Secretary General

Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić leads and represents the Organisation. She is responsible for the strategic planning and direction of the Council's work programme and budget. The Secretary General is elected by the Parliamentary Assembly for a five-year term at the head of the Organisation.
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Bjørn Berge is the Deputy Secretary General.  He is also elected for a five-year term by the Parliamentary Assembly, in an election separate to the one held for the SG.  His priorities include shaping the Organisation’s Programme and Budget, advising and overseeing the implementation of the reform agenda, and leading on staff policy.  The DSG also provides strategic leadership for the Council of Europe Days visibility project.
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Committee of Ministers

This is the Council's decision-making body and is made up of the ministers of foreign affairs of each member state or their permanent diplomatic representatives in Strasbourg. The Committee of Ministers decides Council of Europe policy and approves its budget and programme of activities.
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When Liechtenstein joined the Council of Europe in 1978, Europe was vastly different. Since then, we have become a community of values”.

Dominique Hasler, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Liechtenstein

European Court of Human Rights

This is the permanent judicial body which garantees for all Europeans the rights safeguarded by the European Convention on Human Rights. It is open to states and individuals regardless of nationality. The 46 member states of the Council of Europe are parties to the Convention.
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The European Convention on Human Rights is a unique and precious model of international justice. Its value in the 21st century as a guarantee of democracy and the rule of law is difficult to overstate.

Síofra O’Leary, President of the European Court of Human Rights.

Elected on 1 November 2022, Irish lawyer and judge Síofra O'Leary is the sixteenth President of the European Court of Human Rights. She held various positions at the Court of Justice of the European Union and was Head of Unit before serving on the Court in 2015. She has been the Assistant Director for the Centre of European Legal Studies at the University of Cambridge, as well as a fellow and research associate at many leading universities. She has published two books and written extensively in academic journals and EU law monographs. She is also a visiting professor at the College of Europe in Bruges.

Parliamentary Assembly (PACE)

The Parliamentary Assembly consists of 306 members of parliament from the 46 member states; the Assembly elects the Secretary General, the Human Rights Commissioner and the judges to the European Court of Human Rights; it provides a democratic forum for debate and monitors elections; its committees play an important role in examining current issues.
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Congress of Local and Regional Authorities

The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities is responsible for strengthening local and regional democracy in its 46 member states. Composed of two chambers – the Chamber of Local Authorities and the Chamber of Regions – and three committees, it brings together 612 elected officials representing more than 150 000 local and regional authorities.
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The Congress brings to your doorstep the Council of Europe's values, standards and protection.

Marc Cools , President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities

Commissioner for Human Rights

The Human Rights Commissioner independently addresses and brings attention to human rights violations.
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As Commissioner for human rights, I often meet journalists, human rights defenders and activists who use Council of Europe standards as a compass to fight injustice and abuse. I see the concrete impact that the Council of Europe’s protection system has on the lives of so many people...

Dunja Mijatović, Commissioner for Human Rights.

Elected Commissioner for Human Rights in January 2018 by the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly, Dunja Mijatović took up her position on 1 April 2018. She is the fourth Commissioner, succeeding Nils Muižnieks (2012-2018), Thomas Hammarberg (2006-2012) and Alvaro Gil-Robles (1999-2006).

Conference of INGOs 

The Conference includes some 400 international Non Governmental Organisations (INGOs). It provides vital links between politicians and the public and brings the voice of civil society to the Council. The Council's work benefi ts extensively from the INGOs' expertise and their outreach to European citizens.
 Visit Conference of INGOs Website

 ...the Council of Europe cannot do everything  - it needs the citizens of Europe, it needs us, it needs you! It needs the people of Europe to help build this democratic and human-rights-respecting Europe for everyone.

Gerhard Ermischer, President of the Conference of INGOs