Recent and Current Events
28/09/2021
Bucharest/online – At the occasion of its 30th anniversary, the Association of European Election Officials (ACEEEO) organises for the first time a Leaders Forum with the participation of leaders of the prominent international organisations in the field of elections in order to discuss how the global electoral community functions now, and how its operations might be improved in the future. To this end, the following three themes are debated:
• ACEEEO is thirty: What aspects or trends might be highlighted from the past 30 years in terms of promoting free and fair elections globally ... read more
27/09/2021
By letter dated 6 September 2021 the Minister of Justice of the Lebanese Republic, Ms Marie Claude Najm, requested an opinion of the Venice Commission on the draft law amending Legislative-Decree no. 150/1983 on the Organisation of the Judiciary.
24/09/2021
Strasbourg, Council of Europe – Today the Venice Commission issued the urgent opinion on the draft law on the referendum and the people's initiative of Serbia.
This urgent opinion was requested by Ms Marija Obradović, Minister of Public Administration and Local Self-Government of Serbia, on 2 August 2021.
The urgent opinion was 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 the Council of Europe.
23/09/2021 - 23/09/2021
Sofia, Bulgaria (will be held online) – The 19th meeting of the Joint Council on Constitutional Justice of the Venice Commission (JCCJ), initially to be hosted by the Constitutional Court of Bulgaria will take place online on 23 September 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
23/09/2021
The Prosecutor General and the President of the Superior Council of Prosecutors of the Republic of Moldova, Mr Alexandr Stoianoglo and Ms Angela Motuzoc respectively, requested an opinion of the Venice Commission on the compatibility of the recent legislative amendments to the Law on the Prosecution Service with international standards.
21/09/2021
The Venice Commission is saddened by the death of its former substitute member in respect of Peru, Mr Carlos RAMOS NÚÑEZ.
Carlos Augusto Ramos Núñez was a Judge of the Constitutional Court of Peru.
He specialised in the history of Peruvian law of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
He was Director General of the Center for Constitutional Studies of the Constitutional Court from Peru, Director of the Judicial Academy of Peru, and Director of the Peruvian Journal of Constitutional Law.
Our sincere condolences to the family and friends. The Venice Commis... read more
20/09/2021 - 21/09/2021
Kyiv – in the framework of the preparation of the draft opinion on the draft law No 5844 “On the Principles of State Policy of the Transition Period”, a delegation of the Venice Commission met with interlocutors and representatives of the following institutions:
• Permanent Representative of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea;
• Deputy Prime-Minister/Minister for Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine;
• Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights, Deoccupation and Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories in Do... read more
17/09/2021 - 19/09/2021
Moscow – Representatives of the Venice Commission accompanied the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) election assessment mission to advise on the legal framework of the general elections of 17 - 19 September 2021 in the Russian Federation.
Judicial Conference of Constitutional and Supreme Courts/Councils of the OIC Member/Observer States (J-OIC) - 2nd Conference
16/09/2021 - 17/09/2021
Djakarta/on-line – The Venice Commission participated in the 2nd Conference of the Judicial Conference of Constitutional and Supreme Courts/Councils of the Member/Observer States of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (J-OIC).
16/09/2021
In the framework of the preparation of the draft opinion on the 2020 amendments to the electoral legislation of Hungary, the rapporteurs a delegation of the Venice Commission and ODIHR met online with the representatives of the Ministry of Justice, the National Election Office, political parties and civil society.
The draft opinion will be submitted for adoption at the 128th plenary session (15-16 October 2021).
15/09/2021
By letter dated 10 September 2021 the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Mr Dmytro Razumkov requested an opinion of the Venice Commission on the draft law “On the prevention of threats to national security, associated with excessive influence of persons having significant economic or political weight in social life (oligarchs)”.
15/09/2021
In the framework of the preparation of the opinion on the draft Law on the State of Emergency of North Macedonia, a delegation of the Venice Commission met online with the representatives of the Ministry of Justice, the Constitutional Court, the Ombudsman, the majority and the opposition political parties present in the Assembly as well as of the NGOs.
The draft opinion will be submitted for adoption at the 128th session of the Commission (15-16 October 2021).
The opinion is prepared under the Expert Coordination Mechanism in the framework of the EU/CoE joint programme H... read more
13/09/2021 - 14/09/2021
In the framework of the preparation of the draft opinion on the amendments to the Act on Equal Treatment and Promotion of Equal Opportunities and the Act on the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights adopted by the Hungarian Parliament in December 2020, on 13 and 14 September 2021 a delegation of the Venice Commission met online with the representatives of the Ministry of Justice, the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights, political parties and NGOs.
The draft opinion will be submitted for adoption at the October 2021 plenary session.
09/09/2021 - 10/09/2021
Bratislava - In the framework of the preparation of the draft opinion regarding the organisation of the legal profession in the Slovak Republic and the role of the Supreme Administrative Court in the disciplinary proceedings against barristers, a delegation of the Venice Commission met with representatives of the Minister of Justice, the National Council, the Supreme Administrative Court, the Judicial Council, the Bar Association as well as NGOs.
The draft opinion will be submitted for adoption at the October 2021 plenary session.
08/09/2021
Council of Europe, Strasbourg - The Vice President of the Venice Commission, Ms Claire Bazy Malaurie, presented the 2020 Annual Report of Activities of the Commission to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe.
The presentation was followed by an exchange of views with the Ambassadors of the member and observer States of the Council of Europe.
07/09/2021 - 10/09/2021
In the framework of the preparation of the draft opinion on the legislative amendments on the judiciary adopted by the Hungarian parliament in December 2020, on 7, 9 and 10 October 2021 the Commission’s rapporteurs held a series of online meetings with the representatives of the following authorities and other interlocutors:
• Minister of Justice
• Supreme Court - Kuria
• National Judicial Office
• National Judicial Council
• Association of Judges
• Political parties
• NGOs.
The draft opinion will be submitted for adoption during the 128th p... read more
06/09/2021
In the framework of the preparation of the opinion on the proposed exclusion of the Ombudsman/Parliamentary Health Service Ombudsman from ‘safe space’ investigations in the National Health Service, as foreseen in the Health and Care Bill, the rapporteurs had online meetings with members of the PHSO’s Office, members of the Health Service Investigation Branch, representatives of the Health Care Department and of the Cabinet of Ministers’ Office.
The draft opinion will be submitted for adoption at the 128th plenary session of the Venice Commission (15-16.10.2021).
03/09/2021
In the framework of the preparation of the urgent opinion on the Law on the Referendum and the People’s Initiative, a delegation of the Venice Commission met with representatives of the Ministry of Public Administration and Local Self-Government, the Ministry of Justice, the Republic Electoral Commission, the National Assembly, the international community, as well as NGOs.
The urgent opinion will be issued in due course and submitted for endorsement at the October 2021 plenary session.
The opinion is prepared under the Expert Coordination Mechanism in the framework of t... read more
26/08/2021
Since the declaration of the state of emergency on 25 July 2021, the President of Tunisia has concentrated in his hands the legislative, executive and, partially, judicial powers. Tunisia does not have a constitutional court.
Tunisia is facing a very deep crisis, caused on the one hand by the difficulties of managing the pandemic and on the other hand by the difficulties of functioning of the state institutions and by the very high level of corruption. A large part of the Tunisian people has expressed its refusal to accept that this situation be prolonged and has asked that a solution b... read more
27/08/2021
Nur-Sultan/online – The President of the Venice Commission gave an opening speech at the Symposium on “The Internet Era: the Rule of Law, the Values of the Person and the State Independence”, organised by the Constitutional Council of Kazakhstan and the Association of Asian Constitutional Courts and Equivalent Institutions (AACC) . The Symposium coincided with the 30th anniversary of the Independence of Kazakhstan.
The participation of the President of the Venice Commission has been financed by the Central Asia Rule of Law programme.
26/08/2021
By letter of 26 August 2021, the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has requested an opinion of the Venice Commission on constitutional reform in Belarus and its compliance with Council of Europe standards.
26/08/2021
Nur Sultan/online – The Secretary General of the World Conference on constitutional Justice participated in the meetings of the Association of Asian Constitutional Courts and Equivalent Institutions (AACC) and the Eurasian Association of Constitutional Review Bodies (EACRB).
09/08/2021
By note verbale dated 6 August 2021, the Permanent Representation of North Macedonia with the Council of Europe requested a Venice Commission opinion on the draft Law on the State of Emergency.
The Commission will prepare a draft opinion with a view to adoption at the 128th Plenary Session of the Venice Commission.
02/08/2021
By letter of 2 August 2021, Ms Marija OBRADOVIĆ, Minister of Public Administration and Local-Self Government of Serbia, requested an urgent Opinion of the Venice Commission on the “Draft Law on the Referendum and the People’s Initiative” of the Republic of Serbia.
The urgent opinion will be subsequently issued and published on the website of the Venice Commission in due course. It will be submitted to the Venice Commission for endorsement at the 128th Plenary Session (15-16 October 2021).
20/07/2021
In the context of the preparation of the assessment of the constitutional reform in Serbia and following two opinion requests by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and the Speaker of the National Assembly of Serbia, a delegation of the Venice Commission met (online) with the Working Group of the National Assembly of Serbia to discuss proposed amendments to the constitution.
TUNISIA - Strengthening of the legal framework governing referendums in Tunisia - virtual workshop
15/07/2021
Tunis - The Venice Commission and the Independent High Authority for Elections (ISIE) are organising an online workshop on referendums.
This event will allow for an exchange on the legal framework relating to referendums in Tunisia, both nationally and locally, in order to contribute to the process of the preparation of possible legislative changes. International standards as well as best practices will be presented by international experts.
14/07/2021
The European Parliament and the Parliament of Georgia organised an online conference on the importance of ensuring the rights and responsibilities of the opposition in a modern and inclusive parliament.
The main speakers were prominent politicians with extensive experience in the European and national parliaments. They offered both normative framework as well as comparative analysis of best practices across Europe. A member of the Venice Commission presented its report on the “Role of the opposition in a democratic Parliament”.
The primary audience of the conference were... read more
12/07/2021
On 9 July 2021 the President of the Constitutional Court of Albania requested an amicus curiae opinion to address in particular the jurisdiction of the Constitutional Court over the constitutionality of the election process and the interrelation of the fundamental constitutional principles of periodicity of local elections and political pluralism, in relationship with the 2019 local elections.
The draft amicus curiae brief should be submitted for adoption by the 128th plenary session of the Venice Commission.
Request for opinion - UNITED KINGDOM
12/07/2021
By letter dated 14 May 2021, the Ombudsman and Chair of the Parliamentary and Health Service requested an opinion of the Venice Commission on the proposed exclusion of the Ombudsman from “safe space” investigations in the National Health Service.
The draft opinion will be delivered for discussion and adoption at the 128th Plenary session (14-16 October 2021).
10/07/2021 - 12/07/2021
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 early parliamentary elections scheduled on 11 July 2021 in Bulgaria.
The delegation held meetings with representatives of political parties and of the Central Election Commission.
The delegation observed the opening, voting and counting processes of the elections.
08/07/2021 - 12/07/2021
Chisinau - 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 early parliamentary elections scheduled on 11 July 2021 in the Republic of Moldova.
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.
07/07/2021
By letter dated 2 June 2021, the Minister of Justice of the Slovak Republic, Ms Mária Kolíková, requested a Venice Commission’s opinion on two questions regarding the organisation of the legal profession in the Slovak Republic and the role of the Supreme Administrative Court in the disciplinary proceedings against barristers.
The Commission will prepare a draft opinion with a view to adoption at the 128th Plenary Session of the Venice Commission.
07/07/2021
By letter dated 4 June 2021, the Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine, Minister for Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine, Mr Oleksii Reznikov, requested an opinion of the Venice Commission on the draft law “On the principles of state policy of the transition period”.
The Commission will prepare a draft opinion with a view to adoption at the 128th Plenary Session of the Venice Commission.
06/07/2021 - 09/07/2021
Saint–Petersburg - The Vice President of the Venice Commission, Ms Claire Bazy Malaurie, took part online in the opening session of the high level international conference co-organised by the Council of Europe and the office of the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation on the role of the prosecution service in the defence of individual rights and of the public interest.
Ms Bazy Malaurie also participated in a panel discussion on the functions of the prosecution service outside of the criminal law field.
02/07/2021 - 03/07/2021
The plenary session was held in a hybrid form: on-line and at the Scuola Grande di San Giovanni Evangelista in Venice.
The Commission adopted the following opinions:
• an opinion on the draft Law on preventing conflict of interests in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina;
• an opinion on the compatibility with international human rights standards of bills introduced late last year to the Russian State Duma, to amend laws affecting so-called “foreign agents”;
• an opinion on constitutional amendments adopted by the Hungarian parliament in December 2020;
• ... read more