In October and November, the Council of Europe Office in Armenia, organised a number of events aimed at strengthening the country's capacity to help those displaced by the conflinct in the Karabakh region.

The Council of Europe, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Armenia and the National Institute of Health of the Republic of Armenia, has been actively engaged in identifying the psychological needs of refugee healthcare professionals and provision of targeted support on the way of their professional and social integration.  

Psychological support activities with a focus on communication skills have been designed and delivered for several groups of healthcare professionals with involvement of the Council of Europe experts between July and November 2024.

Training sessions have been concentrated on empowering refugees with soft skills which will help them address difficult situations and establish successful interpersonal relations.

The participants learned about effective patient-centred communication, explored different methods of communication, and practiced public speaking and self-representation, covering both theoretical and practical aspects.

 The training equipped participants with tools to address challenges arising during interaction with difficult patients, while also strengthened their ability to navigate through other challenging situations on the way of social integration. 

Representatives of civil society organisations participated in a specialised training on "Council of Europe Standards on Asylum and Refugee Protection," deepening their understanding of their role as watchdog on aligning Armenia’s practices with the European human rights standards for refugees and displaced persons.

Organised by the Council of Europe through its project "Strengthening Human Rights Safeguards for the Displaced Population in Armenia," the event was designed to equip civil society representatives with a deeper understanding of European human rights standards and practical skills to implement them in their work with refugees and displaced population.

On 11-12 October the Council of Europe organised a two-day workshop on effective guardianship of unaccompanied and separated children, bringing together around 30 participants from national authorities.

The participants included representatives from the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure, Ministry of Internal Affairs, and Office of the Human Rights Defender, self-government bodies from several communities in Armenia, and civil society representatives.

The workshop aimed to improve the understanding and implementation of guardianship for children, including unaccompanied and separated children.It covered key topics such as international and domestic legal frameworks regulating guardianship, its procedural application in Armenia, and specific considerations in migration and post-crisis contexts.

The Council of Europe held the “Together to Empower” networking conference, which brought together over 17 civil society organisations (CSOs), including well-established groups and organisations recently founded by refugee women. The event helped strengthen the capacities of CSOs in supporting refugee women and promoting their social and economic integration in Armenia.

The conference contributed to equipping CSOs with more effective strategies to address the challenges faced by refugee women. Participants engaged in interactive discussions on building coalition, fostering inter-agency cooperation, and improving communication among CSOs.

The participants  also explored international frameworks, such as the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention) and the Council of Europe Recommendation CM/Rec(2022)17 “Protecting the Rights of Migrant, Refugee and Asylum-Seeking Women And Girls”.

The Council of Europe Office in Türkiye in cooperation with the European Union,  successfully completed a series of cascade trainings for lawyers from eight local Bar Associations across Türkiye − İstanbul, İzmir, Adana, Kahramanmaraş, Mardin, Bursa, Mersin, and Ankara. Within the joint action “Strengthening the human rights protection in the context of migration in Türkiye”, over 200 lawyers enhanced their knowledge of the European and international human rights standards. The trainings, inter alia, focused on the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights, particularly regarding the principle of non-refoulement, safeguards on immigration detention, and the protection of vulnerable individuals.

Furthermore, the action developed an ‘’Evaluation Report of the Guardianship System in Child Protection in the Context of Migration in Türkiye’’ (in Turkish). This report provides an in-depth analysis of the country’s public guardianship system. It also proposes 11 recommendations for improvement, addressing areas such as the employment and responsibilities of guardians, strengthening national and international cooperation, and prioritising the best interests of children, including their right to be heard in relevant procedures. Additionally, the report includes a checklist to evaluate the level of the guardianship system’s compliance with existing human rights standards, ensuring a robust framework for protecting children in migration.

The action also awarded three grants to Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) registered and operating in Türkiye. These grants aim at facilitating access to information and legal aid for persons in the context of migration, with a particular focus on vulnerable persons, especially women and children. The CSOs will implement the planned activities in cooperation with local bar associations between December 2024 and end of 2025.

Within the project “Facilitating access to human rights and essential services for internally displaced persons and returnees at the community level”, the Council of Europe Office in Ukraine  and the Ombudsperson Office in Ukraine carried out a survey on “People Forcibly Displaced Abroad”. The survey was comprised of desk research, an online questionnaire, and focus-groups.

It focused on: a) analysing the human rights considerations of the protection of the people forcibly displaced from Ukraine abroad and b) indicating favourable conditions for their return.

Launched in October, the online questionnaire collected 4000 opinions. It was also supplemented by visits and consultations of representatives of the Ombudsperson Office to the places of temporary residence of the refugees from Ukraine in Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, and Spain.

The results of the survey and consultations will contribute to shaping policies and mechanisms to protect Ukrainian citizens abroad including those who plan to return to Ukraine. The results to be presented to partners and the public at large mid-February 2025.”

Under the Project on ”Strengthening the human rights protection of refugees and migrants in the Republic of Moldova” and within the framework of the LItuanian Presidency of the Council of Europe Committee of MInisters, the Council of Europe Office in the Republic of Moldova organised the international conference “Protecting the Human Rights of Displaced Persons: Current Challenges and Ways Forward”, please see in the first story of this issue of the Migration Newsletter.