On 16 February, the Council of Europe Permanent Delegation to the United Nations and other international organisations took part in two sessions of the intersessional panel discussion on the human rights of migrants, held at the United Nations Headquarters in Geneva.

Addressing the session on preventing and addressing harmful narratives about migration, the Council of Europe highlighted the first roundtable on fact-based communication on migration, organised by its Division on Migration and Refugees and referred to initiatives such as the Intercultural Cities Programme, aimed at fostering inclusive local narratives and strengthening resilience against such harmful contents. The Permanent Delegation further emphasised relevant standards adopted by the Committee of Ministers, including recommendations on combating disinformation, hate speech and hate crime, and calling for coordinated, multi-level responses.

During the second session, devoted to strengthening human rights monitoring and complaint mechanisms in the context of migration, the Council of Europe reiterated that the universality of human rights remains its guiding principle. Referring to the European Convention on Human Rights, described by Secretary General Alain Berset as the final safeguard of individual rights and freedoms across Europe, the Permanent Delegation stressed that no hierarchy of rights holders can be accepted. Particular attention was drawn to vulnerable groups, including migrant children and victims of trafficking, as well as to the situation of more than five million displaced Ukrainians hosted in European countries following Russia’s war of aggression.

Intersessional panel discussion on the human rights of migrants - Council of Europe statements