Newsletter February 2024
Secretary General appoints David Best as Special Representative on Migration and Refugees
On 1 February, Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić announced the appointment of Swiss diplomat David Best as her Special Representative on Migration and Refugees. The Council of Europe provides a close dialogue and support to its member states in responding to these challenges on the basis...
PACE Rapporteur Stephanie Krisper makes fact-finding visit to Brussels
On 12-14 February, Stephanie Krisper (Austria, ALDE), PACE Rapporteur and Member of the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons, made a fact-finding visit to the EU institutions in Brussels in the context of her forthcoming report on "Ensuring human rights compliant asylum...
Europe must end repression of human rights defenders assisting refugees, asylum seekers and migrants
“Across Europe, individuals and organisations are facing growing harassment, intimidation, violence and criminalisation simply for contributing to the protection of the human rights of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants. European states must stop this repression”, said the Council of Europe...
CPT publishes reports on its visits to UK and Poland
On 8 February , the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) published the report on its ad hoc visit carried out to the United Kingdom (UK) in March and April 2023, during which the visiting delegation examined the treatment and...
GRETA recognises Italy's efforts to improve detection of trafficking victims among asylum seekers
The Council of Europe Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA) has urged the Italian authorities to take further action against human trafficking, notably by strengthening measures to combat trafficking for the purpose of labour exploitation, ensuring effective...
European Qualifications Passport for Refugees: From theory to practice
The first meeting of the Council of Europe Sub-Group on Higher Education Policy in Strasbourg was held on 14 February in Strasbourg, focusing on the ways to support refugees to use their qualifications effectively in their host communities and how to most efficiently assist them in employment,...
European Court of Human Rights rules in asylum detention case
On 22 February, the European Court of Human Rights ruled in the case of M.H. AND S.B. v. HUNGARY , which concerned the asylum detention of the applicants, who were minors at the time of the events in question and whose requests for release from detention were initially refused. After examinining...