Elected in January 2020 as President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Belgian Liberal Rik Daems’ two-year term is coming to an end. EUROPE met with him on Friday 21 January to take stock and to consider, from his point of view, the challenges that await his successor, whose election is scheduled for Monday morning at the opening of the Strasbourg plenary. (Interview by Véronique Leblanc)
Agence Europe: What impact did the pandemic, which broke out very soon after your election, have on your term of office?
Rik Daems: It was a challenge we didn’t expect! We were one of the first assemblies to set up a hybrid format and we were able to launch a series of parliamentary reports on the impact of this pandemic on human rights in record time, so we could define the red lines that should not be crossed. This work should be seen in conjunction with the report by the Secretary of the Council of Europe on the same subject. This was essential, as recent developments show how the duration of the pandemic has encouraged the temptation of authoritarianism in maintaining restrictions. In addition, we were able to make concrete progress on important issues.
What are these issues?
The Assembly’s contribution to giving new impetus to the Istanbul Convention and to gender equality, in particular. We have worked in synergy with the other two statutory bodies, the Secretary General and the Committee of Ministers, to promote it among the Member States, including those that have doubts about it: Ukraine is now close to ratification; in Poland, I have been assured that there is no question of leaving; and Hungary is not going to act against this text.
But Turkey left the Istanbul Convention in April 2021?
This is true, but the promise to hold a debate in Parliament remains valid.
From your first speech as President-elect, you announced that the environment would be at the heart of your mandate. Where are you at with that?
No less than seven reports on the environment and human rights nexus have been prepared, debated and voted on in the last 2 years. The aim is for the Council of Europe to develop new measures to define new human rights standards, which represents a real paradigm shift. Again, synergy with the Secretary General and the Committee of Ministers is essential, as is the connection with the United Nations and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). Last week, new areas of co-operation between PACE and the EBRD were agreed. The aim is to work together to promote gender equality and combat violence against women, and to promote a safe, healthy and sustainable environment.
Artificial intelligence has also been a major focus of PACE’s work...
Yes, it has. The Committee of Ministers is working on a Convention on this topic and PACE, which is included in the working groups, is making an important contribution.
You had also announced that you wanted to visit the 47 member states of the Council of Europe, was that an impossible task in this pandemic?
I was not able to do so, and that is a regret, because my aim was to meet with all national parliaments to foster dialogue and promote the potential contribution of a stronger connection with the work of PACE. I had to focus on the countries where my visit was most important.
The next presidency will begin against a backdrop of rising tensions, notably between Russia and Ukraine, both members of the Council of Europe. What can PACE do?
The Assembly and the Council of Europe as a whole can help to reduce tensions. Even if it is not easy when the big hitters are on the field, parliamentary diplomacy has its role to play. PACE is a forum where national delegations have to listen to each other and can meet outside the Chamber. In this respect, the pandemic has unfortunately had an impact on these informal but important meetings.
What are your plans from Monday?
I will once again be the head of the Belgian delegation to PACE and an active member of the Assembly, paying close attention to the issues that I consider essential: the fight for gender equality and combatting violence against women, on the one hand, and the connection between the environment and human rights, on the other. With immense gratitude to the team that assisted me during my term of office. They have supported a full-time president who imposed an intense, sometimes frenzied pace on them, and what is more it was complicated by the pandemic.