Council of Europe calls for constant monitoring of situation in Crimea

The Council of Europe states there is a need for constant monitoring of the human rights situation in the occupied Crimea.

This is stated in the report on the human rights situation in Crimea, which was presented within the framework of the meeting of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg on Wednesday, the organization’s press service reports.

The report was presented by Ambassador Gerard Stoudmann, who had paid a seven-day visit to Crimea on behalf of Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjorn Jagland.

Presenting the report, Ambassador Stoudmann said that “the most important and main conclusion of the report is the need to reopen the peninsula for monitoring structures of the Council of Europe and other relevant international instruments.” He also stressed that “it is neither normal nor acceptable when the population of 2.5 million people is always beyond the reach of the human rights mechanisms established for the protection of all Europeans.“

As a reminder, the CoE Secretary General announced his decision to send Ambassador Stoudmann with human rights visit on January 20, 2016 at the request of the Committee of Ministers and the Member States, as well as after the political consultations with the governments of Ukraine and the Russian Federation. The delegation was in Crimea on January 25-31 and was not engaged in the issues related to the status of Crimea.