Date: 24 May 2018
Venue: Strasbourg – Council of Europe, Agora.
Organised by: The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) of the Council of Europe.
Participants: Representatives of equality bodies, national Ombudspersons and national human rights institutions; members of ECRI; members of national parliaments; representatives of national authorities, international organisations, NGOs and networks.
Topic: The morning session was dedicated to the launching of ECRI’s revised standards for the establishment and functioning of Equality Bodies, which are contained in its General Policy Recommendation No. 2. They drew on existing good practices and focus on key elements for the establishment, independence and effective functioning of equality bodies.
The afternoon session focused on good practices from Equality Bodies in combating hate speech, including awareness raising, research and data collection, assistance to victims and decision-making on complaints.