Newsroom
Stop evictions of Roma and Travellers
International organisations stress human cost of evictions and recall standards in a joint statement
Committee of Ministers statement on terrorist attack at Istanbul international airport
The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe firmly condemns the terrorist attack committed yesterday evening at Istanbul international airport. It conveys its sincere condolences to the families of the victims and expresses its solidarity with the Turkish people and authorities in these...
Istanbul: Council of Europe Secretary General Jagland condemns terrorist attacks
On Wednesday Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland made the following statement: “Our member state Turkey has suffered another horrific terrorist attack. Once again so many innocent people have been killed and hurt on European soil. All Council of Europe member states must stand together in the...
Protection and future of migrant children: a challenge for Europe
One in three of the migrants and asylum seekers crossing between Greece and Turkey is a child. Last year alone, an estimated 300,000 children crossed the Mediterranean fleeing the horror of war and seeking refuge, traumatised by violence and death. Practically all of them have seen their lives...
Security and safety in stadiums: Council of Europe launches a new convention
At the last of the EURO 2016 tournament’s quarter-finals, on Sunday 3 July at the Stade de France (Saint-Denis), the Council of Europe will open for signature a new international convention to promote safety at football matches and other sports events, strengthen international police co-operation...
26 June: International Day in Support of Victims of Torture
European and UN anti-torture bodies: duty to protect dignity of detained persons more relevant than ever in current global context of instability and economic crisis
Statement by Secretary General Jagland on the UK referendum
“The democratic decision in this referendum must be respected. The best way forward now is for the EU, in accordance with its best traditions, to work together with the UK government to obtain the most acceptable outcome for the citizens of the UK and Europe. Everybody should now focus on what...
Towards a global moratorium on capital punishment
Secretary General addresses the World Congress on the Death Penalty
Greek Prime Minister issues strong call for a ‘a better Europe’
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras issued a strong call for “a better Europe, and a new and inspiring vision for Europe’s citizens” today when addressing parliamentarians from the 47-nation Council of Europe. Europe faced a political and social crisis which was shaking it to its very...
Estonia remains committed to supporting the Council of Europe in protecting human rights, says Prime Minister
“Estonia remains committed to supporting the active role taken by the Council of Europe in developing a useful framework for the protection of human rights, either online or offline, said the Prime Minister of Estonia, Taavi Rõivas, addressing PACE today. He underlined that the international...
Fighting the over-sexualisation of children
PACE today expressed its concern about the over-sexualisation of children, a widespread phenomenon in the media, marketing campaigns, television programmes and everyday products. This phenomenon can have a serious impact on children’s self-esteem, well-being, relationships and equal opportunities...
Marina Kaljurand: “The best results can only be achieved by working hand in hand with the Assembly”
“The best results can only be achieved by working hand in hand with the Assembly”, today said Marina Kaljurand, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Estonia and Chairman of the Committee of Ministers. Presenting Estonia’s priorities for the six-month period of its Chairmanship, Ms Kaljurand referred...
Secretary General’s dialogue with Assembly members
Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland replied to questions from members of the Assembly in a question and answer session during the Assembly’s summer part-session. During this exchange, PACE members asked Mr Jagland for his reaction to the lifting of immunity from prosecution of...
We must grasp the global nature of the refugee crisis
Statement by Marina Kaljurand, Chair of the Committee of Ministers and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Estonia
PACE must continue to foster pan-European dialogue in response to challenges to face, says the President
"I firmly believe that our common interests in protecting human rights, democracy and the rule of law, both at national and international level, are stronger than the issues that divide us," the PACE President said at the opening of the June session. "We must keep open the communication channels...
Terrorism: #NoHateNoFear, a PACE initiative
The Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) today launched a #NoHateNoFear initative to counter terrorism. At a special ceremony, parliamentarians stood up to say NO to hate and fear. They committed to follow up on this initiative in their national parliaments. "We have to prevent the...
World Refugee Day: “Share our cities – Share the future”
The Intercultural Cities (ICCs) are working hard on ensuring inclusive integration and equal rights and opportunities for the people that chose Europe as host continent, after being uprooted because of conflicts and instability in their own countries. Today, the 99 cities which are member of the...
Say “No” to hate speech against refugees: 20 June is European Action Day
Ahead of the Action Day against Hate Speech Targeting Refugees marked on the 20th of June, the Council of Europe called for a speedy and systematic reaction by public figures to the instances of hate speech against refugees and asylum seekers, and stressed the positive role the youth can play in...
World Refugee Day: Council of Europe head calls for renewed effort to protect migrant children from sexual abuse
Ahead of World Refugee Day, Secretary General called on Europe’s governments to make protection of migrant and asylum-seeking minors against sexual abuse a top priority. “Child protection is a moral duty and legal obligation for all European states. Last year, an estimated 300,000 migrant and...
International data protection conference: Mauritius joins “Convention 108”
The Republic of Mauritius today became the second non-European state – after Uruguay in 2013 – to ratify the Convention for the protection of individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data, also known as “Convention 108”, and its Additional Protocol, taking the total number of...
CEB to hold its annual Joint Meeting in Strasbourg
The Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) is holding its annual Joint Meeting today. The meeting is taking place in Strasbourg, at the invitation of the French government. As in previous years, the event is bringring together the members of the Bank’s Governing Board and Administrative...
European Convention on Human Rights remains crucial: annual legal HELP conference
The European Convention on Human Rights is crucial to maintaining stability and liberty on the continent, and the Council of Europe’s task is to help its States implement it, to “sow the Convention into the national legal fabric”, said Council of Europe’s Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland...
European states must do more to stop websites advertising child sexual abuse
European governments will spare no effort in assuring that competent Internet authorities and bodies prevent registration of, identify and remove any web addresses which self-evidently, sometimes even in their names, advertise child abuse material. This is a key conclusion of a meeting of the...
Anti-corruption: Germany praised for progress in bribery legislation but more transparency in party financing needed
In a report published today, the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) praises Germany for adopting legislation that should pave the way for its ratification of the Criminal Law Convention on Corruption and its Additional Protocol. According to GRECO, Germany has...
Erosion of rule of law threatens human rights protection in Poland
“Recent far-reaching changes to Poland’s legal and institutional framework threaten human rights and undermine the rule of law, on which the protection of human rights ultimately depends. Lawmakers and the Government should urgently change course”, said today Nils Muižnieks, the Council of Europe...
Conference addresses community involvement in prison and probation work
The 21st Council of Europe Conference of Directors of Prison and Probation Services – which is being held in Zaandam (Netherlands) on 14 and 15 June – is addressing community involvement in prison and probation work, including the role of families of offenders and the need to counter the negative...
Committee of Ministers reviews the implementation of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights
On 7 and 8 June, representatives of the 47 member states of the Council of Europe held their 1259th “Human Rights” meeting at which they examined the implementation of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights in keeping with the supervisory role of the Committee of Ministers, under Article...
Euro 2016 football violence: Council of Europe calls for better police cooperation
The Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjørn Jagland, has called on European governments to improve police cooperation after the violent clashes between football hooligans in Marseille last Saturday. “What happened in Marseille is absolutely unacceptable. Europe can and must do more...
Attack on the LGBTI community in Orlando
Statement by the Chair of the Committee of Ministers
Parliamentary Assembly Summer Session
Addresses by Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Estonian Prime Minister Taavi Rõivas are among the highlights of the session taking place in Strasbourg on 20-24 June
New ECHR/HELP training videos – one on asylum and the second on terrorism
The European Court of Human Rights and the Council of Europe’s HELP programme (Human rights Education for Legal Professionals) have released two new training videos in the pilot series COURTalks-disCOURs. The 25-minute videos, based on educational talks from lawyers at the Court, are geared to...
Iceland: ratify the Disabilities Convention and strengthen the human rights protection system
“Iceland should ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and align its legislation and practice with international standards and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. Abolishing full deprivation of legal capacity and plenary guardianship of persons...
Secretary General expresses his condolences to the United States
"Europeans across the Continent are shocked and saddened by the cruel attack in Orlando in which so many innocent people were killed. Our thoughts are with the families and friends of the victims, and with all who are suffering after this horrific homophobic and transphobic hate crime. The...
Police in Poland, foreign NGOs in Russia
Venice Commission adopts new opinions
20 June is the World Refugee Day: we need your words!
On 20 June countries around the world organise events to raise awareness about the millions of refugees and internally displaced persons who have been forced to flee their homes due to war, conflict and persecution. The Intercultural Cities (ICCs) are working hard on ensuring inclusive...
Internet: Web addresses promoting sex crimes against children must be stopped
Governments and internet bodies must prevent web addresses being registered which openly refer to child sexual abuse, according to the Secretary General of the 47-nation Council of Europe, Thorbjørn Jagland. Speaking at the European Dialogue on Internet Governance (EuroDIG 2016) in Brussels,...
Secretary General Jagland at the OSCE: When politics stall, the human rights convention moves us forward
Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland, in his address to the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna, highlighted the value of the European Convention on Human Rights and called on the 57 OSCE participating States to “put these shared standards and common laws at the heart of our...
Council of Europe at the European Dialogue on Internet Governance
The European Dialogue on Internet Governance (EuroDIG 2016) is bringing together representatives of national authorities, industry, civil society and academia to discuss Internet policies, including the challenges in upholding human rights online, in Brussels on 9 and 10 June. On 9 June the...
Anti-racism commission issues new reports on Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Italy, Lithuania and “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”
The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) published today several country reports. In Azerbaijan, against the background of the general attitude of openness towards many historical minorities, some positive legal developments and the authorities’ efforts in integrating...
Secretary General welcomes the adoption of Norwegian law on legal gender recognition
Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland made the following statement following the adoption of a new law on legal gender recognition in Norway: “Yesterday the Norwegian Parliament adopted a new law on legal gender recognition based on self-determination. Norway becomes the fourth Council of Europe...
Committee of Ministers examines implementation of human rights judgments
The representatives of the 47 member States of the Council of Europe will examine the implementation of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights between 7 and 9 June 2016. This supervisory role of the Committee of Ministers is provided for under Article 46 of the European Convention on...
Statement of Secretary General Jagland on the terrorist attack in Istanbul today
"Again a deadly attack in Istanbul has killed and injured so many innocent people in the nation's largest city. I am devastated by the news and cannot but repeat that these ruthless attacks are attacks on our values - on us all. I express my deepest sympathy and condolences to the families, the...
Torture survivors have the right to redress and rehabilitation
Human Rights Commissioner Nils Muižnieks publishes his latest Human rights Comment
Secretary General meets Georgian President
On 6 June 2016, Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjorn Jagland met in Strasbourg Giorgi Margvelashvili, President of Georgia. The meeting focused on the situation in the country in the run-up to the parliamentary elections scheduled for October 2016; amendments to the Georgian law...
Conclusions of an expert dialogue between the Polish Government and the Council of Europe
Within the framework of an expert dialogue with the Polish authorities the Council of Europe entrusted Ms Eve Salomon, legal expert on media related law and regulation, and Mr Jean-François Furnémont, Partner at Wagner-Hatfield consultancy and former Chair of EPRA (European platform of regulatory...
Security and safety in stadiums: Council of Europe launches a new convention
In the run-up to the EURO 2016 football tournament, the Council of Europe is kicking off a new international convention aimed at ensuring that football matches and other sports events take place in a secure, safe environment where everyone feels welcome. The convention, which the governments are...
Action against corruption: France could do better
In a report on corruption prevention in respect of parliamentarians, judges and prosecutors published today, the GRECO, the Council of Europe’s anti-corruption body, concludes that France has only implemented two of the eleven recommendations made in 2013. In its conclusions, GRECO lists a number...
Jagland: Ukraine’s Constitutional amendments a major step towards European standards
The Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjørn Jagland today welcomed the adoption by Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada of the amendments to the Constitution regarding the Judiciary: “I welcome the adoption today by the Verkhovna Rada of amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine related to the...
Deputy Secretary General opens Sports’ Conference in Vienna
Deputy Secretary General Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni opened today the EPAS (Council of Europe’s Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport) annual conference in Vienna, together with Austrian Minister of Defence and Sport Hans Peter Doskozil. The event focused on how sport can be used as a tool to...
