Council of Europe Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić appears at special event organised by Maison de l'Europe at Hôtel de Ville in Paris on 15 December
"At a time when there are strong risks of democratic backsliding or tendencies to use security as a pretext, we must remain firmly committed to our principles and never take them for granted. This is not just our duty but also the guarantee of a future in which justice and freedom will prevail", said the Secretary General.
Marija Pejčinović Burić ended her statement by paying tribute to the former President of the Maison de l'Europe, Catherine Lalumière, "exemplary in her rectitude and her determination", a major figure in European construction and the first woman Secretary General of the Council of Europe from 1989 - the year of the fall of the Berlin Wall - to 1994.
Following her statement, the Secretary General took part in the European Initiative Prize awards.
Secretary General's statement
