EU Neighbourhood Info Centre An ENPI project Talking about the Neighbourhood
European Union and Council of Europe back ambitious reforms in wake of Arab Spring The European Union has been able to accompany democratic reforms in its neighbourhood countries through the unique expertise of the Council of Europe (CoE). Drawing on this fruitful experience, the EU and the CoE jointly offered their assistance to those southern Mediterranean countries that had engaged in ambitious reform processes in the aftermath of the ‘Arab Spring’, says Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe, in an exclusive interview with the EU Neighbourhood Info Centre. Interview with Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni 1. Why did the EU and the CoE join forces over promoting democracy in the European neighbourhood? The European Union and the Council of Europe are built upon and share common values – human rights, rule of law and democracy. Some of the EU's closest neighbours in the East joined the CoE over a decade ago. The Parliament of Morocco and the Palestinian National Council benefit from the “Partner for Democracy” status with the Parliamentary Assembly of the CoE (PACE) since 2011, while the Israeli Parliament enjoys Observer status with the PACE. We all want these two neighbouring regions – the South and the East – to enjoy stability and prosperity, which would in turn strengthen the stability of Europe. The best way to contribute to this cause is to promote democratic security, by fostering respect for our shared values. It was only natural for the EU and the CoE to join forces in this endeavour, so as to send a common strong message to the partner countries and to maximise our impact, ensuring complementarity.
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2. What are you trying to achieve through this joint effort? We seek to accompany the processes of transition to democracy or support the consolidation of democracy, depending on the progress achieved by the country concerned. We do it by making available the expertise and some relevant tools of the CoE. The relevance of these tools has been demonstrated by the fact that they have contributed to democratic changes in other member states of the CoE. Some of them have since joined the EU, others are well on the way of doing so. 3. On which areas does EU-CoE cooperation focus in the region? It covers many fields. In each country, its focus depends on the specific developments and on the assessment of the situation made by the CoE monitoring bodies. Our cooperation with the EU has been steadily increasing. Budget-wise, it amounts to more than €20 million per year. Over the last decade, the emphasis of EU/CoE cooperation has been on improving the independence and effi- This is a series of interviews ciency of the judiciary, fighting corruption and organised crime, promoting with people involved in the good governance, diversity, tolerance and intercultural dialogue. Neighbourhood, prepared by Our cooperation is also designed to address challenges, which go beyond bor- the EU Neighbourhood Info ders, such as trafficking in human beings, counterfeit of medical products or Centre © 2013 cybercrime. The involvement of all countries of the region remains a condition for success to combat these global threats.
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Interview with Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni EU Neighbourhood Info Centre - An ENPI project
“All our endeavours should ultimately benefit the people in partner countries.”
“One of the biggest challenges we are facing is to adapt our instruments and know-how to the specific socio-cultural and political context of partner countries.”
In Focus
4. What is the expected impact on citizens of the ‘Strengthening democratic reform in the Southern Neighbourhood’ programme? This programme focuses on enhancing the independence and efficiency of the judiciary, on promoting good governance by fighting corruption and money laundering, as well as on promoting respect for human rights, with special emphasis on the prevention of trafficking in human beings. It also includes actions to promote democratic values through a regional approach, as well as to help align national legislation with European and international standards. A more independent and effective justice, better governance and broader respect for human rights ultimately benefit the people, also because an environment that is respectful of human rights, the rule of law and democratic values will create better conditions for economic development. 5. What do you consider as your most important achievements in the South so far? First and foremost, we succeeded in establishing a climate of trust and mutual respect in our relations with the authorities of partner countries. Let me give you a few examples. One of the CoE specialised bodies, the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ), has made an assessment of the Moroccan judicial system, and is about to complete one in Tunisia. These evaluations are an absolute prerequisite for addressing the specific needs of partner countries in reforming their judicial systems. A similar exercise is being carried out in respect of the fight against corruption and money laundering in Morocco and Tunisia, on the basis of specific methodologies used by GRECO (Group of States against corruption) and MONEYVAL (Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures and the Financing of Terrorism). Last but not least is the recent opening of the School of Political Studies of Tunisia, a civil society organisation supported by the CoE and belonging to a larger CoE network, aimed at training future generations of political, economic, social and cultural leaders. The Tunisian School of Political Studies is the first such structure ever in the region – as well as the first to be opened in a non-CoE member State – and has already trained, among others, a significant number of young leaders of the National Constituent Assembly and of political parties. The second School of Political Studies in the region, the Moroccan School, was officially inaugurated in March 2013.
“We succeeded in establishing a climate of trust and mutual respect in our relations with the authorities of partner countries.”
6. What is the biggest challenge you are facing in the South? As far as the South is concerned, one of the biggest challenges we are facing is to adapt our instruments and know-how to the specific socio-cultural and political context of partner countries. This is vital if we want to provide responses adapted to their needs. Such responses are being worked out, in certain cases, in the context of political instability, which also remains a major challenge. We all know that significant changes do not happen overnight and that progress will not be the same in all the countries concerned. We must be ready to accept that as a fact of life, while remaining determined to continue our support. 7. Will there be new projects in the South any time soon? ‘Strengthening democratic reform in the Southern Neighbourhood’ can be considered as a pilot programme. It has already produced concrete results, so we assume it will be followed by other programmes, which would build on our valuable experience and successes achieved so far. At the same time, the CoE also carries out other targeted actions in the southern neighbourhood, through voluntary contributions from some CoE member states, notably in the field of combatting violence against women and children, or promoting freedom of expression in Tunisia. All these actions are complementary to each other and to the interventions by other actors.
CoE – EU Strengthening democratic reform in the southern Neighbourhood http://south-programme-eu.coe.int Info Centre – Strengthening democratic reform in the southern Neighbourhood http://www.enpi-info.eu/mainmed.php?lang_id=450&searchtype=simple&id=409&id_type=10 External Action Service - EU relations with the Council of Europe http://eeas.europa.eu/organisations/coe/
EU Neighbourhood Info Centre An ENPI project The EU Neighbourhood Info Centre is an EU-funded Regional Information and Communication project highlighting the partnership between the EU and Neighbouring countries. The project is managed by Action Global Communications.
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