The Council of Europe has denounced this week's violence in Macedonia and called on both sides in the conflict to exercise restraint.
Lord Russell-Johnston, president of the council's Parliamentary Assembly, which is meeting in Strasbourg, said it was essential for all citizens of Macedonia to avoid violence or the threat of it.
"Whatever the frustration they may feel, they should understand that the present crisis can only be resolved through dialogue, patience and tolerance.
"I strongly and unequivocally condemn the armed actions by ethnic Albanian extremists, but I equally denounce the rioting that took place in Skopje on Monday night, and in which, regrettably, some members of the country's police and military forces have been taking an active part," he said.
Lord Russell-Johnston said the recent history of the region offered ample evidence of the tragic consequences that any further aggravation of tensions would produce.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Mr Ruud Lubbers, urged the council's 43 member-countries to adhere more closely to the 1951 Geneva Convention on the status of refugees. The convention defines refugee status and the conditions people must meet to qualify for it, and lists the rights and obligations of refugees and the obligations incumbent on states.
"Closing the doors to immigrants is the quickest way to ensure illegal immigration and human trafficking. Refugees are no small concern for Europe. Today Europe has opened its doors to more than seven million people whose fate concerns the High Commission for Refugees," Mr Lubbers said.
"Refugees need our help, true, but they also deserve our respect, for their skills, their culture, their knowledge and the active role they can play in society,"
The assembly recommended that politicians and the media refrain from exploiting the sensational side of asylum issues for their own short-term benefit, which only encouraged racial discrimination and violence.
The Fine Gael TD, Mr Tom Enright, presented a report on conditions for allowing foreign prisoners to complete jail sentences in their home countries. The Council of Europe Convention on the Transfer of Sentenced Persons has been in force for 16 years, and all but three of the council's member-countries have adopted it.
But Mr Enright said that, because procedures were unwieldy and lacking in clarity, they were not used as frequently as they should be.
He pointed out that the families of foreign prisoners faced great obstacles in maintaining contact, not least because of the cost of travel. And many foreign prisoners were unable to make use of recreational and educational facilities because of language difficulties.
"Prisoners are in prison as a punishment, not for punishment. The loss of liberty is the punishment," Mr Enright said.
He called for the system to be streamlined and for cases to be processed within a specified time-frame.
He said it must be made clear that prisoners were transferred to their home countries to complete their sentences, not to be released.
