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Viewing cable 09STRASBOURG15, COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS -- A PILLAR OF THE COE

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
09STRASBOURG15 2009-07-10 15:14 2011-08-30 01:44 UNCLASSIFIED Consulate Strasbourg
VZCZCXRO4472
PP RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHNP RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSK RUEHSL RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHSR #0015/01 1911514
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 101514Z JUL 09
FM AMCONSUL STRASBOURG
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0173
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHSR/AMCONSUL STRASBOURG 0184
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 STRASBOURG 000015 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE ALSO FOR EUR/ERA, EUR/WE, AND DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PHUM COE FR
SUBJECT: COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS -- A PILLAR OF THE COE 
 
REF: STRASBOURG 12 
 
STRASBOURG 00000015  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
SBU - NOT FOR INTERNET DISSEMINATION. 
 
 
 
Summary 
 
- - - - - - - 
 
 
 
1.  (SBU) The Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of 
Europe (COE) focuses on national and international trends in the 
47 COE member states.  Publicizing systematic failures to uphold 
the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and 
promoting the role of national courts and ombudsmen, the 
Commissioner communicates through reports and "viewpoints," 
based partially on country visits.  Thomas Hammarberg, the 
current Commissioner, has recently used such statements to 
encourage European states, with some success, to accept former 
Guantanamo detainees and to lobby for United States ratification 
of the Rome Statute on the International Criminal Court. 
Hammarberg has also sought to promote the "right of return" of 
refugees and IDPs in Georgia.  Hammarberg's next reports will 
focus on Turkey and Russia.  End summary. 
 
 
 
Background 
 
- - - - - - - - - 
 
 
 
2. (U) Designed as an independent watchdog institution within 
the Council of Europe, the office of Commissioner for Human 
Rights was created in 1999.  Elected by a majority vote of the 
Parliamentary Assembly of the COE, the second and current 
Commissioner, Thomas Hammarberg of Sweden, assumed the role in 
2006. 
 
 
 
3. (U) The Commissioner's mandate complements the work of the 
European Court of Human Rights.  However, the position is 
non-judicial.  The Commissioner may not respond to individual 
complaints against member states, as can the Court.  With 
reliable information provided by country visits, other human 
rights monitoring mechanisms, and the specialized offices of the 
United Nations, the Commissioner launches wider investigations 
into the any of the COE's 47 member states.  Unlike the rulings 
of the European Court of Human Rights, none of the 
Commissioner's recommendations are binding.  While the 
Commissioner sometimes "names and shames" human rights violators 
in his reports, he prefers more subtle, "quiet diplomacy" to 
coax states toward compliance. 
 
 
 
Mandate and activities 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
 
 
4. (U) In order to assist COE member states with the observance 
and implementation of Convention standards, the Commissioner 
relies on dialogue with governments and country visits. 
Dialogue with member state governments tends to be permanent and 
executed through member states' ambassadors in Strasbourg.  When 
human rights violations appear systemic, the Commissioner may 
visit any of the 47 COE countries.  Used as an 
information-gathering mechanism, these missions contribute to 
reports proposing structural reforms, presented to the Committee 
of Ministers, the Parliamentary Assembly, relevant NGOs and 
policy makers, and often the media. 
 
 
 
5. (U) If ever ratified by Russia, Protocol 14 (reftel) will 
allow the Commissioner to intervene directly in certain Court 
hearings (at the Chamber level) and to submit friend of the 
court briefs in such cases. 
 
 
 
6. (U) Though designed to act "independently and impartially," 
the Commissioner's office rests within the COE bureaucracy.  The 
Parliamentary Assembly and the Committee of Ministers may 
request a report on a given European human rights issue or on 
the situation in a specific member state.  Additionally, the 
 
STRASBOURG 00000015  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights, as a part of the 
Council of Europe Secretariat, falls under the auspices of the 
Secretary General and Deputy Secretary General of the Council. 
The Secretary General prepares and allocates the Commissioner's 
budget, identifies Court of Human Rights cases in which the 
Commissioner should intervene as a third party, and coordinates 
the Commissioner's official visits. 
 
 
 
Guantanamo 
 
- - - - - - - - - - 
 
 
 
7. (SBU) In January, Commissioner Hammarberg devoted his 
bi-monthly "viewpoint" (a broad recommendation to the COE) to 
the closing of Guantanamo Bay, urging member states to accept 
some of the detainees held there.  Of note are the several 
explicit condemnations of the United States that figured 
prominently in the report: "Those responsible for devising and 
approving the interrogation systems or those involved in 
sanctioning torture should be brought to justice ~ we should not 
forget that Guantanamo Bay may only be the tip of the iceberg 
when it comes to prisoners held beyond the rule of law by the 
United States."  A June 5 letter to all Permanent 
Representatives to the COE following the Commissioner's visit to 
Washington once more encouraged European states to accept the 
detainees, and was considerably less critical of the U.S. 
Several ambassadors to the COE have told us that Hammarberg's 
work has helped convince their capitals to consider seriously 
accepting some of the detainees. 
 
 
 
Georgia 
 
- - - - - - - 
 
 
 
8. (SBU) Commissioner Hammarberg has visited Georgia four times 
since the conflict of August 2008 and in May 2009 released his 
most recent report on the ongoing human rights dilemma there. 
It was largely a reiteration of his "six principles": all 
citizens must be granted the right to return to their homes, 
care and support during reconstruction, protection from war, and 
protection against lawlessness; the rights of detainees must be 
ensured; international humanitarian groups must be granted 
access to the conflict areas.  The continued failure to meet 
these standards falls on both camps, according to Hammarberg, 
particularly the restriction of access of humanitarian aid.  The 
Commissioner pleaded for the two parties to delink the political 
issue of status of South Ossetia and Abkhazia from the 
international humanitarian effort.  The COE views Hammarberg's 
work as complementary to the EUMM; indeed, some contacts note 
that Hammarberg is one of the few figures who can talk to all 
sides in the conflict.  Hammarberg himself has expressed 
frustration, however, at not having full access to all conflict 
zones in Georgia. 
 
 
 
Serbia and Kosovo 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
 
 
9. (U) In March 2009, Commissioner Hammarberg released the 
follow-up report to his October 2008 visit to assess the human 
rights situation in Serbia.  Reticent on the issue of Kosovo 
independence, the Commissioner did note the weakening support 
for (and even outright attacks on) NGOs encouraging democratic 
consolidation within Serbia since the unilateral declaration. 
He also noted the apparently stalled progress on returns of 
internally displaced persons from the Kosovo war, particularly 
Roma; between "an uncertain future in Kosovo and considerable 
obstacles to integrate into Serbian society," they are in many 
ways "stuck." 
 
 
 
10. (SBU) The Commissioner's recent report on the human rights 
situation in Kosovo itself was critical.  He painted Kosovo's 
public institutions, especially its judiciary, as weak and 
corrupt.  The Commissioner's Chief of Staff indicated that 
Kosovo membership in the COE was politically difficult given the 
number of COE member states that have not recognized Pristina. 
The official added that Kosovo's authorities will probably have 
 
STRASBOURG 00000015  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
to address its shortcomings vis-`-vis the European Convention on 
Human Rights before it could even be considered a potentially 
viable candidate. 
 
 
 
ICC 
 
- - - - 
 
 
 
11. (U) Hammarberg's June 22, 2009 "viewpoint" invited European 
countries to defend the International Criminal Court and to 
request that the USG withdraw the "idea of impunity" for its 
nationals.  Acknowledging the "encouraging steps" taken by the 
Obama Administration (renunciation of torture, closing of 
Guantanamo), the Commissioner called for the United States to 
ratify the Rome Statute. 
 
 
 
Current Focus: Turkey and Russia 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
 
 
12. (U) Following a country visit to Turkey at the end of June 
2009, Hammarberg will release two reports in the coming weeks, 
one on Turkey's minority rights situation and the other 
concerning its treatment of asylum seekers and immigrants.  He 
will travel to Russia in September to investigate various human 
rights concerns there, particularly those in the Northern 
Caucasus. 
 
 
 
Comment 
 
- - - - - - - - 
 
 
 
13. (SBU) Almost all of our contacts have described Hammarberg's 
most effective tool as "quiet diplomacy."  His office is one of 
the most respected parts of the COE.  On Guantanamo, Hammarberg 
mixes his power of quiet persuasion at (according to his Chief 
of Staff) almost every meeting with member state officials with 
his more public letters.  He will not shy away from criticism of 
the U.S., however, and will continue to call for the abolition 
of the death penalty. 
CARVER