Strasbourg, France - Two former prime ministers, from Poland and Norway, were in contention Tuesday for the post of Secretary General of the Council of Europe, a 60-year-old organization which seeks to foster greater European integration and uphold human rights. The candidates are Thorbjorn Jagland, the current president of the Norwegian parliament, and Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz, now a member of the upper chamber of the Polish parliament.
Curiously, both candidates were born in 1950, both are left wingers, and both served as prime ministers in their respective countries during the same period - between 1996 and 1997.
The new secretary general, who was to be elected by the council's parliamentary assembly in the afternoon, will replace the current chief, Terry Davis of Britain.
Founded in 1949, the Council of Europe has 47 European member states, including Russia, Turkey and Azerbaijan.
The organization, which seeks to enforce human rights through its European Court of Human Rights, is not part of the European Union.
