New Secretary General of the Council of Europe is a Woman 27.06.2019

On June 26, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe elected the 14th Secretary General of the Council of Europe.

Deputy Prime Minister of Croatia, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Maria Peychinovich-Burich received the 159 votes, and the other candidate – Belgian Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Foreign Affairs and European Affairs Didier Reynders received 105 votes. This means that in the next five years one of the most serious structures in the world will be headed by a woman.

The Council of Europe is Europe’s most serious organization. I think the role of this organization is more important than ever. I see that there is a need for dialogue not only within the body, but also among member states. I look forward to the support of all of you to the goals of building, and it is the peace and prosperity of our citizens. Again, I thank you for your vote, “said Maria Pachećovich-Burich in her welcoming speech after the vote.

The Secretary General will assume office in autumn this year to head until autumn 2024. Until then, the duties of the Secretary General will be performed by Thorbjørn Jagland. By the way, the latter has been serving two terms, for the first time in 2009, then in 2014.

By the way, Maria Peychinovich-Burich is the second Secretary General of the Council of Europe since it has been established. The first was French politician Catherine Lalomire. She has served for two terms, first elected in 1994, re-elected in 1999.

The Council of Europe functions on the basis of its dialogue with its key bodies: the Committee of Ministers, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities in Europe, the Commissioner for Human Rights and the International NGO Forum.

It is noteworthy that at present, there are many women among CE leaders. Thus, the PACE President is Liliane Mori Pasquier. Human Rights Commissioner is Dunja Mijatovic. The Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe is Gabriela Bataini-Dragoni, who was elected for the third time in this post. For the first time she was elected in 2012, she was re-elected in 2015.