Newsroom
Commissioner O’Flaherty raises alarm on LGBTI rights, pledges to partner with Roma
The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Michael O’Flaherty, travelled to Thessaloniki, Greece, on 28 and 29 June to participate in the EuroPride 2024 Human Rights Conference and engage with local Roma communities who live on the outskirts of the city...
High-level dialogue on good democratic governance in Ukraine and way forward in post-war period
On 2-3 July 2024, Council of Europe and key national stakeholders from Ukraine gather in Strasbourg to discuss perspectives for good democratic governance reforms in Ukraine and further actions to improve the legal framework on multilevel governance and post-war elections in line with European...
Congress: Statement by Monitoring Committee on situation in Georgia
The Monitoring Committee of the Council of Europe’s Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, meeting in Tbilisi, Georgia, on 2 July 2024, adopted the following statement: “The Monitoring Committee reaffirms its full support to the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia...
Secretary General on official visit to Cyprus
Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić has met with President Nikos Christodoulides, Foreign Affairs Minister Constantinos Kombos, Speaker of the House of Representatives Annita Demetriou and other key personalities during an official visit to Cyprus. A lecture at the Diplomatic Academy was...
Secretary General at Dubrovnik Forum 2024
“Democracy can never be taken for granted anywhere. It is hard won, but easily lost. The Council of Europe has been warning for years now about an increase in democratic backsliding. Was the war inevitable? No, it was a choice made in Moscow and that is where responsibility lies. We must continue...
PACE : Georgia’s foreign influence transparency law should be repealed without delay
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) today expressed its deep concern at recent developments in Georgia that “raise serious doubts" about the country’s commitment to international democratic norms and Euro-Atlantic integration, and about its willingness to honour its...
Germany: Report on implementation of recommendations for immediate action for regional and minority language use
In an evaluation adopted on 20 June this year and published today, the Council of Europe's Committee of Experts of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages acknowledges legal and policy measures that have been taken by the German federal authorities and by the Länder to protect and...
Europride2024: Proud and concerned
Speech delivered at the closing session of the Thessaloniki EuroPride 2024 Human Rights Conference (check against delivery) Dear friends, It's a great pleasure to be here. I want to...
ECRI: new reports on Bosnia and Herzegovina, San Marino, Malta and Serbia
The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) has published new reports on Bosnia and Herzegovina, Malta, San Marino and Serbia. In its report on Bosnia and Herzegovina, while also highlighting progress made in some areas since the adoption of its previous report in 2016, ECRI...
PACE sets out plans to try Russian leaders, strengthen sanctions and stop the ‘erasure’ of Ukrainian identity
In a trio of resolutions, adopted today after a joint debate in Strasbourg, PACE has set out plans to try Vladimir Putin and his generals for aggression against Ukraine, strengthen sanctions against Russia and counter its attempts to “erase” Ukrainian cultural identity. Approving a resolution and...
Secretary General meets Public Defender of Georgia
Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić has met the Public Defender of Georgia Levan Ioseliani. The Secretary General recalled her statement on the law “on transparency of foreign influence” and reiterated the importance of the Venice Commission Urgent Opinion in this context. The Secretary...
Protection of national minorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia
The Council of Europe has published two new opinions by the Council of Europe’s Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (FCNM), on Bosnia and Herzegovina and on Georgia. In its opinion on Bosnia and Herzegovina the Committee urges Bosnia and...
The Olympic Torch is welcomed at the Council of Europe on its way to Paris
The Olympic Torch was greeted today by leading officials, parliamentarians and staff of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg during an unprecedented stop on its journey to the host city of Paris ahead of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. A torch-bearer passed through crowds of well-wishers in...
The Olympic torch arrives at the Council of Europe
One month before the opening of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, the Council of Europe today welcomed the Olympic Torch Relay. For the first time ever, the torch entered the premises of a parliament, and did so during the plenary session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the organisation’s 46 member...
Alternative sanctions and measures to prison: European annual statistics for 2023
The overall number of persons subject to sanctions and measures which keep offenders in the community remained stable in Europe from January 2022 to January 2023, although some probation administrations experienced significant increases or decreases, according to the Council of Europe Annual...
European Committee of Social Rights Publishes annual report
The European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) has published its Annual Activity Report for 2023. The report provides an account of many aspects of the ECSR’s work throughout the year, in particular the monitoring of the compliance of states with the Charter, but also a wide range of other...
Secretary General meets Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights
Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić has met the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets. The meeting focused on the situation of children of Ukraine who were unlawfully deported and forcibly transferred by the Russian Federation. The state of play of the Register...
5 priorities to stand up for the human rights of the people of Ukraine
Speech delivered at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) joint debate on the legal and human rights aspects of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine President, thank...
Alain Berset elected Secretary General of the Council of Europe
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) today elected Alain Berset (Switzerland) as Secretary General of the Council of Europe for a five-year term beginning on 18 September 2024. In the second round of the election, Mr Berset obtained 114 votes, a majority of the votes cast....
Civil society in Europe needs to be protected!
Civil society plays an essential role in encouraging respect for human rights, as well as strengthening democracy and the rule of law in Europe. The Council of Europe Steering Committee for Human Rights (CDDH) organised a conference in Helsinki, Finland, on protecting and promoting the space for...