The Right to Liberty and Security, protected under Article 5 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), provides essential safeguards against unlawful deprivation of liberty. This is especially relevant in the context of ordering and extending detention on remand in criminal proceedings.

To deepen understanding of related ECHR standards, our project officially launched e-learning course on the Right to Liberty and Security for legal professionals in Kosovo*. The activity is implemented in cooperation with Kosovo* Justice Academy and Council of Europe Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals (HELP) Division.

In the opening remarks, the Director of the Justice Academy highlighted the importance of building the capacities of legal professionals to uphold ECHR standards and acknowledged the strong cooperation with the Council of Europe. On behalf of the South-East Europe Unit of the Cooperation Programs Division, the Project Coordinator presented the wider framework of activities under the project “Support to the Constitutional Court in Applying and Disseminating European Human Rights Standards – Phase II”, underlining the project’s role in supporting judicial dialogue across all jurisdictions.

The Coordinator of the HELP Program for the Western Balkans introduced the HELP methodology and the e-learning platform, which is now widely used across Europe and beyond. The course tutor further gave an overview of the course content, emphasizing its practical value for judicial professionals in Kosovo*.

The course provides comprehensive overview of the concept of liberty, focusing on protection against arbitrary detention as described in Article 5 of the ECHR. The course delves into the interpretation of these safeguards by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), providing knowledge on the principles of legality and due process through its extensive case law.  

The course is comprised of four substantive modules dealing with purpose, scope, and available legal remedies, authorized deprivation of liberty, and legality issues. A dedicated module focuses on protective measures, including the right to judicial review within a reasonable time and the right to compensation for unlawful detention.

The updated version of the course on the Right to Liberty and Security was developed by HELP Program, while the project supported translation and proof reading in Albanian language, and integration of the course in the HELP Platform. Together with the Justice Academy, the project will deliver the first tutored training for 30 legal professionals in Kosovo*, to build their capacity for application of these standards in domestic judicial practice.

[1] *All references to Kosovo, whether to the territory, institutions or population shall be understood in full compliance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 and without prejudice to the status of Kosovo.