Members of armed forces enjoy the same human rights and fundamental freedoms as any other person in a society, as any other citizen. These are the same rights and freedoms enshrined in the various international, national and regional sources of human rights law. However, a person working in the military may experience situations and circumstances that a civilian will never, or rarely, ever experience. Similarly, rights and freedoms, and their restrictions where considered necessary, may manifest themselves in a military-specific way.
The goal of the course is to help legal professionals and others taking the course to better understand the human rights and fundamental freedoms of members of the armed forces and the protection mechanisms in place in times of peace ( in the context of their everyday work and service, including missions abroad).
The HELP course stresses the role of Council of Europe treaties and the protections provided by the ECHR, other applicable treaties as well as the case law of the European Court of Human Rights.
This HELP e-learning Course on Human Rights in the Armed Forces was developed within the framework of the Project “Human Rights and Women in the Armed Forces of Armenia-Phase II” in cooperation with the Council of Europe Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals (HELP) Programme by using the HELP methodology (http://www.coe.int/en/web/help/help-training-methodology). The Project is implemented by the Council of Europe within the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Armenia 2019-2022.
Course Structure
The course consists of 8 substantive modules and has an estimated learning time of 8-10 hours.
- Introduction and Terms
- Legal Framework
- Dignity
- Freedoms and Liberties
- Economic and Social Rights
- Justice and Remedies
- Examinations and/or Effective Investigations
- Equality and Non-discrimination
Access the free online course
The course can be accessed by visiting the Council of Europe HELP online platform at http://help.elearning.ext.coe.int/
First you need to open a HELP Platform account if you have not yet done so (2 minutes). Then you can follow this link to directly access the online course: http://help.elearning.ext.coe.int/course/view.php?id=1760
Upon successful completion of the course, a HELP Statement of Accomplishment can be generated in an electronic format and can be printed by the user. Upon request by the national authorities, the course can be translated into other languages and adapted to the national legal order and context. As of September 2022, the course is being translated into Armenian and Ukrainian.
