Source: Merezhko commented to "European Truth" in Strasbourg, providing supporting documents.
Details: The incident occurred during the work on the resolution "Europe's Commitments to a Just and Sustainable Peace in Ukraine," which PACE will discuss on Thursday.
The day before, proposals for this document were being registered in the assembly. Merezhko, in collaboration with other PACE deputies (five representatives from Ukraine, including the head of the VR delegation, as well as Swedish member Markus Wiechel), suggested an amendment that, if adopted, would have the assembly "recognize that Vladimir Putin is a terrorist, under whose leadership numerous acts of terror against the civilian population have been committed." However, after the publication of all parliamentary proposals, Merezhko's amendment was not among them.
"EuroTruth" has obtained a response from the secretariat explaining this refusal. They informed Merezhko in writing that "designating the head of state as a terrorist is equivalent to using offensive and obscene terms, which are inappropriate in an official Assembly document."
"The secretariat refers to the fact that amendments cannot contain personal insults. But excuse me, for every international lawyer, it is clear that 'terrorist' is a legal, juridical term. Moreover, the Assembly has already recognized Russia as a terrorist regime!" – explained the deputy in a comment to "EП".
"It is not the role of the secretariat to decide what is offensive to whom. There are PACE deputies who can reject my amendment. That’s how the democratic process works. What happened now is an act of political censorship," Merezhko believes.
Background:
- At the PACE session, the powers of Georgia were also reviewed, which the assembly ultimately confirmed but imposed requirements and sanctions on the country. In response, Georgia announced its "withdrawal" from PACE.
- At the same time, "EuroTruth" reported that on the side of Georgia was the "deep state," meaning the secretariat of the assembly and the relevant committee, which tried to nullify the punishment of the Georgian delegation. Only after a long and emotional discussion among the deputies was that resolution changed, turning it into a compromise option.
For an explanation of what happened, watch the video from Strasbourg "Georgia's Punishment in PACE: What Sanctions Were Imposed and Will There Be New Elections" or read the article "Explaining the Pros and Cons of PACE's Decision".