JUFREX’s Regional Conference took place on 17-18 April in Strasbourg. In total, about 60 participants, including judges, prosecutors and lawyers and certified trainers on art. 10 ECHR from the beneficiaries of the programme – namely, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, “the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” and Kosovo* - participated in the visit.

The conference constituted the closing event of the second year of the project, a Joint Programme funded by the Council of Europe and the European Union, which aims at targeting specific needs in the field of freedom of expression and media in South-East Europe.

The first day of the conference was dedicated to the take of various institutions within the Council on the right to freedom of expression, with particular attention on how different proceedings involved the participants’ juridical systems. It started with an overview of the last results obtained by the Steering Committee on Media and Information Society, and went on with a presentation by the Advisor to the Commissioner of Human Rights which entailed both an analysis of the role of the institution and a focus on the last visits realised in the Balkans by the Commissioner, during which a great relevance was given to the theme of media freedom. The other encounters of the day were instead centred on the role of the ECtHR in setting standards on freedom of expression and of the media and on its most recent case-law relevant to Article 10, especially as related to its balancing with the protection of Article 8 and on the role of the national judge within the proceedings of the Court. Participants were active with questions and comments during every intervention, particularly giving fundamental input regarding case-law connected to their respective jurisdiction.

The second day was dedicated to the attendance of a Grand Chamber hearing at the ECtHR which, while not directly connected to a violation of Article 10 of the Convention, gave the participants the opportunity to witness the Court’s work on a case. Having previously been briefed on the Ilias and Ahmed v. Hungary judgement, the legal professionals were subsequently invited to give their technical opinion on the case at hand.

After the conference, representatives of the main partners took part in the Steering Committee, where current outputs and future objectives of the programme were discussed. The EU Commission representatives highlighted their strong endowment for democracy programmes, specifically in terms of support to content production and independent media. Representatives of the national institutions involved described results accomplished so far through JUFREX, such as completed training activities targeting the judiciary as well as regulators, journalists and public service media, and the publication and translation of materials connected to freedom of expression, concluding with a brief recollection of activities planned for the coming year.

*This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence.