Newsroom
Solitary confinement in prisons and its alternatives: a human rights perspective
Solitary confinement of prisoners is still widely used in many countries in Europe and around the world, although many studies suggest that it is often extremely damaging for prisoners’ physical and mental health and not conducive to their resocialisation. So how to mitigate this damage, and what...
Journalist safety campaign: improving cooperation between journalists and police at public events
As part of the Council of Europe's Campaign for the Safety of Journalists "Journalists Matter", a special seminar in Strasbourg is bringing together representatives of governments, police forces, press freedom organisations and associations of journalists to discuss the role of the police in...
European Day of Languages: Greetings from Gitanas Nausėda, President of Lithuania
On the European Day of Languages, we can all better appreciate what it means to be European and celebrate our unity in diversity. It is no coincidence that as early as 1599, Mikalojus Daukša, the publisher of the first books in Lithuanian, wrote in his "Postilė" chapter The Preface Unto...
‘Free and legitimate elections essential to safeguard Georgia’s place in Europe’, says head of PACE pre-electoral delegation, ending visit
A PACE pre-electoral delegation, headed by Iulian Bulai (Romania, ALDE), has concluded a two-day visit to Georgia (23-24 September 2024) ahead of the parliamentary elections of 26 October 2024. Mr Bulai stressed that these elections are taking place at a very crucial moment in Georgia’s European...
Croatia: Implementing pilot of paperless commercial courts to improve efficiency in the judicial system
25 September – In Varaždin Croatia, high-level representatives of the Council of Europe, the European Commission’s Directorate General for Structural Reform Support (DG REFORM) and the...
Smart, inclusive, fair policies needed to counter instrumentalisation and politicisation of minority rights in Europe, says expert committee
Over the past two years, from mid-2022 to mid-2024, despite some positive developments and good practices, very worrying trends against diversity and minority rights in Europe have been observed, says the Advisory Committee on the Council of Europe’s Framework Convention for the Protection of...
Award of 2024 Václav Havel Prize a highlight of PACE autumn session
The award ceremony for the 2024 Václav Havel Human Rights Prize, which honours outstanding human rights defenders worldwide, will be among the highlights of the autumn session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), from 30 September to 4 October. An overall winner will be...
Drugs in prison: Ensuring humane treatment of incarcerated people with substance use disorders
A conference in Strasbourg this week highlighted promising practices for people in custody who have substance use disorders (SUD). It addressed public health challenges in the drugs field and provided guidance to practitioners and policymakers in Europe. The Council of Europe’s European Committee...
Julian Assange to attend a PACE hearing in Strasbourg on his detention and conviction and their chilling effect on human rights
Julian Assange is to attend a parliamentary hearing in Strasbourg on Tuesday 1 October 2024 which will look at his detention and conviction and their chilling effect on human rights, ahead of a full plenary debate on this topic by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) the...
Languages for Peace: European Day of Languages 2024 highlights Europe’s linguistic and cultural diversity
Every year since 2001 the European Day of Languages marked on 26 September celebrates the wealth of languages coexisting in Europe and beyond. Over 225 languages are native to Europe alone, not including languages that arrived on the continent through migration. The motto of this year’s day is...
A practical guide for legislators on how to help Belarusians in exile in Europe
A guide for European parliamentarians and other policymakers on the practical steps they can take to help Belarusians living in exile in Council of Europe member states is published today. “The Luxembourg Solutions”, a 107-page guide in three languages (English, French and Belarusian) prepared by...
New Book Release: History of the Council of Europe, 75 Years of European Co-operation
A new book tracing the remarkable history of the Council of Europe, from its creation in 1949 to its current challenges, has just been published. History of the Council of Europe, 75 Years of European Co-operation, by Professor Birte Wassenberg, offers an in-depth look at the development of this...
Innovation to help us live together better
The round table on “Local innovation for stronger local authorities” held on 13 September during the Congress Conference showed that social and technological innovation is as much about...
Spain’s system to protect regional and minority languages is well developed but gaps persist in justice, healthcare and public administration
In a new evaluation report the Council of Europe’s Committee of Experts of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages concludes that while Spain has a well-developed system for the protection and promotion of its regional and minority languages, further efforts are needed to address...
Congress conference supports democracy, resilience and reconstruction in Ukraine
News from the front line featured constantly in the debate on co-ordinating the aid provided to Ukraine by associations of local and regional authorities in Europe and making it more...
Congress and national associations: advance the cause of local and regional democracy
The 4th Conference of National Associations of Local and Regional Authorities held in Strasbourg on 12 and 13 September gave the associations an opportunity to set out what they expect from...
Representation of women and young people: how to boost democratic participation at local and regional level? - Congress of Local and Regional Authorities
Making local and regional democracy more inclusive means first and foremost increasing the proportion of women among elected representatives, but also opening up assemblies to young people and...
Council of Europe evaluates anti-corruption progress in Ireland
The Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) has published a compliance report on Ireland, assessing the country’s progress in implementing recommendations from GRECO’s 2022 evaluation report on preventing corruption and promoting integrity in central governments (top...
Young people and policy makers discuss democracy and the climate crisis
Climate justice and effective action to tackle the triple planetary crises of global warming, pollution and loss of biodiversity are key concerns of young people. From 24 to 26 September, 120 young people, members of non-governmental youth organisations, voluntary and professional youth workers,...
Lithuania launches European Heritage Days 2024: “the Baltic Way was our road to freedom”
This year’s European Heritage Days festivities have been launched with programmes in more than 40 countries, exploring this year’s theme of “Heritage of Routes, Networks, and Connections.” Lithuania is currently holding the Presidency of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers, and has...
