President Vujanovic will attend the Council of Europe Summer University for Democracy

The day after tomorrow, on Monday June 30, 2008, the President of Montenegro, H.E. Mr. Filip Vujanović, will be on visit to Strasbourg, France, to attend the Council of Europe Third Summer University for Democracy, “Governance, Power and Democracy”.

On the occasion, President Vujanović will deliver a speech, following the opening of the University at 09:30am by Right Honourable Terry Davis, Secretary General of the Council of Europe. Among the other opening speakers will be Mr. Roland Ries, Senator-Mayor of Strasbourg, H.E. Ambassador Per Sjögren, Permanent Representative of Sweden to the Council of Europe, Mr. Göran Lindblad, Parliamentary Assembly Vice-President (PACE), H.E. Ambassador Bruno Gain, Permanent Representative of France to the Council of Europe, and Mrs. Meglena Kuneva, European Commissioner for Consumer Protection.

Program of the Summer University 2008

From Monday June 30 to Friday July 4, the Summer University will bring together over 600 participants from schools of political studies in 16 European countries. The five-day session will include a series of themed conferences and workshops to be conducted and moderated by some 75 experts in democracy, international affairs, civil society and media as well as international personalities such as Mr. Kim Campbell, former Prime Minister of Canada, Mr. Egor Gaydar, former Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Mr. Stanisłaŭ Šuškievič, former Head of State of Belarus, Mr. Ivan Vejvoda, Executive Director of the Balkan Trust for Democracy, and Mr. Yavuz Mildon, President of the Council of Europe Congress.

Mr. Jean-Paul Costa, President of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), and Mr. Andreas Gross, PACE Vice-President, will participate in the closing session on Friday July 4 at which a final declaration is due to be adopted. The official launching of the European Association of the Schools of Political Studies will be also held on July 4 with the participation of Mrs. Catherine Lalumière, former Secretary General of the Council of Europe.

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Background

The first Council of Europe-backed School of Political Studies was founded in Moscow in 1992 to train the next generation of decision makers in politics, economics, society and culture. At present 16 such schools exist in Russia, Georgia, Bulgaria, Moldova, Kosovo/UNMIK, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, Croatia, Romania, Armenia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Montenegro and Belarus.

The Schools of Political Studies: Fact sheet

The Council of Europe Summer University for Democracy brings together participants from political studies schools (500 in 2006; 600 in 2007; 608 in 2008) to study common questions and create bilateral and regional opportunities for dialogue. It also gives participants the opportunity to hear from international and European leaders and meet numerous experts from Europe and elsewhere. Each Summer University has a special theme (“Challenges to Democracy” in 2006; “The Future of the European Project” in 2007).