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Statement
Commissioner calls on the authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina to ensure that the Pride March in Sarajevo takes place in a safe and peaceful manner
As the first Bosnian-Herzegovinian Pride March in Sarajevo is set to take place next Sunday, 8 September, I would like to recall that LGBTI people are an integral part of our societies and as such they must be able to enjoy human rights and fundamental freedoms, including freedom of assembly and...
Letter
Russian Federation: failure to respect human rights while policing peaceful protests
Today, the Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović, published a letter addressed to the Minister of Interior of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Kolokoltsev, regarding the action taken by law enforcement agencies to disperse the largely peaceful protests in Moscow on 27 July 2019, and...
Opinion article
Drawing the right lessons from the Roma Holocaust
OpenDemocracy, 01/08/2019 On 2 August, we will commemorate the Roma Holocaust perpetrated during the Second World War. It is an important occasion to draw renewed attention to this largely ignored page of Europe’s recent history. And it remains equally crucial to confront the deeply-rooted...
Letter
Letter to Tatiana Moskalkova, High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation
Today, the Commissioner published a letter sent to Tatiana Moskalkova, the High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation, about new developments of concern relating to the case of Svetlana Prokopyeva, a freelance journalist. Read the letter sent to Tatiana Moskalkova, High...
Statement
The Commissioner calls on Russian authorities to establish the truth about the murder of Natalia Estemirova
“Ten years ago today in Grozny, Chechnya, unknown men abducted Natalia Estemirova in front of her apartment building, forcing her into a car. Some hours later, her lifeless body, displaying several gunshot wounds, was found in the neighbouring Republic of Ingushetia. Natalia was a courageous and...
Country visit
Azerbaijan should ease the pressure on free speech, improve the situation of lawyers and continue to work towards better livelihood opportunities for IDPs
“Freedom of expression in Azerbaijan continues to be under threat” said Dunja Mijatović, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, at the end of a four-day visit to Azerbaijan. Recalling the European Court of Human Rights’ judgments stressing a troubling pattern of arbitrary arrest and...
Country visit
Turkey needs to put an end to arbitrariness in the judiciary and to protect human rights defenders
“Turkey must take urgent and necessary measures to re-establish trust in its judiciary and repair the damage inflicted on the rule of law during the state of emergency and its aftermath”, said Dunja Mijatović, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, at the end of a five-day visit to...
Country visit report
Poland’s authorities should shield judges from pressure, actively protect women’s rights and step up policies for gender equality
Today the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović, published a report on the visit to Poland she carried out from 11 to 15 March 2019. The report focuses on the independence of the judiciary and the prosecution service, women’s sexual and reproductive rights, gender...
Speech
The long fight for justice of the Mothers of Srebrenica and Zepa
Opening the photography exhibition “Srebrenica – Mothers’ long fight for justice” presented in the lobby of the Parliamentary Assembly during its summer session from 24-28 June 2019, the Commissioner made the following statement: Ladies and gentlemen, Thank you for coming here today for the...
Speech
It is time to end coercion in mental health
Addressing the Parliamentary Assembly’s debate on “Ending coercion in mental health: the need for a human rights-based approach”, the Commissioner delivered the following statement today: Download the speech CommDH/Speech(2019)7 (Pdf) It is a great pleasure to address the Parliamentary Assembly...
Statement
Georgian authorities must protect participants in the upcoming Pride march in Tbilisi
“All Georgians have the same human rights and they should enjoy them free from discrimination. This means that everyone, including LGBTI people, must be protected from violence and hate speech, be able to exercise freedom of expression, and to conduct peaceful demonstrations,” said the...
Recommendation
Council of Europe member states must assume more responsibility for rescuing migrants at sea and protecting their rights
“European states’ approach to migration in the Mediterranean Sea has become much too focused on preventing refugees and migrants from reaching European shores, and too little on the humanitarian and human rights aspects. This approach is having tragic consequences”, said Dunja Mijatović, Council...
Speech
Speech by Commissioner Dunja Mijatović, at the world’s leading summit on human rights in the digital age, RightsCon 2019, Tunis, 11 June 2019
Last week, Muslims around the world celebrated the end of Ramadan. Celebrations were held in many countries, including here. There was however a notable exception: China. There the authorities banned such celebrations. This is not surprising. A recent article of the New York Times from the city...
Third party intervention
The Commissioner intervenes before the European Court of Human Rights in a case concerning family reunification in Sweden
Today, the Commissioner published her written observations submitted to the European Court of Human Rights in connection with the case of Dabo v. Sweden. This case concerns the refusal to grant family reunification to the family members of a person with refugee status in Sweden, because he did...
Statement
Council of Europe member states should urgently repatriate their under-age nationals stranded in Northern Syria
The camp of Al-Hol in Northern Syria hosts more than 73 000 people, including citizens of Council of Europe member states, who live in squalid and hazardous conditions according to the World Health Organisation. 90% of those stranded in the camp with almost no access to health care are women and...
Statement
ICD11 is a stride toward depathologisation of trans people, but more is needed
“The removal of gender identity from the list of mental illnesses in the 11th version of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11), adopted by the Assembly of States of the World Health Organisation on 25 May 2019 is a welcome and overdue development for trans people all around the...
Letter
The Commissioner regrets the adoption by the Polish Sejm and Senate of legislation on life imprisonment which is contrary to the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights
The Commissioner regrets that the Polish Sejm and Senate adopted last week amendments to the Criminal Code, despite the concerns she had raised with regard to these amendments in a letter of 22 May 2019 addressed to the Marshal of the Senate of Poland, Stanisław Karczewski, published today. “The...
Speech
Women’s rights at the crossroads: strengthening international co-operation to close the gap between legal frameworks and their implementation
Conference organised by the Council of Europe in co-operation with the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, its causes and consequences and with the French Presidency of the Committee of Ministers International co-operation was at the heart of developing the concept of...
Letter
Commissioner urges German Parliament to increase the human rights safeguards of the bill for improving the implementation of expulsion of migrants
Today the Commissioner published a letter she addressed to the Chairwoman of the Committee on Internal Affairs and Community of the Parliament of Germany, Andrea Lindholz, in which she raises concerns about some aspects of the bill that aims at facilitating removals of people obliged to leave the...
Country visit report
Hungary should address interconnected human rights issues in refugee protection, civil society space, independence of the judiciary and gender equality
“Human rights violations in Hungary have a negative effect on the whole protection system and the rule of law. They must be addressed as a matter of urgency,” says Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović, in a report published today on her visit to Hungary in February...