RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
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RFE/RL NEWSLINE 7 May 1999

COUNCIL OF EUROPE'S ANNIVERSARY MARKED IN BUDAPEST.
Ceremonies marking the 50th anniversary of the Council
of Europe began in Budapest on 6 May, with
representatives from 41 countries taking part, AP
reported. Hungarian Premier Viktor Orban gave the
opening address to delegates at the parliament building.
Lord Russell-Johnston, president of the Parliamentary
Assembly, said "the tragedy of Kosova should serve as a
painful reminder of what happens when values are
forgotten and nationalist hatred allowed to dominate."
The council was the idea of British Premier Winston
Churchill, who envisaged that the "free nations of
Europe could assert their shared values of human rights,
democracy, and the rule of law." Kosova is expected to
be the main topic during the two-day meeting. PB

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