Toespraak Finse Eurocommissaris Olli Rehn: 20 jaar Fins lidmaatschap van Raad van Europa (en)
EU Commissioner for Enlargement
The Council of Europe as a Force of Democratic Transformation
20th Anniversary of Finnish Membership in the Council of Europe
18.5.2009 in Helsinki, Finland
Mme. President, Rt. Hon. Speaker, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Let me first thank Eduskunta for this opportunity to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Finnish membership in the Council of Europe with you.
The Council of Europe has had a prominent place in the success story of European integration over the past 60 years by promoting democracy, human rights and the rule of law. In the aftermath of the Second World War, one could not take these values for granted. Yet the self-defence of democracy prevailed and carried the day. Later on, in the past two decades, the Council of Europe i has played a significant role in the process of democratic transformation of Europe.
Drafting the European Convention of Human Rights and the parallel establishment of the European Court of Human Rights i in Strasbourg are lasting achievements of the Council. They have had a profound impact in advancing European values over the decades. And they still are: not a day passes in my job as Enlargement Commissioner of the European Union without a reference to the Convention and Court of Human Rights.
I would also like to underline the pioneering role the Council has played in fostering international parliamentary co-operation. The model of its Parliamentary Assembly, where members of national parliaments debate and decide, has set the standard for many other such bodies.
It has also been a training ground for democratic evolution in many countries. It has brought up a number of MEPs, Commissioners and even Presidents, from the country I know best to the country I know quite well by now – I am of course referring to President Tarja Halonen of Finland and President Abdullah Gül i of Turkey.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Finland became a full member of the Council of Europe twenty years ago, in 1989. It is no exaggeration to say, and not only in retrospect, that the country's accession occurred at the eleventh hour, moments before the crumbling of the Iron Curtain. Starting in late 1989, a wave of Velvet Revolutions swept across Central and Eastern Europe. It enabled our continent to tear down the physical, political and mental walls, which had divided the East and the West for decades following World War II.
Europe's dramatic transformation made its mark on the Council of Europe – and vice versa. From 1991 to 1995, I had the chance to lead the Finnish delegation to the Council of Europe. It was a privileged perspective to witness the rapid transformation of Europe.
To illustrate the speed of change: while Finland was the 23rd state to accede, the number of members has grown to 47 today. This phenomenal development tells the story of a profound transformation of Europe itself, not only of individual states.
And what is more, a majority of the countries that joined the Council of Europe over the past twenty years are today members of the European Union, or at least candidate countries or potential candidates. In this regard, membership in the Council of Europe has helped pave the way to EU membership. It’s been a true European perspective indeed!
Dear Friends,
It is worth recalling that Finland was one of the strongest supporters of enlargement of the Council of Europe in the 1990s. From 1991 to 1995 President Tarja Halonen and I served as Vice-Chair and Chair of the Finnish Delegation to the Council of Europe. I dare to say – even though I cannot speak on her behalf – that our vision was to pursue permanent peace by intensified integration; that is, by opening gates and uniting peoples, not dividing them by maintaining barriers.
Particularly memorable is the initiative which became known as "The Halonen Order". During her time as a Member of the Parliamentary Assembly, President Halonen left a permanent mark with her Order under which new members are monitored as to how they implement the conditions of membership with respect to minority rights.
During those years, our delegation worked with determination for the membership of Estonia, which succeeded in 1993. Having been a frequent political tourist to Estonia in the second half of the 1980s and seen the dream of re-born independence and democracy come true, I must say that the sunny day our Southern neighbour joined the Council was full of emotion and joy. The same goes for the other Baltic states.
After that milestone, for us – as seasoned, neutrality-inspired bridge-builders – it was time to turn our attention to Russia’s prospect of joining the Council. The Finnish delegation initiated a conference on the subject, which took place in January 1994 in the good old Auditorium of Eduskunta. It was a memorable conference, with useful discussions.
Subsequently, the Russian Federation was admitted to the Council of Europe in 1996. However, the country lost its right to vote in the first year, ending up in a special monitoring position, to be repeated in 2000. Because of human rights violations in Chechnya, Russia fell short of the basic principles and values of the Council of Europe.
I am aware that some people ask if the Russian membership was rushed, with the view of recent setbacks of democracy and human rights in the country. Moreover, Russia has even blocked the reform of the European Court of Human Rights, which the EU considers essential to revive the viability of the Court in its core business.
Having said that, it is worth recalling that membership in the Council has helped to advance the European legal culture in Russia – slowly, one might say, but even the slow progress witnessed has been better than nothing. This may help the modernisation of Russia and the gradual rooting of the rule of law and legal certainty in the country. Russia could help this best by unblocking its opposition to the reform of the Court.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Council of Europe has a significant place in the contemporary European political architecture, which is based on the 21st century view of multilateralism. Meanwhile, multipolarity, perceived as a concert of big powers, is very different from multilateralism which is inclusive, not exclusive – especially from the point of view of small states.
Let me say that the efforts to rebuild the European security architecture on the basis of a multi-polar concert of big powers would be doomed to fail. That would be a return to the 19th century power politics. The EU, as the champion of multilateralism, could never go for that. For us, the might can not be the only right – as our small member states know only too well.
In the multilateral European order, the Council of Europe is the champion of human rights and democracy. The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (the OSCE), meanwhile, is the seasoned and tested forum of dealing together with the security challenges. Both have their legitimate place in the division of labour of European institutions.
Especially for the country that initiated the CSCE in 1969, and later on hosted its solemn signatory ceremonies in August 1975, the OSCE and its concept of security through inclusion and co-operation are values worth preserving. Meanwhile, the deepening and widening of the European Union will continue to transform Europe.
Dear Friends,
With these words I want to congratulate the 60-year-old Council of Europe, and Finland for her 20th anniversary as its member. It has been one of the driving forces of European unification over the decades.
Let me also say that, the experience of 1991-95 gave me valuable experience for my current responsibilities as a Member of the European Commission responsible for enlargement. It is the combination of consistent commitment and rigorous conditionality – that is, of fairness and firmness – that counts and works.
I would also like to warmly thank all of you who have contributed to the work of the Finnish delegation over the past twenty years. You have been a driving force for democracy, human rights and the rule of law. You have left your mark in a European success story that will go on.
Thank you for your attention.