Speech by President of the Republic of Finland Tarja Halonen at the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly session in Strasbourg, 25 January 2012

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It is always a great pleasure to address the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. As the only genuinely pan-European organization based on the values of human rights, democracy and the rule of law, the Council of Europe has had a unique importance in uniting the whole of our continent and removing many of the old dividing lines. This has created a solid foundation for European integration.

As you know, I had the pleasure of serving this Assembly as a member of the Finnish national delegation during the years 1991-1995 at a time when a new Europe emerged. Those years were a time of new hope and opportunities for Europe. As the wave of democratization swept over the continent, joining the Council of Europe became the first goal for the countries on the path to democracy.

The Parliamentary Assembly has played an important role in helping member states live up to their promises. I participated in the process of establishing the mechanism to monitor the compliance of Member States with their membership obligations and commitments. Nowadays the mechanism covers all member states. As nobody is perfect, monitoring mechanisms such as this one continue to be of utmost importance and need our full support.

One of the many challenges facing our societies today is the increase in inequality, both within countries and between them. The UN Global Sustainability Panel that I chaired together with President Jacob Zuma emphasised the equal importance of the economic, social and environmental pillars of sustainable development, which I often call “the modern trinity”.

Growing inequality, discrimination and intolerance is not a force of nature. It can be fought back. To reverse this development, we must pay particular attention to the rights of minorities and other vulnerable groups.

Representative democracy gives the majority the right to make decisions that apply to everyone. However, this right brings with it the responsibility to protect the rights of minorities without discrimination. There is a direct link between political security and stability, sustainable development and the protection of human rights including those of minorities and vulnerable groups. We have seen this many times before in Europe and elsewhere throughout history.

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We must also pay attention to the implementation of economic, social and cultural rights. Everyone needs decent work and basic social protection. In this context, I would like to draw attention to the difficult situation of the Roma people. They are a truly pan-European minority and as a group, they are far more likely to face discrimination than other groups. Their socio-economic position is weaker than that of other groups in all member states. Roma women and children are particularly vulnerable, as in practice they often suffer from discrimination on multiple grounds.

The Council of Europe is a well-suited forum for finding common solutions and ways to improve the situation of the Roma and learning from best practices in different member states. I appreciate the work already done by the Council of Europe human rights mechanisms, the Parliamentary Assembly for raising their concerns and the consistent work done by the Secretary General.

It is of utmost importance to ensure that the Roma themselves are able to participate in decision-making processes at all levels and to influence decisions that concern them.

The establishment of the European Roma and Travellers Forum was an important step in this direction. This Forum should do what it can to ensure that the voice of all Roma is heard in decisions affecting them.

The meeting of European Presidents will discuss the issue of tolerance and combating discrimination in its next session in Helsinki in February. I have invited the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjörn Jagland to introduce the subject.

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The Council of Europe human rights standards and mechanisms serve as an important inspiration for many. We must do our best to defend and develop the system while respecting its independence and efficiency.

The proper functioning of the European Court of Human Rights is important in order to safeguard effective supervision of the protection of human rights. We look forward to a successful reform of the European Court of Human Rights, which will help in freeing the Court from its backlog of cases. At the same time it is of crucial importance to safeguard the individual right to complaint. The protection of the human rights of Europeans must not be weakened. We must bear in mind that the court has been a true success, which is full of sad stories with happy endings.

All of us should look in the mirror now and then. The complaints reflect existing problems on the ground. Member states bear the main responsibility for securing that the domestic courts assume their primary role in ensuring the protection of human rights and the implementation of the Convention and its case law. I know there is still a lot of work to be done. It is important that the Assembly also remains vigilant.

Finland was active in setting up the office of the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human rights. The Commissioner’s mandate enables him or her to take up topical human rights problems in any member state, be it freedom of speech, the rights of minorities or new emerging issues such as the rights of the elderly.

I am very pleased with how this institution has become the European human rights watch-dog. It certainly deserves our support. I would like to express my deepest appreciation to the first two holders of this function, Mr Álvaro Gil-Robles and Mr Thomas Hammarberg. They have both done excellent work and been very successful in promoting human rights as well as the role of the Council of Europe.

Let me also congratulate the newly elected commissioner Nils Muiznieks and wish him all the best for the coming six years. Let us give him and his office our full support in their valuable efforts to raise the human rights standards in all our member states.

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Recent events in Northern Africa and the Middle East have once again emphasized that development, human rights and peace and security are interlinked. The popular calls for reform have also demonstrated the important role civil society can play in advancing democracy and human rights.

Women in Northern Africa and the Middle East have actively participated in the political movements for democracy, social justice and equality. Women and men have marched together for a better future for themselves and future generations. It is important that they continue to participate side by side in building democratic societies.

There is still a lot to do in order to make sure that equality before the law also means equality in practice. The Council of Europe has always been a front-runner in issues of equality. I look forward to seeing the entry into force of the latest Council of Europe convention in the field of gender equality, the convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, as soon as possible.

The situation of children and youth also needs our special attention. Opportunities for education and decent work are of crucial importance. Prolonged unemployment often leads to poverty and lack of future prospects. We need to make sure that young people will not become alienated or excluded from our society.

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We strongly support the reform of the Council of Europe. It will lead to an organization that is even better at promoting its core values of respect for human rights, democracy and the rule of law.

The OSCE, the Council of Europe and the European Union all have their respective roles to play and their activities should be mutually reinforcing. It seems to me that the EU and the Council of Europe have already found a fruitful synergy where the Council of Europe expertise is supported by EU resources.

Through its important work for human rights, democracy and the rule of law the Council of Europe has been an important source of hope for us all since its foundation in 1949.

Dear parliamentarians, this is the last time I address you as the President of the Republic of Finland. Let me thank you for the excellent and fruitful cooperation we have had throughout the years and wish you success in your important work.