Geheime detentiecentra terrorismeverdachten: Raad van Europa heeft geen bewijs, maar aanwijzingen (en)

Strasbourg, 22.11.2005 - The Rapporteur of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Dick Marty (Switzerland, ALDE), who is responsible for investigating the alleged existence of secret detention centres in Council of Europe member states, today told the committee at a meeting in Paris that at this stage he had no proof of the existence of such centres, but did have indications that the implementation of anti-terrorism measures was incompatible with the Council of Europe's human rights standards.

With reference to the Omar case and the arrest warrants issued by the Italian Public Prosecutor's Office against a number of CIA agents, Mr Marty stressed that "spiriting individuals away without any judicial or administrative supervision is an infringement of human dignity. The European continent has suffered so seriously from non-respect for human dignity that the Council of Europe has developed a whole new approach and is applying unprecedented methods of ensuring that human rights are applied in all circumstances. We are not interested in any kind of anti-Americanism or in undermining the campaign against terrorism, but we are convinced that human rights violations committed in combating terrorism are completely counterproductive. They create an atmosphere of injustice which is a victory for the terrorists, whose aim is, precisely, to destroy the principles of the rule of law governing our societies. The only effective way to combat terrorism is to use `decent' moral means."

Mr Marty finished with an appeal for active co-operation by the authorities of Council of Europe member states, the EU bodies, the United Nations and NATO, as well as such specialised institutions as the EU Satellite Centre and Eurocontrol.

Mr Marty today presented the committee with a memorandum intended to secure a more specific mandate for the Parliamentary Assembly's investigation. This memorandum will be made public during a meeting of PACE's Standing Committee* in Bucharest on 25 November.

(*) The Standing Committee of PACE comprises the Bureau (the President and 20 Vice-Presidents of the Assembly, the heads of the five political groups and the 10 Committee Chairpersons). It generally meets at least twice a year and its main task is to act on behalf of the Assembly when the latter is not in session.

Contact:

Communication Unit of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly

Tel. +33 3 88 41 31 93 Fax +33 3 90 21 41 34; e-mail: pace.com@coe.int