On 27 February 2019, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities will organise a Conference in Kyiv (Ukraine) on “Voting Rights of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) at Local Level” in the framework of activities aiming to strengthen local integration of IDPs in Ukraine. The event will bring together various stakeholders, including representatives of the Government of Ukraine, members of Parliament, local and regional authorities, domestic and international NGOs and Congress experts, to discuss measures that are needed to ensure electoral participation of IDPs in the 2020 local elections. The Conference follows up on the Congress report “Voting rights at local level as an element of successful long-term integration of migrants and IDPs in Europe’s municipalities and regions” and the related recommendations adopted at the 35th Congress Session in November 2018, which highlight the significant obstacles IDPs faced in upholding their voting rights in the local elections of 2015 in Ukraine.

The Congress has produced a Human Rights Handbook, the first volume of which is devoted to the right to non-discrimination against three groups: refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants; Roma and Travellers; and LGBTI persons. It includes a presentation of the legal framework and the role that local and regional authorities can play, as well as 65 good practices implemented in more than 25 countries.