5 September 2017

Politico: Russia may crash out of Council of Europe, says rights chief

In 2014, Russia’s voting rights in the Council of Europe were revoked after the illegal annexation of Crimea. If things don’t change, the election of a raft of new judges and top officials during the next two years would take place without Russian votes.

Moscow could crash out of the group if Russia keeps being excluded from the election of key personnel — destroying a judicial bridge that has linked Europe to Russia since Moscow joined the Council in 1996. [...]

“We have to think of the following: Will Europe be better off, safer, with Russia on its own, without being part of the judicial system of Europe?” he said. “For me this is a very urgent question.”

Jagland, who had just come out of his first sit-down meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, said the Russia issue was part of a broader problem of countries that question human rights rulings. [...]

A crackdown against suspected plotters in an aborted coup led to thousands of people being jailed or losing their jobs. While many were based on solid grounds — the coup attempt was “very brutal,” Jagland said — there are serious concerns that Turkey had “cast its net too wide.”

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