On 2 October 2023, the Special Representative of the Secretary General on Migration and Refugees (SRSG), Leyla Kayacik, visited Ukraine at the invitation of the Government Commissioner for Gender Equality Policy, Kateryna Levchenko.

In meetings with Ms Levchenko and other government officials, and the representatives of relevant non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the Special Representative shared findings of her fact-finding mission reports assessing the situation of people forced to leave Ukraine due to the Russian Federation’s ongoing aggression. Furthermore, she explored avenues through which the Council of Europe could provide additional support in bolstering the protection of people in vulnerable situations, particularly women and children.

The Ukrainian authorities have emphasised the importance of the situation concerning Ukrainian children and their whereabouts. They have acknowledged the support offered by the Council of Europe, including the establishment of the Consultation Group on Children of Ukraine (CGU) and have informed the SRSG about their ongoing efforts to ensure the return of these children.

The meetings also focused on the situation of women who had been exposed to various forms of conflict-related violence. These discussions highlighted the successful operation of Survival Relief Centres, located throughout Ukraine. SRSG Kayacik personally visited one of these centres in Kyiv.

These centres offer a wide range of assistance, from legal counselling to psychological support. The model, which includes the Survival Relief online platform, has proven to be effective and a representative of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on European and Euro-Atlantic Integration will be invited to present the Survival Relief online platform to the Council of Europe Network of Focal Points on Migration (NFPM).

The Council of Europe has prepared a comprehensive response package to the refugee influx in Armenia following a visit by the Special Representative on Migration and Refugees, from 11 to 13 October 2023.

"Through this dedicated and targeted package we will support our member state Armenia and its people, as they face these unprecedented hardships and challenges", said Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić.

From 22 to 24 November, three separate events were organised in Bucharest as follow ups to the report of the fact-finding mission to Romania, carried out by the Special Representative of the Secretary General on Migration and Refugees.

A round table discussion on “Strengthening the protection of children and victims of gender-based violence, in the context of refugee flows in Romania”, was co-organised by the SRSG Office and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

The discussion focused on the findings contained in the SRSG’s report and the actions to be taken in the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan on Protecting Vulnerable Persons in the Context of Migration and Asylum in Europe (2021-2025). Participants were updated on the European Court of Human Rights case law on vulnerability and children, as well as on the existing international and European standards and national measures taken to protect children and victims of gender-based violence in the context of migration and asylum.

On 23 and 24 November, the Council of Europe Directorate of Political Affairs and External Relations of the Council of Europe, in close co-operation with the Office of the SRSG on Migration and Refugees and the Romanian Government organised a training on “Psychological Support to Refugees: Strengthening Professional Capacities.”

“This two-day training aims to concretely support and contribute to the efforts of teams of front-line workers from the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Romania including police officers and border police,  psychologists of the General Inspectorate of Immigration, the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations and of the National Agency Against Trafficking in Persons , conducting emergency interventions with health and social services staff working on psycho-social support and trauma rehabilitation,” the SRSG stated.

Finally, on 23 November, the second meeting of the Community of Practice on Migration and Human Rights at local level of the Council of Europe Congress of the Local and Regional Authorities also took place in Bucharest.

On 29 November 2023, Liechtenstein hosted the Council of Europe’s Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport (EPAS) biennial Diversity Conference “Inclusion of Child Migrants and Refugees in and through Sport” under the framework of its Presidency of the Committee of Ministers. One of the presidency priorities is the focus on children, youth and education.

The conference, organised by the Council of Europe’s EPAS in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Education and Sport of the Principality of Liechtenstein, brought together national and international experts, policy makers and those working for NGOs and grassroots sport.

Addressing the event, SRSG Kayacik highlighted that the promotion of the use of sport as a tool for inclusion is one of the activities of the Council of Europe Action Plan on the Protection of Vulnerable Persons in the Context of Migration and Asylum. “Based on my fact-finding missions, I observe the high vulnerability of children and their increased risk of being prone to psychological distress and of becoming victims of violence and discrimination. There is an urgent need for their participation in education and in the activities of the host society”, said the SRSG.

The SRSG also took part in the opening of a roundtable meeting on the “Protection of Asylum Seekers, Refugees and Migrants under the European Convention on Human Rights” in Ankara.

The roundtable, on 3 and 4 November, was organised by the Council of Europe and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in co-operation with the Justice Academy of Türkiye. It gathered over 70 (candidate) judges and prosecutors of the Justice Academy and various judicial institutions across the country, as well as lawyers from the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). 

In her opening remarks, the SRSG underlined that supporting member states in addressing migration-related challenges, in line with the European Convention on Human Rights and the standards set by the Council of Europe is at the heart of her mandate. 

The two-day event was aimed at increasing participants’ knowledge of the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights, in particular on the admission to the territory, procedural safeguards against deportation and administrative detention.