Inclusion and anti-discrimination programmes

The Council of Europe's Inclusion and Anti-discrimination Programmes Division carries out activities to ensure genuine equality and full access to rights and opportunities for all members of society.

The Division is composed of four Units, offering concrete and tested solutions to governmental and non-governmental partners in member States to strenghten inclusion and address discrimination and inequality that undermine the enjoyment of human rights and democracy by everyone:

Retour Addressing Hate Speech: Training for Judges and Prosecutors in North Macedonia

Addressing Hate Speech: Training for Judges and Prosecutors in North Macedonia

A key component of the European Union and Council of Europe efforts to fight discrimination is supporting public institutions in enhancing their capacities to address hate speech, including anti-gypsism as specific form of hatred against Roma and Travellers.

To achieve this, 33 judges and public prosecutors from North Macedonia gathered in Skopje to strengthen their skills and knowledge on the main concepts of anti-discrimination and anti-gypsyism - a form of racism and discrimination rooted in historical prejudices and negative stereotypes. The training also deepened participants’ understanding of how to distinguish between freedom of expression and hate speech.

During the sessions the participants discussed the case-law of the European Court for Human Rights regarding hate speech and freedom of expression, in light of North Macedonia’s domestic legal framework. They also got introduced with the main European standards, including the Committee of Ministers’ Recommendation on Combating Hate Speech.

The discussion highlighted the importance of correctly interpreting and applying European standards when balancing freedom of expression with the need to combat hate speech. Participants reflected on the challenges they face in practice, especially in distinguishing between offensive or provocative speech that is protected, and expressions that constitute incitement to hatred or violence, even a hate crime. Through interactive case-based analysis, they explored how judicial reasoning must carefully assess context, intent, and potential harm, particularly when dealing with speech targeting vulnerable groups, including the Roma community. The exchange of views underscored the critical role of the judiciary in safeguarding democratic values while ensuring accountability for hate speech.

This activity was organised jointly by the EU and the Council of Europe programme "Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye", and its respective actions on "Combating Hatred and Intolerance in North Macedonia" and “Protecting Freedom of Expression and of the Media in North Macedonia” (PRO-FREX); and the Institute for Research and Policy Analysis Romalitico - as part of the EU funded project “Beyond the Barriers: Roma Resilience in the Western Balkans”,  in co-operation with the Academy for Judges and Public Prosecutors.

Skopje, North Macedonia 11 April 2025
  • Diminuer la taille du texte
  • Augmenter la taille du texte
  • Imprimer la page

 These activities are directly based on the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, the recommendations and findings of the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), the Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (AC/FCNM), and the Committee of Experts of the European Charter of Regional or Minority Languages, as well as relevant Committee of Ministers Recommendations.

 

 The approach of this work is to establish a direct link between standards, the monitoring processes, the intergovernmental work, such as the Steering Committee on Anti-Discrimination, Diversity and Inclusion (CDADI) and the implementation of co-operation activities. This allows to identify weaknesses in the implementation of standards where technical cooperation activities can be helpful.

 

 The Council of Europe works closely with the existing networks of equality bodies and national human rights structures (ombudsmen and national human rights institutions); other Council of Europe monitoring bodies (such as European Committee of Social Rights, the Group of experts on Action against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (GREVIO) and their secretariats; European networks of NGO’s and national civil society platforms; and international actors, such as the EU Commission and its Agencies (including the Fundamental Rights Agency), the UN agencies (such as the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the United Nations Development Programme) and the OSCE/ODIHR.

 

ICC

ICC

ICC

The Intercultural Cities Programme (ICC) supports local and regional authorities in reviewing their policies through an intercultural lens and developing comprehensive intercultural strategies to ensure real equality, meaningful intercultural interaction, and positive diversity management to realise the diversity advantage.

No Hate Speech and Cooperation Unit

No Hate Speech and Cooperation Unit

No Hate Speech and Cooperation Unit

The No Hate Speech and Cooperation Unit (NHSCU) runs extensive programmes of cooperation activities to help combat discrimination, hate speech and hate crime, as well as support the empowerment of minorities, the positive management of diversity and respect of human rights, including in the deployment of digital technologies, algorithmic and artificial intelligence systems.

SOGI

SOGI

SOGI

The Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Unit (SOGI) offers tailor made activities aiming to combat discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity or expression, and sex characteristics, including, including technical support and expertise to member states to improve their legal and institutional framework, capacity building, sharing of good practices, and awareness raising.