the framework of the preparation of the draft opinion on the amendments to the Judicial Code and to the related laws with regard to the integrity and disciplinary liability of judges.
The delegation will exchange views with representatives of the Armenian authorities, as well as civil society and other stakeholders.
The draft opinion, requested by the Minister of Justice, will be submitted to the Venice Commission for examination and possible adoption at its October 2019 session in Venice.
16/09/2019 - 17/09/2019
Madrid - The Venice Commission participates in the II International Conference on “Cybersecurity and Electoral Justice” on the topic “Exponential progress of technology and disinformation and repercussion on electoral campaigns on social networks”.
10/09/2019 - 11/09/2019
Tirana - a delegation of the Venice Commission is visiting Albania in the framework of the preparation of the draft opinion on the powers of a President to set the dates of elections in a parliamentary system.
The delegation is meeting the following Albanian authorities: the President of Albania, the Prime Minister, the Speaker of the Assembly and the representatives of the majority and the opposition at the Assembly, including the Special Investigatory Commission as well as the Minister of Interior, the representatives of the Central Elections Commission and the acting Pres... read more
10/09/2019
The Minister of Justice of Republic of Moldova requested the Venice Commission to provide an opinion, at its earliest convenience, on the draft law on the reform of the Supreme Court of Justice and the Prosecutor’s Office.
The draft opinion is on the agenda of the Venice Commission’s October 2019 plenary session.
09/09/2019
Following his announcement made on 15 July this year, on 9 September 2019, the Minister of Justice of Armenia requested the Venice Commission and the Justice and Legal Cooperation Department of the DGI of the Council of Europe to provide a Joint Opinion on the amendments to the Judicial Code and to the related laws with regard to the integrity and disciplinary liability of judges.
05/09/2019 - 06/09/2019
Skopje – In the framework of the preparation of the draft opinion on the law on the use of languages of North Macedonia, a Venice Commission delegation will travel to Skopje on 5-6 September 2019 to exchange views with the authorities and the representatives of the non-majority communities.
The draft opinion is on the agenda of the October 2019 plenary session of the Commission. The preparation of this draft opinion is funded through the framework of the "Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey", a joint programme funded by the European Union and the Council of Europ... read more
Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe - “The Venice Principles“
05/09/2019
Strasbourg, Council of Europe - Mr Jan Helgesen, President of the Scientific Council of the Venice Commission, participated in the Informal meeting of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on the respective contributions of national human rights institutions and ombudspersons to human rights and the rule of law. Mr Helgesen presented Commission’s “Venice Principles “ on ombudsman institutions as a contribution to the discussions.
16/08/2019
The Speaker of the Congress of the Peruvian Republic requested the Venice Commission to provide an opinion on the constitutional reform concerning early elections proposed by the President of Peru.
08/08/2019
Tunis - Representatives of the Venice Commission will participate in a meeting between the independent constitutional bodies and civil society on the latest legislative initiatives concerning the independent bodies in Tunisia.
The Venice Commission is involved in the evaluation of the legal framework for the functioning of the independent bodies of Tunisia. This activity is part of the joint EU - Council of Europe programme entitled ‘Project of assistance to independent institutions in Tunisia” (PAII-T).
This event will be followed by a meeting of a technical group com... read more
02/08/2019
The President of the Constitutional Court of Armenia made a request for an amicus curiae brief relating to Article 300.1 of the Armenian Criminal Code.
26/07/2019
The Minister of Justice of Armenia requested the Venice Commission to provide an opinion on the constitutional implications of the ratification of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (Istanbul Convention) for Armenia.
24/07/2019
The Speaker of the Assembly of Albania requested the Venice Commission to provide an opinion, at its earliest convenience, on the powers of a President to set the dates of elections in a parliamentary system.
19/07/2019
The authorities of Kosovo requested the Venice Commission to provide an opinion on the draft law on legal acts.
15/07/2019
Strasbourg - Within the framework of the fruitful cooperation between the Armenian authorities and the Venice Commission as concerns in particular the ongoing judicial reform, following a meeting between the Minister of Justice and President Buquicchio on 2 July 2019, the Minister has announced that he will request the Commission’s opinion on the draft amendments to the Judicial Code which are currently being prepared in consultation with the Council of Europe, once they are ready.
11/07/2019
London - on the side-lines of the Global forum for media freedom, the Commission’s 1st Vice president Ms Herdis Kjerulf Thorgeirsdottir met the Special Envoy of the Council of Europe on death penalty Ms Bianca Jagger. They discussed the urgent need to better protect journalists and other relevant issues raised by the Forum.
10/07/2019 - 12/07/2019
Strasbourg – A study visit to the Council of Europe and the European court of human rights for members of two Working Groups under the President of the Kyrgyz Republic on improvement of the electoral legislation and on monitoring the judiciary reform will take place on 10-12 July 2019. The participants will be able to follow closely the work of the Venice Commission, the Parliamentary Assembly, judges and lawyers of the EctHR and other bodies and services of the Council of Europe.
During the seminar organised on 11 July the participants will learn about European standards in the f... read more
10/07/2019 - 11/07/2019
London – the United Kingdom and Canada co-hosted the “Global Conference for Media Freedom” co-organised by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Global Affairs Canada, in London on 10-11 July 2019. This conference was the first of its kind.
Upon invitation, the members of the Sub-committee on Media and Information Society of the Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media of the Parliamentary Assembly organised a workshop entitled “Keeping journalists safe – what international organisations can do” which was part of the Conference’s session on “Regional Mechanisms ... read more
08/07/2019
Strasbourg – Following the request of the European Court of Human Rights in the case of Mugemangango c. Belgium, the Venice Commission will answer the following question:
"What are the adequate and sufficient procedural safeguards that a State must provide in the framework of a procedure for contesting the outcome of an election (notably in the event of allegations of irregularities during the electoral process) or the distribution of seats? In particular, what qualities should the body in charge of examining appeals on election results require?"
Democracy and the Rule of Law in the EU – international conference
05/07/2019
Brussels – Ms Veronika Bilkova, Vice President of the Venice Commission, represented the Commission at an international conference on “Democracy and the Rule of Law in the EU” organised by RECONNECT - a research project on ‘Reconciling Europe with its Citizens through Democracy and the Rule of Law’. Professor Bilkova participated in the Policy Roundtable “Rule of Law in the European Union”.
02/07/2019
The Supreme Court of India has joined the World Conference on Constitutional Justice bringing its total membership to 116 Courts from 5 continents!
27/06/2019 - 28/06/2019
Bratislava - The Venice Commission will hold the 16th European Conference of Electoral Management Bodies, in co-operation with the Section for Public Administration of the Ministry of Interior of the Slovak Republic and the State Commission for the Elections and Control of Political Parties Funding.
This year the European Conference of Electoral Management Bodies will be devoted to the theme of the election dispute resolution.
27/06/2019
Bratislava - The President of the Venice Commission had a meeting with the President of the Constitutional Court of the Slovak Republic, Mr Ivan Fiačan.
26/06/2019
Council of Europe, Strasbourg - On 26 June 2019 the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe decided to request the Venice Commission's opinion on the compliance with the Council of Europe and other international standards of national parliamentary elections organised in a State’s nationwide constituency which is not within internationally recognised borders.
The opinion will be discussed at one of the forthcoming Plenary Sessions of the Commission.
21/06/2019 - 22/06/2019
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