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Ministers'
Deputies Bucharest,
22-23 June 2000 Summary
of the debates Information
document prepared by the General Directorate of Legal Affairs (DGI)
Summary of the debates Introduction 1. A high-level meeting of Ministers of the Interior, organised by the Council of Europe (hereafter “CoE”) jointly with the Ministry of the Interior of Romania, within the framework of the ADACS Programme, was held in Bucharest on 22-23 June 2000. The topic was “Police of the 21st Century: Strengthening the Protection of Citizens' Rights and New International Threats against Security”. The list of participants, the programme and the adopted conclusions can be found in Appendices I to III of this report. 2. The opening session was chaired by Mr. Emil Constantinescu, President of Romania, and speeches were presented by: Mr. Hans Christian Krüger, Deputy Secretary General of the CoE, Mr Luis Patrao, State Secretary of Internal Administration of Portugal, representing the Presidency of the European Union (hereafter “EU”), Ms Isabelle Arnal, as representative of Interpol, and Mr Uwe Kranz, representative of Europol. The opening session was followed by three working sessions chaired, respectively, by Mr Constantin Dudu Ionescu, Minister of the Interior of Romania, Ms Kristina Rennerstedt, State Secretary of the Ministry of Justice of Sweden and Mr Kakha Targamadze, Minister of the Interior of Georgia. At the end of the last session, Mr Dudu Ionescu presented the conclusions. The meeting was closed by Mr Dudu Ionescu and by Mr Guy de Vel, Director General of Legal Affairs of the CoE. Opening session 3. In his opening speech, Mr Emil Constantinescu, President of Romania, underlined the dual role of the CoE: the protection of human rights, while reinforcing measures aimed at fighting new forms of insecurity. Bilateral and multilateral instruments in the field of penal co-operation and information exchange were the only adequate means available to fight organised crime, which operates on an international level and is a serious threat to democratic stability. Moreover, President Constantinescu spoke in favour of a rapid adoption of the draft “European Code of Police Ethics”, which would help to emphasise the essential role played by a democratic police in charge of the protection of citizens against insecurity. He also wished to see the implementation of a common security space in Europe, in order to strengthen young democracies. 4. In his speech, Mr. Hans Christian Krüger, Deputy Secretary General of the CoE, stressed the importance given by the CoE to the fight against organised crime and corruption. Therefore police matters have progressively found their place in the organisation's working agenda. Thanks to its long-standing experience in the search for a balance between the protection of human rights and the protection of democratic institutions, the CoE is in a good position to tackle the problems of insecurity and police co-operation. The protection of human rights imposes upon democratic States the duty to protect their citizens against insecurity, a particularly harmful form of arbitrariness. Nowadays, this would mean reinforced police and legal co-operation on a European level. The police plays a very important role in this context, and citizens should have the right to expect a faultless service. Mr. Krüger referred to the draft “European Code of Police Ethics”, which would soon be finalised and which should be complemented with the establishment, within the CoE, of a “Council for Police Matters”, to supervise the coherency of the Code, to prepare opinions on questions relating to police co-operation and to facilitate the exchange of information and experiences between the police forces of member States. 5. Mr Luis Patrao, State Secretary of Internal Administration of Portugal, representing the Presidency of the EU, recalled the Conclusions of the European Council in Tampere, and insisted on the need to establish common European rules to reinforce the fight against organised crime. He referred to the initiative to establish a European police academy, which was a result of that Summit. Mr Patrao stressed the importance for the police to be supported and trusted by the public. This would require the police to carry out their work with full respect for the individual's fundamental freedoms and rights, elements that were inseparable from the very existence of democracy. Because of its experience in these fields, the CoE would be the organisation best suited to contribute to the police adapting to the requirements imposed by the fight against new forms of crime, without giving up its role as protector of society and putting in danger the values of human rights and the rule of law. The EU was working on the elaboration of a Charter of Fundamental Rights, which would highlight the importance given to these values, in particular in the perspective of the forthcoming enlargement. 6. Ms Isabelle Arnal, representing Interpol, remarked that the theme of the meeting referred to the main goals of police action: reinforcing the fight against organised crime and corruption, and the constant defence of citizens' rights and fundamental freedoms. The development of an increasingly complex and transnational criminality is compelling States to adapt in order to cope with this reality. If harmonisation of legislation was one essential part of the process of adaptation, transparency of police action was another, just as important. Interpol strongly supported the adoption of a new code of ethics for the police, which should not be limited to the European continent, but become universal. Interpol had received a mandate from the G-8 to facilitate the collection, treatment, comparison and analysis of sensitive information in order to reinforce the efficiency of the fight against organised crime. With this in view, international co-operation should be supported, from an operational point of view (multidisciplinary approach, creation of mixed teams) and from a normative point of view (harmonisation of national standards, integration of regional or international conventions). 7. Mr Uwe Kranz reminded that Europol, a relatively new institution, had, as its prime objective, to improve the efficiency of the competent services of member States of the EU, as well as the co-operation in the area of the prevention and fight against organised crime. In the near future, Europol would be required to facilitate the organisation of joint operations, establish contact points, request police forces of member States to carry out and co-ordinate their investigations and put in place a research and documentation network. Europol had also become involved, together with the CoE, in the initiative of the Stability Pact for south-eastern Europe against organised crime (SPOC). The consolidation and strengthening of the co-operation and experiences would be key-elements of the European strategy against crime in the new millennium. First working session 8. The first working session took place under the chairmanship of Mr Constantin Dudu Ionescu, Minister of the Interior of Romania. In his introduction, he mentioned that the choice of the theme for the meeting very well illustrated the CoE's dedication to the consolidation of pluralist democracy and respect for human rights. He expressed his conviction that the debate would bring out possible solutions to the problems posed by transnational organised crime, by discussing issues such as the use of special means of investigation, and by highlighting the essential principles of ethics, which would form the basis of the functioning of police institutions in the 21st century. 9. Mr Jean-Jacques Queyranne, Secretary of State for the Overseas Territories, Ministry of the Interior of France, presented the first report of the first session. He made an assessment of the progress accomplished by the CoE since the first high-level meeting of the Ministers of the Interior in November 1998, during which Mr Queyranne had personally presented the conclusions. He observed that a fair number of the activities, which had been requested by the Ministers in 1998, had already been implemented, particularly in the areas of the fight against organised crime, money laundering and corruption. He invited the participating States to rapidly sign and ratify the legal instruments adopted, and to join the “Group of States against Corruption – GRECO”. Mr Queyranne expressed his satisfaction concerning the assistance and co-operation activities carried out within the framework of the ADACS, OCTOPUS, and more recently, PACO Programmes, and underlined the important contribution of France, particularly in carrying out the Octopus Programme. Mr Queyranne called for the pursuance of certain projects already underway, in particular concerning the draft Convention on Cyber Crime and the draft Recommendation on “The European Code of Police Ethics”, which he hoped would be adopted soon. He invited the CoE to examine the possibilities of a definition of an appropriate legal framework for the use of special means of investigations and to begin preparations for a convention on the protection of witnesses. Finally, he supported the idea, under consideration within the CoE, of setting up a “Council for Police Matters”, under the auspices of the European Committee on Crime Problems (CDPC). Second working
session 10. The second session was held with Ms Kristina Rennerstedt, State Secretary at the Ministry of Justice of Sweden, in the chair. In her introduction, she underlined that the police was a key element of the criminal justice system. In order to function well, the police not only required an adequate legislation, but also ethical standards to guide their actions. She welcomed the work carried by the CoE with a view to drafting a “European Code of Police Ethics”. Ms Rennerstedt underlined that the efficiency of the police largely depended on its relationship with and support from the citizens, and that transparency of the police and their service vocation were characteristics of the police in a democracy. 11. The first report of the session was that of Mr Thierry Le Roy, Chairman of Sub-Table III, Justice and Home Affairs – Security matters – of the Stability Pact for south-eastern Europe (hereafter “the Pact”). The objectives of the Pact, since its establishment following the Cologne Summit on 10 June 1999 and the Sarajevo Summit on 28 July 1999, was to bring together States in order to identify the priority needs concerning police and legal co-operation, as well as to assess the projects proposed in this area by international organisations. On this matter, he pointed out the essential role played by the CoE in the setting-up of two particularly important initiatives of the Pact, the initiative against corruption (SPAI), adopted in Sarajevo in February 2000, and the initiative against organised crime (SPOC), the adoption of which was scheduled for October 2000 in Sofia. Moreover, the CoE's programme against corruption and organised crime in south-eastern Europe (PACO) represented an important contribution to the implementation of the above-mentioned initiatives, insofar as it integrated the human rights dimension with that relating to the protection of internal security. 12. Mr Zdravko Židovec, Assistant Minister, Ministry of the Interior of Croatia, presented the second report of the session on police ethics in democratic societies. He presented the draft Recommendation on “The European Code of Police Ethics”, which was to be finalised in 2001. The work in this area should be viewed as a particular response to the absence of international standards in the field of police. The draft Code dealing with police ethics in the “broad sense”, contained topics such as the objectives of the police, the role of the police in the criminal justice system, organisational structures of the police, recruitment and training, the rights of police personnel, questions of responsibility and guidelines for police actions/operations. The overall objective of the draft Code, which comprised more than 60 articles, was to encourage the development of modern police services, based on the respect for individual's fundamental rights, the rule of law and trust of citizens in their police. The draft Code already exercised an influence on member States where police reforms were underway. The Code should be regarded as a first step in the preparation of a common instrument for the various European police systems, at a time when borders were losing their importance and citizens of the various countries expected to be treated in an equal manner throughout Europe. 13. Mr Vladimir Rushailo, Minister of the Interior of the Russian Federation, presented the third report of the session, concerning the questions relating to the training of police staff. He emphasised that the exponential increase in crime on an international scale had become a permanent threat to the stability of democracies. Even though the Russian Federation had adapted its methods, it was still searching for a way of improving its results in the law and order area and in the fight against organised crime. In this context, the Russian Federation had developed training programmes for police staff to bring their knowledge up-to-date, particularly on topics such as the fight against organised crime, terrorism and drug trafficking. Mr Rushailo considered it absolutely essential, that police personnel possessed experience and in-depth knowledge to prevent and detect crime, to be well trained both physically and psychologically as well as in the use of arms and special equipment. They should also be perfectly aware of human rights and fundamental freedoms of individuals and be trained to respect those principles when carrying out their duties. The efforts of the Ministry of the Interior of the Russian Federation – 116 basic training centres and 25 establishments for higher education, 11 specialised institutions and more than 50 decentralised departments for specialist training – were based on three fundamental principles: the reinforcement of professional training, the improvement of legal and ethical knowledge and the exploitation of police training methods in other countries. Mr Rushailo underlined the importance played by the CoE in the organisation of numerous training activities in Russia on the problems linked to the fight against various forms of crime. He referred to the agreement between the European Commission, the CoE and the Moscow Police Academy, with a view to ensuring a specific training of police staff on crime prevention, urban security and human rights. As a conclusion, he suggested the creation, under the auspices of the CoE, of a pan-European expertise and information centre on the values and general legal principles of the police. This would ensure exchanges of training programmes and teaching material, with the aim of optimising the professionalisation of the police. Third working session 14. The third and last session took place with Mr Kakha Targamadze, Minister of the Interior of Georgia, in the Chair. 15. Ms Ruth Metzler-Arnold, Head of the Federal Department of Justice and Police of Switzerland, presented a report on the use of special means of investigation within the field of the fight against transfrontier crime. Basing herself on the Swiss experience, she underlined the importance of keeping in mind an overall view of the functioning of the judicial bodies and the Police and the co-operation between these two essential poles of the criminal justice system. The fight against crime should always combine efficiency and legality. A criminal system could not be considered efficient, unless the rule of law was respected. The efforts made to strike this balance should be constantly adjusted, as new forms of crime develop. Increased powers for the police, including authority to use special investigation techniques, matching the techniques used by criminals, were rendered necessary in the fight against transnational crime. The use of these special techniques often relied on transnational police co-operation. However, to ensure that the rule of law was respected, the legal framework applying to each of these techniques should be considered. Ms Metzler-Arnold stated that police co-operation should be based on international treaties, which would embody some of the features of legal assistance. Moreover, Ms Metzler-Arnold considered that there was a need in Europe for a multilateral legal instrument on police co-operation, and that it would be suitable for the CoE to fill this gap. The CoE had already adopted many international co-operation instruments that were indispensable for the daily administration of justice. It should therefore devise similar instruments for police work. Indeed, even if the judicial bodies and the police had different roles, their basic objectives were the same: to guarantee public security and fair treatment. 16. Mr Massimo Brutti, Secretary of State for Home Affairs of Italy, presented the second session report, dealing with the protection of witnesses. He indicated that, since 1991, Italy had implemented a legislation providing for a structural system applicable both to collaborators of justice and to witnesses of particularly serious crimes. This had given the Italian authorities considerable experience in this area, which they were willing to share with their counterparts in other European countries. Having described the main features of the Italian system for the protection of witnesses, results obtained and possible improvements, Mr Brutti referred to the two Resolutions adopted by the Council of the EU on 23.10.95 and 20.12.96, inviting the EU countries to take steps to protect witnesses and collaborators of justice. He also referred to the “Best practice survey” on witness protection, prepared by the CoE in March 1999, and to the CoE Recommendation No. R (97) 13, calling on member States to take appropriate action to protect the liberty and safety of witnesses, thus enabling them to comply with their duty to testify, without danger or intimidation.
Finally, Mr Brutti stated the importance of establishing a
police network for the protection of witnesses throughout Europe, and
that every country be authorised to receive and protect collaborators
of justice coming from other countries.
The adoption of bilateral or multilateral instruments providing
for special forms of co-operation between the authorities responsible
for protection in different countries might usefully be envisaged.
Such instruments should promote mutual assistance between
police forces when protected persons were being transferred, regulate
exchanges of protected persons between contracting states to ensure
their equal protection in various countries, and organise systems for
long distance hearings of witnesses.
The creation of a regulatory framework to facilitate, simplify
and intensify the implementation of the many existing forms of
co-operation in this field was also vital to better protect witnesses. Discussions 17. The reports presented during the working sessions were followed by discussions. Participants warmly thanked the President, the Government and the Minister of the Interior of Romania for their initiative to host this second meeting between Ministers of the Interior of the member States of the CoE in Bucharest. They complimented the perfect organisation of the meeting. Several participants underlined that the theme and the programme of the meeting reflected widespread concerns among citizens, the police services and the authorities of member States and that it fitted perfectly within the field of action of the CoE, that is to protect democratic institutions and citizens' security with regard to the rule of law and human rights. Many participants considered that this second meeting had definitely incorporated home affairs and police co-operation matters into the CoE agenda, usefully complementing the work already carried out in the crime problems and judicial co-operation areas. 18. The different delegations which took the floor supported the proposal to create a “Council for Police Matters” as a consultative body to the CoE. During the discussions, the necessity to rapidly adopt a “European Code of Police Ethics” was mentioned as well as the necessity to adopt the “Convention against Cyber Crime” and the “Guiding Principles against Organised Crime”. Several participants invited the CoE to become more deeply involved in activities such as crime prevention, human rights awareness within the police, training of police and the drafting of national codes of ethics for the police. The usefulness of the ADACS programme was mentioned in this respect. Appeals were made for swift ratifications of the Criminal Law and Civil Law Conventions on Corruption and the accession to the “Group of States against Corruption – GRECO”. The launching of the evaluation work by GRECO was also appreciated. Some participants expressed support for the continuation of the work by the Multidisciplinary Group on Corruption (GMC) in the field of financing of political parties and on corruption of arbitrators and requested a rapid implementation of the Recommendation no. R (2000) 10 on Codes of Conduct for Public Officials. 19. Many participants underlined the importance of the fight against the laundering of proceeds of corruption in order to react efficiently against the activities of organised criminal groups. The usefulness of the work carried out in this field by the Select Committee of Experts on the evaluation of anti-money laundering measures (PC-R-EV) was confirmed by several participants, who requested the continuation of this work beyond the conclusion of the first round of evaluation at the end of 2000. The same was stated about the Octopus II Programme, which had provided a structured and coherent framework for the activities aimed at strengthening the fight against corruption and organised crime in countries of central and eastern Europe and to develop their co-operation in this area with other member States of the CoE. Some participants stressed once again the need, already expressed during the first meeting between the Ministers of the Interior (Strasbourg, November 1998), to reinforce the Convention on Laundering, Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds of Crime, in order to speed up and facilitate confiscation procedures at international level. 20. The participants also welcomed the catalysing effect of the Stability Pact for south-eastern Europe, and in particular, the initiatives launched within this Pact against corruption (SPAI) and against organised crime (SPOC), which integrate the expertise and efforts of all the international organisations active in these fields. They encouraged the CoE to continue their involvement in the implementation of these initiatives, particularly through its Programme against organised crime and corruption in south-eastern Europe (PACO). 21. Many participants invited the CoE to contribute to the improvement of international police co-operation by establishing a sound legal basis in order to facilitate transnational co-operation, the use of special means of investigation, the protection of witnesses and the sharing of information. Presentation of the conclusions 22. Mr Constantin Dudu Ionescu, Minister of the Interior of Romania, presented the draft Conclusions, which he had drawn up, summarising the points highlighted during the discussions. Having incorporated the amendments proposed by some delegations, Mr Dudu Ionescu noted that the participants agreed with the Conclusions of the meeting, as they appear in Appendix III to this document. Closing session 23. On behalf of the Secretary General of the CoE, Mr Guy De Vel, Director General of Legal Affairs, expressed to the Romanian authorities, and in particular to Mr. Dudu Ionescu and his staff, the gratitude of the CoE and of all participants, for having generously hosted this high-level meeting and for its excellent organisation. He noted with satisfaction that the holding of this second meeting confirmed the growing importance of police matters for the CoE and the good level of co-operation established in the last years with the Ministries of the Interior of its member States. He pointed to the efforts made by the CoE for the implementation of the Conclusions adopted at the first meeting between Ministers of the Interior in November 1998. These efforts had been successful in certain fields – the fight against corruption – and considerable progress had taken place in other areas – police ethics, cyber crime, guiding principles against organised crime. However, he considered that additional efforts would be necessary to achieve progress in other areas, such as the idea of a protocol to the money laundering convention, the establishment of a Council for Police Matters and the drafting of legal instruments to facilitate police co-operation. Mr De Vel noted that the Conclusions adopted at the close of the debate followed closely those adopted at the first meeting in November 1998. He undertook to transmit the Conclusions to the competent bodies of the CoE in order for them to be taken into consideration in the preparation of future programmes of activities. 24. In his closing speech, Mr Dudu Ionescu underlined the many measures taken in Romania to protect citizens against the threat of organised criminal groups. He reiterated his conviction, according to which the provision of security for citizens required an increased co-operation between European democracies. No State is safe from criminal organisations, which adapt themselves to the level of development in each society and to the globalisation, exploiting the existing differences in economy and social development in the European societies. Organised crime had a tendency to develop rapidly, and only joint action between the democracies could show that organised crime was not invincible. In order to improve co-operation, the links between the police and the citizens should be strengthened, national operational measures against organised crime should be co-ordinated and a legal basis for a more efficient co-operation between the European police forces/services should be put in place. However, the reinforcement of the powers and the means of the police for fighting organised crime should not be detrimental to the protection of human rights and the rule of law. The CoE should contribute to the development of a common approach between the democratic States concerning the security of the citizens, to the exchange of experience and implement co-operation programmes to improve the capabilities of the police to react to new forms of criminality. A lot was at stake: the continuity of the State governed by the rule of law and democracy, human rights and the economic and social progress for the stability of societies. The CoE had always been a defender of these principles. The CoE's initiative to regularly bring together the Ministers or high officials responsible for police in member States was fully in line with these concerns. Cooperation in the field of security should now be further incorporated into the organisation's programme of activities. The conclusions adopted by the Ministers at this meeting indicated the way to follow. Mr. Dudu Ionescu attributed the success of this meeting to the excellent reports presented, to the remarkable co-operation between the Ministry of the Interior and the Secretariat General of the CoE and to the contributions by a large number of delegations to the discussions. Having thanked the participants, Mr. Dudu Ionescu declared the meeting closed. APPENDIX
I List
of participants MEMBER STATES / ETATS MEMBRES ALBANIA / ALBANIE Mr Spartak POÇI, Minister of Public Order of Albania, TIRANA Mr Fadil CANAJ, Head of the Cabinet of the Minister, TIRANA Mr Nikoll VATNIKAJ, Ministry of Public Order, TIRANA Ms Dajana ATGJERGJI, Ministry of Public Order, TIRANA ANDORRA / ANDORRE AUSTRIA / AUTRICHE Dr Erik BUXBAUM, Bundesministerium für Inneres, WIEN Mr Hermann FEINER, Bundesministerium für Inneres, WIEN BELGIUM / BELGIQUE M. Georges PYL, Police Générale du Royaume, BRUXELLES M. Steven LIMBOURG, Direction Générale de la Législation pénale et des Droits de l'Homme, BRUXELLES M. Lundo VAN DER STOCK, Ambassade de Belgique en Roumanie, BUCAREST BULGARIA / BULGARIE M. Emanuil N. YORDANOV, Ministre de l'Intérieur de la Bulgarie, SOFIA Mr Galentin I. GEORGIEV, Minister of Interior, SOFIA Mme Nadia I. DIMITROVA, Service de coopération internationale du Ministère de l'Intérieur. CROATIA / CROATIE Mr Zdravko ŽIDOVEC, Minister's Cabinet, ZAGREB Mr Petar Veic, Police Academy, ZAGREB CYPRUS / CHYPRE Apologised / excusé CZECH REPUBLIC /
REPUBLIQUE TCHEQUE Mr Stanislav GROSS, Minister of the Interior of the Czech Republic, PRAHA Mr Jiri KOLÁR, Police President, PRAHA 7 Ms Eva DVORAKOVÁ, Ministry of the Interior, PRAHA Ms Dely SERRANO, Intepreter, PRAHA DENMARK / DANEMARK ESTONIA / ESTONIE Mr Raine EENMA, Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Estonia, TALLINN FINLAND / FINLANDE FRANCE M. Jean-Jacques QUEYRANNE, Secrétaire d'Etat à l'Outre-Mer, PARIS M. Thierry LE ROY, Cabinet du Ministre de l'Intérieur, PARIS M. Manuel LUCBERT, Cabinet du Ministre de l'Intérieur, PARIS M. Claude MEYER, Ministère de l'Intérieur, PARIS M. Jean-Jacques BOUYOUX, Ambassade de France à Bucarest GEORGIA / GEORGIE Lieutenant-General Kakha TARGAMADZE, Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia, TBILISI Major-General Eduard GENDZEKHADZE, Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, TBILISI Mr David GLONTI, Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, TBILISI Mr Nodar MAKHATADZE, Police Colonel, TBILISI GERMANY / ALLEMAGNE Mr Bernd BORCHARDT, German Ambassy in Romania, BUCHAREST GREECE / GRECE Mr Nikolaos TASIOPOULOS, Ministry of Public Order, ATHENS HUNGARY / HONGRIE Mr Károly KONTRÁT, Ministry of the Interior, BUDAPEST Ms Ildiko VARADI, Ministry of Interior (Interpreter), BUDAPEST Mr László GÁL, Cabinet of the Minister, BUDAPEST Ms Andrea IGAZI, Ministry of the Interior, BUDAPEST ICELAND / ISLANDE IRELAND / IRLANDE Mr John CRONIN, Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, DUBLIN ITALY / ITALIE M. Massimo BRUTTI, Secrétaire d'Etat à l'Intérieur M. Giuseppe DI BENEDETTO, Tenente Colonnello Guardia di Finanza M. Paolo MOSCARELLI, P.S. Ministero Interno M. Pasquale TORCHIA, Primo Dirigente della Polizia di Stato, ROMA Dr Paolo SARTORI, Italian Embassy in Bucharest, BUCHAREST LATVIA / LETTONIE LIECHTENSTEIN Mr Uwe LANGENBAHN, Landespolizei, VADUZ LITHUANIA / LITUANIE Mr Ceslovas Blazys, Minister of Internal Affairs of Lithuania, VILNIUS Ms Nijole VALINTIENE, Ministry of Internal Affairs, VILNIUS Mr Visvaldas RACKAUSKAS, Ministry of Internal Affairs, VILNIUS LUXEMBOURG Apologised / excusé MALTA / MALTE Dr. Tonio BORG, Minister for Home Affairs of Malta, MALTA Mr Joseph SCERRI, Ministry for Home Affairs,MALTA MOLDOVA Mr Vladimir TURCAN, Minister of Interior of the Republic of Moldova, CHISINAU Mr Emil CIOBU, Ambassador of the Republic of Moldova to Romania, BUCHAREST Mr Vasile STERBET, Ministry of the Interior, CHISINAU Ms Angela NACU, Interpreter NETHERLANDS /
PAYS-BAS NORWAY / NORVEGE Mr Stein ULRICH, Minister of Justice, OSLO POLAND / POLOGNE Mr Antoni PODOLSKI, Ministry of the Interior, WARSAW Mr Wojcieck WROBLEWSKI, Ministry of the Interior, WARSAW Jozef SEMIK, Deputy Commander of the Polish Police, WARSAW PORTUGAL M. Luis PATRAO, Ministère de l'Administration Interne, LISBOA Mr Paulo GOMES, Cabinete do Ministro da Administraçao Interna, LISBOA Mr José Vicente GOMES DE ALMEIDA, Inspecçao Geral da Administraçao Interna, LISBOA Mr Antonio ALBUQUERQUE, Gabinete do Comandante Geral, LISBOA Mr José GRAÇA, Ministry of Internal Affairs, MAI-SEAI, LISBOA ROMANIA / ROUMANIE H.E. Mr Constantin Dudu IONESCU, Minister of Interior of Romania Mr Liviu POPESCU, Ministry of the Interior General of Division Nicolae BERECHET, General Inspector fo the Romanian Police General of Division Nicolae OPREA, General Inspector of the Border Police Mr Titus CORLÁTEAN, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mr Saqhi FLORIN, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Prof. Dr. Irina ZLATESCU MOROIANU, Institut Roumain pour les Droits de l'Homme (IRDO), BUCAREST RUSSIAN FEDERATION /
FEDERATION DE RUSSIE M. Vladimir B. RUSHAILO, Ministre de l'Intérieur de la Fédération de Russie, MOSCOW M. Youri N. MIKHAILOV, Assistant du Ministre de l'Intérieur M. Alexander MALINOVSKI, Chef du Département de la Coopération Internationale M. Oleg V. AKSENOV, Chef du Département de l'Information M. Youri JDANOV, Chef de l'Académie du Ministère de l'Intérieur M. Youri ERMOLAEV, Représentant du Ministre de l'Intérieur de la Fédération de Russie en Bulgarie M. A. VISSARIONOV, Journaliste M. Y. PEREPONOV, Journaliste SAN MARINO /
SAINT MARIN SLOVAK REPUBLIC /
REPUBLIQUE SLOVAQUE Mr Ján PIPTA, Ministry of the Interior of the Slovak Republic, BRATISLAVA Mr L'ubomír HANUS, Ministry of Interior; BRATISLAVA SLOVENIA / SLOVENIE Mr Gvido MRAVLJAK, Ministry of the Interior, LJUBLJANA SPAIN / ESPAGNE Mr Pedro DIAZ PINTADO MORALEDA, Direccion General Policia, MADRID Mr Ricardo RUIZ COLL, Direccion General Policia, BUDAPEST Mr Julio ALVAREZ-GARCIA, International Co-operation Unit, MADRID SWEDEN / SUEDE Ms Kristina RENNERSTEDT, Ministry of Justice, STOCKHOLM Mr Ulrik ASHMUD, Ministry of Justice, STOCKHOLM Mr Olof EGERSTEDT, Deputy National Police Commissioner, STOCKHOLM SWITZERLAND / SUISSE Mme Ruth METZLER-ARNOLD, Département fédéral de Justice et Police, BERNE M. Jean-Claude JOSEPH, Ambassadeur de Suisse en Roumanie M. Jörg SCHILD, Département de la Police et des Affaires militaires du Canton de Bâle-Ville M. Peter MÜLLER, Office fédéral de la Justice M. Roland BURKHARD, Police fédérale Mme Isabelle CHASSOT, Collaboratrice personnelle de la Chef du Département “THE FORMER
YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA” / “L'EX-REPUBLIQUE YOUGOSLAVE DE MACEDOINE” Mr Refet ELMAZI, Deputy Minister of the Interior, SKOPJE Mr Risto ZAFIROVSKI, Ministry of the Interior, SKOPJE Mrs Vesna ARSOVA, Ministry of the Interior, SKOPJE TURKEY / TURQUIE Mr Turan GENÇ, Turkish Security, Emniyet Genel Müdürlüglü, ANKARA Mr Salih HAKAN CAN, Turkish Police, ANKARA Mr Baris KALKAVAN, Turkish Embassy to Romania, BUCHAREST UKRAINE Mr Yuriy KRAVCHENKO, Minister of Interior of Ukraine, KYIV Mr Yuriy O. SMIRNOV, Kyiv Metropolitan Department of the Ministry of Interior, KYIV Mr Eduard A. DIDORENKO, Lugansk Institute of Interior, LUGANSK Mr Victor ZUBCHUK, Ministry of Interior, KYIV Mr Victor GORBACH, Ministry of Interior; KYIV Mr Victor SYDORENKO, Ministry of Interior Mr Serhiy FEDCHENKO, Ministry of Interior Mr Andriy KIENKO, Ministry of Interior Ms Liudmyla VLASIUK, National Information and News Agency of Interior of Ukraine Mr Ihor HARCHENKO, Ambassador of Ukraine to Romania Mr Georhyi SVYSLOTSKYI, Liaison Officer of the Ministry of Interior in the Embassy of Ukraine Mr Dmytro OSCHEPKOV, Interpreter UNITED KINGDOM /
ROYAUME-UNI Mr Geoffrey SONNENBERG, Home Office, LONDON EUROPEAN COMMISSION / COMMISSION EUROPEENNE EUROPEAN COMMISSION /
COMMISSION EUROPEENNE Mr Willem van NIEUWKERK, Delegation of the European Commission in Romania, BUCHAREST COUNCIL OF THE
EUROPEAN UNION / CONSEIL DE L'UNION EUROPEENNE M. Gilles de KERCHOVE, Secrétariat Général du Conseil de l'Union Européenne, BRUXELLES OBSERVERS / OBSERVATEURS HOLY SEE /
SAINT-SIEGE UNITED STATES OF
AMERICA / ETATS-UNIS D'AMERIQUE CANADA JAPAN / JAPON Apologised / Excusé MEXICO / MEXIQUE ISRAEL Mr Sandru MAZOR, Deputy General Inspector of the Police Mr Iosef ALMOG, Head of Special Operations HQ REPUBLIC OF
MONTENEGRO (Federal Republic of Yugoslavia) / REPUBLIQUE DU
MONTENEGRO (République Fédérale de Yougoslavie) NON MEMBER STATES / PAYS NON MEMBRES ARMENIA / ARMENIE Mr Haïk HAROUTUNIAN, Minister of Interior of Armenia, YEREVAN Mr Armen KAPRIELIAN, Ministry of Interior, YEREVAN Mr Eduard GHAZARIAN, Ministry of Interior, YEREVAN Mr Karine KAZINIAN, Ambassador of Armenia to Romania, BUCHAREST AZERBAIJAN / AZERBAÏDJAN Mr Asger ALAKBAROV, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Azerbaijan, BAKU Mr Valentin JUMAZADA, Ministry of Internal Affairs of Azerbaijan, BAKU BOSNIA AND
HERZEGOVINA / BOSNIE-HERZEGOVINE M. Ivan BACAK, Ministre de l'Intérieur Adjoint de la Fédération de Bosnie-Herzégovine, SARAJEVO (Apologized / excusés : M. Marko ASANIN, Ministre des Affaires Civiles et des Communications de Bosnie-Herzégovine, SARAJEVO M. Sredoje NOVIC, Ministre de l'Intérieur de la Republika Srpska, BANJA LUKA M. Suad ARNAUTOVIC, Chef
du Cabinet du Ministre de l'Intérieur de la Fédération de
Bosnie-Herzégovine) INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS / ORGANISATIONS INTERNATIONALES OSCE UNITED NATIONS OFFICE
FOR DRUG CONTROL AND CRIME PREVENTION INTERPOL Mme Isabelle ARNAL, Secrétariat Général de INTERPOL, 69006 LYON EUROPOL Mr Uwe KRANZ, EUROPOL, THE HAGUE Black Sea Economic
Cooperation (BSEC) Mr Christian DIACONESCU, Ambassador, ISTANBUL (Apologised: Mr Valeri CHECHELASHVILI, Ambassador, Secretary General of BSEC, ISTANBUL, SECI Mr Liviu MURESAN, Regional Centre for Combating Organised Transborder Crime, BUCHAREST Stability Pact for
South Eastern Europe / Pacte de Stabilité pour l'Europe du Sud-Est
(SCSP) M. Thierry LEROY, Président de la Sous-Table TAI, SCSP (voir sous « France »)
Dr Marie-Janine CALIC, Expert of Working Table III, SCSP, BRUSSELS ROMANIAN ORGANISERS / ORGANISATEURS ROUMAINS Gl. Bg. Constantin MATEI, Conseiller du Ministre de l'Intérieur, BUCAREST Col. Dr Ioan HURDUBAIE, Ministère de l'Intérieur Lt. Col. Alexandru DUTU, Ministère de l'Intérieur Lt. Col. Adrian STANCU, Cabinets et Protocole (DSCP) Cpt. Cristina DIMA (DIRI) Cpt. Iulian BOROS (DIRI) Mr Paul Ivan DRAGHIA (DSCP) Lt. Mioara TICU (DSCP) COUNCIL OF EUROPE / CONSEIL DE L'EUROPE M. Hans Christian KRÜGER, Secrétaire Général Adjoint Direction Générale
des Affaires Juridiques: M. Guy DE VEL, Directeur Général Mme Anna CAPELLO-BRILLAT, Chef de la Division pour la coordination des programmes de coopération juridique M. Manuel LEZERTUA, Chef de la Division criminalité économique, Service des problèmes criminels M. Björn JANSON, Conseiller de programme à la Division droit pénal – justice pénale, Service des problèmes criminels Mme Valérie MOULHERAT-MAYEUX, Conseillère de programme au Service des problèmes criminels Mme Catherine GALLAIS, Assistante administrative au Bureau des Traités Mlle Sylvie STECKMEYER, secrétaire à la Division pour la coordination des programmes de coopération juridique Interpreters / Interprètes : M. André BERNHARD, responsable d'équipe Mme Angela BREWER Mme Caterina CORSINI M. Michail FARAFONOV Mme Gilberte GEBHARD M. Peter SCHMIDT Mme Birgit STROLZ M. Leonid VEKCHINE Mme Ania TURI APPENDIX
II Programme Thursday
22 June 2000
08:30
Departure of Delegations to the Parliament 09:00-10:30 Opening
session : Welcoming address by Mr Constantin DUDU
IONESCU, Minister of the Interior of Romania. Speeches by: -
Mr Emil CONSTANTINESCU, President of Romania -
Mr Hans Christian KRÜGER, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of
Europe -
Presidency of the European Union: Mr Luis PATRAO, State Secretary of -
Internal Administration, Portugal -
Ms Isabelle ARNAL, Technical Adviser, Legal Affairs Department, Interpol -
Mr Uwe KRANZ, Europol Mr Petre ROMAN, State Minister, Minister of
Foreign Affairs of Romania and Mr Valeriu STOICA, State Minister, Minister of
Justice of Romania will be present 10:30-10:45 Break 10:45-12:45 First
working session: Presidency : Mr Constantin DUDU IONESCU Minister of the Interior of Romania Assessment of activities and achievements conducted by the Council of
Europe since the last meeting of ministries of the Interior
(Strasbourg, november 1998) Rapporteur
: Mr
Jean-Jacques QUEYRANNE Secretary
of State for the Overseas, Ministry of the Interior, France Discussion 13:15
Lunch offered by the Deputy Secretary General of the Council of
Europe to the Ministers and Heads of Delegations 14:45
Second working session:
Presidency
: Ms Kristina RENNERSTEDT State
Secretary, Ministry of Justice of Sweden
Fight against corruption and organised crime within the
framework of the Stability Pact for South-Eastern Europe Rapporteur
: Mr
Thierry LEROY, Chairman of Sub-Table III Justice and Home Affairs Discussion 15:45-16:00
Break 16:00
Ethics of the
police in democratic societies
Framework of a democratic police: drafting a European Code of Police
Ethics within the Council of Europe; objectives, organisation and
accountability of the police Rapporteur
: Mr
Zdravko ŽIDOVEC Assistant
Minister, Ministry of the Interior, Croatia Training of police staff Rapporteur:
Mr Vladimir RUSHAILO Minister of Interior, Russian Federation Discussion 17:30
End of session. Return to the Hotel 19:15
Departure from Delegations for the Presidency Palace 19:30
Reception offered by Mr Emil CONSTANTINESCU, Président of
Romania. Friday 23 June 2000 08:00
Departure of the Delegations to the Parliament 08:30-09:30
Third
working session:
Presidency : Mr Kakha TARGAMADZE Minister of the Interior of Georgia Fighting
crime across the borders Methods of investigation:
elaboration of common legal standards for the use of new special means
of investigation in transnational operations. Rapporteur
: Ms Ruth
METZLER-ARNOLD Head
of Federal Department of Justice and Police, Switzerland Discussion 09:30-09:45 Break 09:45-11:00
International police co-operation : protection of witnesses Rapporteur
Mr Massimo BRUTTI Secretary
of State for Home Affairs, Italy Discussion 11:00-11:15
Break 11:15
Presentation of conclusions Mr
Constantin DUDU IONESCU, Minister of the Interior of Romania 11:45
Closing session Mr
Constantin DUDU IONESCU, Minister of the Interior of Romania Mr
Guy DE VEL, Director General of Legal Affairs of the Council of Europe 12:30
Press Conference APPENDIX
III Conclusions Presented by Mr. Constantin DUDU IONESCU, Minister of the Interior of Romania 1.
Considering that the core objectives of the Council of Europe
are to promote pluralist democracy, the Rule of Law and the protection
of fundamental rights and freedoms throughout Europe ; 2.
Recalling the considerable work carried out by the Council of
Europe within the field of crime problems ; 3.
Recalling the Final Declaration of the Heads of State and
Government of the Council of Europe (Strasbourg, 10-11 October 1997),
which gave high priority to the security of citizens and to the fight
against organised crime; 4.
Recalling the Joint action at the European Union of 1 December
1998 on the definition of organised crime; 5.
Concerned by the conflict situations in Europe as these provide
additional opportunities for further development of criminal
activities; 6.
Aware of the international dimension of activities of organised
criminal groups which know no borders and the need for police
services/forces to have efficient
instruments at their disposal to overcome their difficulties in
cross-border co-operation; 7.
Bearing in mind the conclusions of the 12th
Criminological Colloquium on police powers and accountability in a
democratic society (Strasbourg, 24-26 November 1999) ; 8.
Recalling the conclusions adopted at the first High-Level
meeting between Ministries of the Interior/responsible for the police
(Strasbourg, 5-6 November 1998), which emphasised the gravity of the
crime situation in Europe and aware of the progress made since in the
combat against it ; 9. We, Ministers, Secretaries of State and other authorities responsible for police questions, note that matters concerning security of citizens have become a focal point of Council of Europe member States and that tools and powers for police efficiency must be well-balanced with the protection of individuals' rights against abusive methods; 10. We welcome the Council of Europe involvement in the field of “home affairs” as a complement to its well-established activities within the field of “justice”. Consequently, we strongly support the setting up of a “Council for police matters”, as a consultative body under the European Committee on Crime Problems (CDPC). This would contribute to a closer co-operation between Ministries of Justice and Interior, prosecution, police, internal security services and their subordinate structures; 11. We recall that the police should be an integral part of society and that the efficiency of the police is dependent on the confidence and support by the public. The police should be fully accountable to the society they serve. In this respect, we express the firm wish that the work underway within the Committee of Experts on Police Ethics and Problems of Policing (PC-PO) will be finalised shortly to enable a swift adoption of the “European Code of Police Ethics”. This text will provide a basic general framework for the functioning of the police in a democratic society. We support that further instruments be developed on issues highlighted in the draft European Code of Police Ethics; 12. We regard crime prevention as an important task of the police and that a wide society involvement is crucial in this respect. We therefore support the work of the new Committee of Experts on Partnership in Crime Prevention (PC-PA), which will focus on best practice in crime prevention in Europe and liaise with the Project on “Urban insecurity”; 13. As a complement to its intergovernmental activities, we emphasise the importance of the Council of Europe Programme of Activities for the Development and Consolidation of Democratic Stability (ADACS) as well as the Joint Programmes between the Council of Europe and the European Commission. The Project “Police in a State Governed by the Rule of Law” should continue to focus on crime prevention, ethics, training and reform of the police. We would welcome a readiness by the Council of Europe to co-operate in the drafting of national codes of ethics of the police; 14. We support the efforts by the Council of Europe to promote human rights awareness within the police forces/services in Europe; 15. We are aware that the task attributed to polices services/forces is both difficult and essential: safeguarding the security of citizens and institutions with respect for fundamental rights and freedoms and the rule of law. To that end important powers and responsibilities are given to the police. The exercise of such powers must be confined within precise limits and requires efficient controls to prevent all risks of arbitrariness. We are therefore convinced that the persons who exercise police powers must be selected with great care and should receive appropriate training – both at the time of recruitment and all along their careers- to enable them to fulfil their difficult tasks; 16. We appreciate the assistance provided by the Council of Europe in the field of police training, covering a wide range of issues such as police ethics, reform and organisation, strengthening of democratic values, preparation of curricula, juvenile delinquency and crime prevention. We agree that some universally applicable values and principles of policing exist, which should form the basis of police training. Furthermore, the lessons and experience from the activities carried out in the field of training should be wider disseminated through better use of information technology. We therefore call for the Council of Europe to facilitate the exchange of information and expertise on matters of interest for the police; 17. The rapid development of new communication technologies and their use for criminal activities has become a serious problem, which is difficult to settle through traditional means of international co-operation. We note with satisfaction that a Convention on Cyber Crime is in an advanced stage of preparation within the Council of Europe and call for the adoption of this Convention without delay; 18. We renew our support to anti-corruption measures developed by the Council of Europe and its efforts in facilitating international co-operation in this field. We welcome the adoption of the Criminal Law Convention on Corruption (1998), the Civil Law Convention on Corruption (1999) and Recommendation (2000) 10 on Codes of Conduct for Public Official which complement Resolution (97) 24 on the 20 Guiding Principles Against Corruption. We are of the opinion that a rapid signature and ratification of the Criminal and Civil Law Conventions should be viewed as a priority to allow the entering into force of these two important instruments. We also call for a rapid implementation of the above Recommendation (2000) 10; 19. We consider it essential to join the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO), which will monitor the implementation of Council of Europe anti-corruption standards through a process of mutual evaluation and peer pressure. We note with satisfaction that GRECO recently decided to focus during the first round of supervision on the organisation, means powers and functioning of the authorities in charge of preventing, investigating, prosecuting and adjudicating corruption offences. We call on States that are not yet members of GRECO to join this agreement as soon as possible; 20. We give our full support to new initiatives launched within the framework of the Multidisciplinary Group on Corruption (GMC) relating to the prevention of corruption in the financing of political parties and to corruption of arbitrators; 21. We call for a rapid adoption by the Council of Europe of the draft Recommendation on Guiding Principles Against Organised Crime; 22. We find it useful that the Council of Europe continues to gather information on organised crime in Europe according to the mandate of the Group of Specialists on Criminal Law and Criminological Aspects of Organised Crime (PC-S-CO). The issuing of annual reports on the organised crime situation in Europe and best practice surveys on measures against organised crime will contribute to our efforts against such forms of criminality; 23. We confirm the importance of the work of the Select Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures (PC-R-EV), in particular as concerns the recommendations made to law enforcement authorities in order to improve national anti-money laundering systems. We also request that this evaluation mechanism be extended when its first evaluation round finishes at the end of 2000; 24. We consider that the Council of Europe Convention on Laundering, Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds from Crime should be reinforced with new provisions to facilitate and speed up investigations and confiscation of crime proceeds at international level, find common responses to the abuse of offshore centers for criminal purposes, lift bank secrecy in criminal investigations and share confiscated assets; 25. We welcome the activities developed under the Joint Programme between European Commission and the Council of Europe, “Octopus”, which have provided a reinforced co-operation in the fight against corruption and organised crime, between the countries of central and eastern Europe and other Council of Europe member States. We request that this programme be continued to allow for the effective and concrete implementation of the recommendations established within the framework of “Octopus II”, thus contributing to the preparation of candidate States to accession to the European Union; 26. We recall that conflicts in Europe are often followed by massive criminal activities, including corruption, organised crime and money laundering. With a view to counteract these problems, we welcome the role of the Stability Pact for Southeast Europe as a catalyst, which mobilises and amplifies the efforts of the international community to make this region of Europe more secure and stable. We encourage the Council of Europe to pursue the implementation of its Programme Action against corruption and organised crime in Southeastern Europe (PACO), which fits perfectly in the Stability Pact initiatives against corruption (SPAI) and organised crime (SPOC). We encourage countries to participate in this programme, to co-operate with the Regional Center for combating transborder crime, located in Bucarest, and to contribute to the “Task forces” dealing with sensitive matters such as trafficking in human beings, drugs and stolen vehicles; 27. The enhancement of international police co-operation has been a key issue throughout our meeting. As international co-operation in police matters becomes more and more operational, there is a need to facilitate it by laying down sound legal basis for that purpose. We therefore support the idea of exploring the possibility of drawing up European conventions particularly on police co-operation as complements to the existing Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters. Such instruments should for instance address cross border co-operation between the police, the use of investigative techniques and measures, evidence by witnesses and their protection, information sharing and co-operation against transborder organised crime; 28. We have been deeply shocked and affected by the tragic deaths of fifty-eight foreign nationals arriving in the United Kingdom. We condemn severely the criminal acts committed by organised groups, which traffic with human beings. We consider that the Council of Europe should, within its field of competence, contribute to the fight against the scourge of such trafficking, which grossly violates the most essential rights of the human being; 29.
We express our warmest gratitude to the President and the
Government of Romania for their hospitality and perfect organisation
of this meeting.
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