Ministers’ Deputies

Notes on the Agenda

CM/Notes/945/1.5      4 November 2005[1]

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945 Meeting, 9 November 2005
1 General questions

1.5 Committee of Ministers –
Preparation of the 115th Session (Strasbourg, 16‑17 November 2005)

Reference documents
CM–SUIVI3(2005)17

CM(2005)160-prov.

CM(2005)165-prov.

CM(2005)OJ1-prov.

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Action Following the discussions held and decisions taken at previous meetings, finalise preparatory work for the 115th Session.

1.         At their 934th meeting (6-7 July 2005, item 1.2), the Deputies decided that the 115th ministerial Session would be held on 16 and 17 November 2005 and that the handing over of the chairmanship from Portugal to Romania would take place on 17 November 2005.

2.         At their 941st meeting (13 October 2005, item 1.6), the Deputies began their preparatory work for the 115th Session.  Following their discussions, they:

- took note of the Chairmanship's proposals for the items to be included on the agenda of the 115th Session of the Committee of Ministers, in the light of the preliminary draft programme prepared by the Chairmanship for the Session;

- on this basis:

a.          adopted the following provisional draft agenda for the 115th Session of the Committee of Ministers:

1. Adoption of the agenda

2. Report by the Secretary General on the informal Ministerial meeting of 16 November

3. Follow-up to the Third Council of Europe Summit:

i. consolidation of the Council of Europe's human rights protection system;

ii. strengthening of the Council of Europe's action to promote democracy;

iii. building a more humane Europe;

iv. strengthening of co-operation between the Council of Europe, the European Union and the OSCE.

4. Other business

5. Adoption of the Session communiqué

6. Priorities of the Romanian Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers

7. Date of the next Session

b.         bearing in mind that the President of the Parliamentary Assembly, the Secretary General of the OSCE and a senior representative from the European Commission will be invited to participate in the Session, invited their Chair to send also an invitation letter to Observer states as well as to the following personalities:

- the President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe;

- the President of the European Court of Human Rights;

- the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe;

- the President of the Group of Wise Persons responsible for drawing up a long-term strategy for ensuring the effectiveness of the European Convention on Human Rights (on the basis that he will have been nominated by his peers at the first meeting of the Group of Wise Persons, on 18 October).

3.         Following these decisions, the Chair has sent letters of invitation to the President of the Parliamentary Assembly, the observer states, the Presidents of the Court and the Congress, the Commissioner for Human Rights and to the Chair of the Group of Wise Persons.  For his part, the Secretary General has sent letters of invitation to the Secretary General of the OSCE and to the President of the European Commission.

4.         At their 943rd (19 October 2005) and 944th (2 November 2005) meetings, the Deputies continued their preparatory work for the Session.  In particular, they:

– on the basis of the decisions taken at their 941st meeting (13 October 2005) concerning the provisional draft agenda for the 115th Session of the Committee of Ministers:

i. instructed the Secretariat to prepare a draft annotated agenda for the 115th Session;

ii. agreed with the Chair’s proposals concerning preparation of the draft communiqué of the Session;

– noted that the Chair would concurrently prepare draft “Conclusions of the Chair”;

– on the basis of the discussions held at the CM-SUIVI3 meeting of 25 October 2005:

i. took note of the progress of preparatory work for the Session, as reflected in particular in the preliminary draft report on follow-up to the Summit (CM-SUIVI3(2005)12) and the preliminary draft Communiqué of the 115th Session (CM(2005)160-prov.);

ii. agreed on the Chairman’s proposals concerning the operation of the Session;

iii. agreed to resume consideration of the preparation of the 115th Session at their next meeting.

5.         Further to these decisions, the preparatory work for the Session was pursued as follows:

– informal consultations will be held on 7 and 8 November with a view to including the delegations’ written comments as far as possible in the preliminary draft communiqué prepared by the Chair and distributed on 26 October.  A draft communiqué will be drawn up by the Secretariat in the light of the consultations and distributed on 9 November for the CM‑SUIVI3 meeting;

– at the same time, the preliminary draft report on follow-up to the Third Summit has been revised and updated in the light of the discussions held on the matter and the developments that have taken place since the end of October.  The draft report drawn up (CM‑SUIVI3(2005)17) will also be submitted for discussion by the CM–SUIVI3 on 9 November;

– a draft annotated agenda (CM(2005)OJ1-prov.) has been prepared by the Secretariat for this meeting with a view to its transmission – following finalisation – to the 115th Session;

– draft “Conclusions of the Chair” have been prepared by the Chair (CM(2005)165-prov.).  The Deputies are asked to make any comments with a view to finalisation of the text by the Chair in time for the 115th Session.

6.         Apart from constituting an opportunity to take stock of preparatory work for the Session, as reflected above, this meeting will also make it possible, following the two consultations on 19 October and 2 November, to obtain supplementary information from the delegations concerning ministers' participation in the Session and the member states' intentions with regard to the signing and/or ratification of the five instruments which will be the subject of the "treaties" event on 17 November.  The provisional list of speakers will be drawn up on the basis of this information.

7.         Finally, the 115th Session will also give the opportunity – as it is the case for each ministerial session – to hold a certain number of bilateral meetings.  These could take place either at the direct initiative of delegations, either with the assistance of the Secretariat.  The delegations interested could liaise with it in this regard, on the basis of the information note which appears in Appendix.

Financing assured: YES

DRAFT DECISIONS

945th meeting – 9 November 2005

Item 1.5

Committee of Ministers –

Preparation of the 115th Session (Strasbourg, 16 - 17 November 2005)

(CM–SUIVI3(2005)17, CM(2005)160-prov., CM(2005)165-prov., CM(2005)OJ1-prov.)

Decisions

The Deputies

1.         took note of the draft provisional annotated agenda of the 115th Session of the Committee of Ministers as it appears in document CM(2005)OJ1-prov., and instructed the Secretariat to finalise it in the light of the discussions held at the present meeting;

2.         took note of the state of progress of the preparatory work for the Session, as it appears in the draft Communiqué (CM(2005)160-prov. 2), the draft report on follow-up to the Third Summit (CM-SUIVI3(2005)17) and the draft “Conclusions of the Chair” (CM(2005)165-prov.), and noted that the CM-SUIVI3 and the Chair will finalise them in due time before the Session;

3.         noted that the provisional list of speakers for the 115th Session, established by the Chair on the basis of the information provided concerning the ministerial attendance, will be communicated to delegations on Monday 14 November 2005 at noon.

Appendix

Information note

115th Session of the Committee of Ministers

(Strasbourg, 16–17 November 2005)

Bilateral meetings

The organisational arrangements for ministerial sessions leave considerable scope for bilateral contacts, either between Ministers, or between Ministers and senior Council of Europe officials.

A fuller picture of ministerial attendance will emerge, in principle, at the Deputies’ present meeting.  The provisional list of speakers, which will be circulated to the Deputies by noon on Monday 14 November 2005 at latest, will also give every delegation an exact idea of the schedule, not only of the Minister or head of delegation concerned, but also of all the other participants at the Session.

On this basis, the Secretariat of the Committee of Ministers – in consultation with Protocol and with the Chair – can play a facilitating role in helping delegations which so wish to arrange bilateral contacts with other delegations or senior Council of Europe officials attending the Session (Secretary General, Deputy Secretary General, President of the Parliamentary Assembly, President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe, Commissioner for Human Rights). 

Rooms will be made available to the delegations for this purpose.

For further information, please contact Mrs Isabelle Grimm (Secretariat of the Committee of Ministers, tel.: 03. 88. 41. 32. 20., e-mail: [email protected]).