Newsroom
New partnership agreement between Council of Europe and City of Strasbourg
The Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Marija Pejčinović Burić, and the Mayor of Strasbourg, Jeanne Barseghian have signed a new partnership agreement to reinforce the longstanding co-operation between the two sides, updating the 2010 agreement. “Ever since 1949, the City of Strasbourg...
Challenge of ensuring national minority rights taking new forms, tools to address it adapting
Achievements and future challenges in protecting national minority rights has been the focus of a high-level conference in Strasbourg organised by the Council of Europe under the Hungarian Presidency of the Committee of Ministers. Persons belonging to national minorities face particular...
Automated technology to detect online child sexual abuse must respect human rights
Technology used to detect the online sexual abuse of children must respect human rights and the rule of law, says a new report for the Council of Europe. “There has been a sharp rise in the exchange of online child abuse material during the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Council of Europe Secretary...
Implementing ECHR judgments: New country-by-country data now online
The 47-nation Council of Europe has published a new series of online country factsheets providing information on each member state’s execution of judgments from the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). “Implementing judgments from the European Court of Human Rights is crucial to the success of...
Finland makes a voluntary contribution of €1 250 000
The government of Finland has made three different voluntary contributions in total of €1 250 000 to the Council of Europe: €500 000 to the European Court of Human Rights backlog of well-founded cases, €500 000 to the implementation of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine 2018-2022, and...
France: Anti-torture Committee deplores conditions of detention, prison overcrowding and lack of psychiatric beds
The Council of Europe Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT), in a new report on its periodic visit to France in December 2019, expresses serious concern about material conditions of detention in police establishments, prison overcrowding, the conditions in which detained persons were...
10th anniversary of the Istanbul Convention: 'Nothing will make us back down'
“I would like to recall to each and everyone of us that during the two hours of this event there will be thousands of women beaten. As we sit here, women will even be beaten to death. And we are not talking just about some cases, but about thousands and thousands of acts of violence. Just think...
Czech Republic: Council of Europe calls for urgent independent investigation into Romani man’s death
Statement by the Spokesperson of the Secretary General
La Secrétaire Générale rencontre la ministre française Elisabeth Moreno
Le 23 juin, la Secrétaire Générale, Marija Pejčinović Burić, a rencontré Elisabeth Moreno, Ministre chargée de l'Égalité entre les femmes et les hommes, de la Diversité et de l'Égalité des chances de la France. Lors cet échange, elles ont souligné le rôle de la Convention sur la prévention et la...
Closer EU-Council of Europe cooperation is more important than ever, Secretary General tells PACE
Responding to questions from members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić began by emphasising the importance of coordinating work with the European Union in order to avoid duplication. She underlined the shared values of the two...
Secretary General praises EU-Council of Europe cooperation project that helped justice reform in Cyprus
On 18 June the Supreme Court of Cyprus announced the adoption of new Rules of Civil Procedure. The preparation of the new Rules was facilitated through a cooperation project conducted by the Council of Europe in partnership with the European Union. The new Rules are one of the essential...
Implementing ECHR judgments: New factsheet on improving conditions of detention
The Council of Europe’s Department for the Execution of Judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has published a new thematic factsheet on cases related to conditions of detention. The factsheet summarises measures reported by 25 member states to prevent and eradicate ill-treatment...
Council of Europe Secretary General welcomes Hungarian contribution of €450,000
Council of Europe Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić, has welcomed an exceptional voluntary contribution of €450,000 towards Council of Europe action plans and projects, which support priorities of the Hungarian Presidency. Hungarian Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Mr Péter...
Péter Szijjártó reviews the priorities of the Hungarian Presidency
“Guarantees should be given to national minorities to enable them to preserve their identity, culture, religion and language in public administration, education and in the media,” said Péter Szijjártó, Hungarian Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade and Chair of the Committee of Ministers of the...
Local self-government in Armenia: positive developments but still room for progress
Despite positive developments in local self-government in Armenia, the powers of the municipalities have not been extended, their role in delivering public services remains limited, and local authorities are not provided with sufficient funding, says the monitoring report adopted today by the...
Georgia Election Code Reforms: Venice Commission and OSCE/ODIHR call for “more holistic approach”
In a joint urgent opinion the Venice Commission and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (“ODIHR”) acknowledge that revised draft amendments to the Election Code of Georgia have been prepared in close cooperation between the ruling party and several opposition parties....
Local self-government in Azerbaijan: few improvements observed, limited powers and weak financial position of municipalities must be urgently addressed
Despite some improvements in the work of municipalities, major concerns remain about a number of factors impairing the development of self-government in Azerbaijan, such as a lack of real powers of municipalities, of a status of state institutions and of own financial resources, says the...
Memorandum of understanding between the Council of Europe and the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe
The Council of Europe and the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE) have signed a memorandum of understanding in Strasbourg with a view to stepping up cooperation between the two bodies and making the Organisation's activities more visible to Europe's lawyers. Lawyers play a key role...
World Refugee Day: Council of Europe and EU Agency for Fundamental Rights to work closely together on protecting rights at borders
On World Refugee Day on 20 June, the Council of Europe and the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) are joining forces to strengthen their cooperation on human rights protection at the European borders. As a follow-up to the previous joint Note ‘Fundamental rights of refugees, asylum applicants...
The Congress calls on Poland to withdraw anti-“LGBT ideology” resolutions and to protect the rights of LGBTI people
At its 40th Session, 16 June 2021, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe examined the situation of LGBTI people in Europe based on a report prepared by Andrew Boff (United Kingdom, ECR) and Yoomi Renström (Sweden, SOC/G/PD). The Congress adopted a resolution and...
