The Council of Europe is "needed more than ever before", the German President
said, in his address to the Parliamentary Assembly. In spite of pressure to make
savings in a time of austerity across Europe, "we should never seek to economise
on human rights.”
Pointing out the importance of the Council of Europe’s monitoring functions –
from reports by the Anti-Torture Committee, to opinions by the Venice Commission,
President Gauck stressed that “Rights and freedoms on paper do not suffice, that
they must be guaranteed in practice.”
He called on member states to “commit themselves to the value and legal
standards of the Council of Europe,” pointing out the over 200 Conventions of
the organisation: “They must transpose them into their national legal systems,”
said President Gauck, the first German head of state to speak before the
Assembly since the 1991 visit to the Council of Europe of former President
Richard von Weizsäcker.
The German president praised the European Court of Human Rights, which he
called “the last hope for those who are desperate and dispossessed.” He called
on all 47 member states to respect judgments by the Court, explaining that he
himself recently signed domestic laws and legislation, which became necessary
because of Court judgments.
He also praised the Council of Europe’s role in fighting racism and
discrimination, particularly drawing attention to the Council of Europe campaign
“Dosta!” or “Enough!, which fights the exclusion of the Sinti and Roma people.
“We could use more such campaigns,” President Gauck said.
Because defending human rights is an “on-going process” President Gauck
praised the important work of NGOs and civil society: "Without your courage,
many promises of the Council of Europe would appear only on paper."
