Committee of Ministers recalls concerns about the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy & Reconciliation) Bill
During its Human Rights meeting of 19-21 September, the Committee of Ministers examined the execution of the McKerr group concerning various shortcomings in investigations into the deaths of the applicants’ next-of-kin in Northern Ireland in the 1980s and 1990s. The Committee recalled its...
Committee of Ministers urges Bulgaria to take decisive action to ensure freedom of association of UMO Ilinden and similar associations
During its Human Rights meeting of 19-21 September, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe examined the execution of the UMO Ilinden and Others group of the European Court's judgments concerning the domestic courts’ unjustified refusals, between 1999 and 2015, to register...
Implementing the European Court's judgments: latest decisions from the Committee of Ministers
The Committee of Ministers has published the case-by-case decisions taken during its Human Rights meeting from 19 to 21 September, in the context of its supervision of the implementation of judgments and decisions from the European Court of Human Rights. The Committee of Ministers adopted 45...
Exchange of views between the Committee of Ministers and civil society on execution of cases against Russia concerning human rights violations in the Transnistrian region of the Republic of Moldova
On 18 September 2023, the Committee of Ministers held an exchange of views with the civil society focusing on the execution of judgments against the Russian Federation related to human rights violations in the Transnistrian region of the Republic of Moldova. The representatives of the People’s...
Mission to Azerbaijan on the execution of the European Court's judgments
On 4 and 5 September, the Director of Human Rights and the Department for the Execution of Judgments carried out a mission to Baku. Fruitful exchanges were held with the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Prosecutor General’s...
Visit to Ukraine on the execution of the European Court's judgments
On 28 August–1 September 2023, a delegation from the Department for the Execution of Judgments of the European Court of Human Rights visited Kyiv to discuss challenges and steps to be taken by the Ukrainian authorities in order to implement the ECHR judgments. Meetings were held at the Ministry...
Online consultations on execution by Romania of the European Court's judgments
On 21 July, the Department for the Execution of Judgments had consultations with representatives of the Ministry of Justice and of the Government Agent’s Office. These exchanges are part of a sustained and fruitful dialogue focused on the legislative solutions envisaged to implement an ECHR...
Mission to Sofia to discuss execution of the European Court’s judgments
On 12 and 13 July, the Department for the Execution of Judgments carried out a mission to Sofia. Several meetings were held which concerned groups of cases under enhanced supervision regarding the rights of persons with mental disabilities (Stanev case), proportionality assessment of eviction or...
Roundtable on effective preventive remedies in respect of poor conditions of detention
On 3 July, the Department for the Execution of Judgments organised a Roundtable on effective preventive remedies to complain about poor material conditions of detention, in particular prison overcrowding. The event was organised at the request of the Belgian authorities, with a view to supporting...
Mission to Georgia takes stock of progress and remaining challenges in the execution of judgments of the European Court
On 22 and 23 June, the Department for the Execution of Judgments carried out a mission to Georgia, to discuss with the authorities cases pending before the Committee of Ministers, in particular those under the enhanced supervision procedure and relating to structural or complex problems. The...
Visit to Paris on the implementation by France of the European Court's judgments
On 19 and 20 June, the Director of Human Rights and the Department for the Execution of Judgments carried out a mission to Paris, organised in co-operation with the Permanent Representation of France to the Council of Europe, to discuss several French cases currently being executed before the...
Visit to Germany on the execution of ECHR judgments
On 19 and 20 June, the Department for the Execution of Judgments carried out a visit to Berlin to present in a workshop the practice and procedures of the Committee of Ministers related to the supervision of the execution of ECHR judgments and discuss certain issues on pending cases concerning...
Working visit to the United Nations: Closer co-operation with the United Nations concerning the execution of cases against the Russian Federation
On 12-13 June a delegation of the Execution Department held bilateral meetings in Geneva with Ms Mariana Katzarova, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Russia, as well as with the Secretariat of the United Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances...
Western Balkans: Conference highlights role of national judicial councils in accelerating judicial proceedings
On 1-2 June the Execution Department participated in the 5th Regional Conference on the Role of the Judicial Councils in Ensuring a Right to Fair and Efficient Court Hearing in Split, Croatia. The participants, including the top management of the judicial councils coming from all Western Balkan...
Launch of HELP Course on Freedom of Expression for Greek judges and prosecutors
On 9 June, the Department for the Execution of Judgments participated in the launch of the Greek version of the HELP course on freedom of expression. The launch was accompanied by an online seminar which was organised by the Council of Europe HELP Programme in cooperation with HELP’s national...
Bulgaria adopts landmark reform to ensure effective investigations including against a Chief Prosecutor
During its Human Rights meeting on 5-7 June, the Committee of Ministers examined the S.Z. and Kolevi group of cases against Bulgaria which concerns mainly the systemic problem of ineffective criminal investigations, including the lack of independence of criminal investigations concerning the...
Implementing the European Court's judgments - Latest decisions from the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers
The Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers has published the case-by-case decisions taken during the CMDH meeting from 5 to 7 June to supervise the implementation of judgments and decisions from the European Court of Human Rights. The Committee of Ministers adopted 38 decisions concerning 19...
NHRIs submit communications on cases to be examined by the Committee of Ministers in the June Human Rights meeting
The Committee of Ministers has received three communications from National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) for cases on the agenda of its upcoming Human Rights meeting from 5 to 7 June. These communications concern the implementation of the ECHR judgments in Moustahi against France, in the...
Roundtable on enhancing Armenia’s national capacity to execute ECHR judgments
On 11 May the Execution Department participated in a roundtable in Strasbourg on fostering execution by Armenia of the European Court’s judgments. It was combined with the opening session of the Interagency Committee coordinating the execution of the Court’s judgments against Armenia established...
New factsheet on execution of ECHR judgments concerning life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights, as long as prisoners have some chance of being released and it is possible for their sentences to be reviewed. According to the European Court of Human Rights, national laws concerning life imprisonment must be...
Roundtable on the enforcement of domestic court decisions in Ukraine
On 5 May, the Execution Department participated online in a roundtable in Kyiv on the execution of the European Court’s judgments in the Zhovner / Yuriy Nikolayevich Ivanov / Burmych and Others group of cases against Ukraine related to the major structural problem of non-enforcement or delayed...
Serbia: execution of ECHR judgments concerning delayed enforcement of court decisions against socially-owned companies
On 8 May, the Director of Human Rights and the Execution Department, carried out a mission to Belgrade on the ways to move forward with the implementation of the ECHR judgments concerning non-enforcement or delayed enforcement of domestic judicial decisions given in the applicants’ favour against...
Roundtable in Serbia takes stock of progress in the execution of the ECHR judgment concerning “missing babies”
On 9 May, the Director of Human Rights and representatives of the Execution Department participated in a roundtable in Belgrade on the execution of the ECHR judgment in the case of Zorica Jovanović concerning the authorities’ failure to provide persons concerned with credible information as to...
Execution by Bulgaria of ECHR judgments
On 21 April, representatives of the Department for the Execution of Judgments participated in a round table, organised by the Supreme Judicial Council, aimed at presenting the experience of the Bulgarian magistrates seconded to the Department for a period of one year. The roundtable took place...
Human rights education for legal professionals is vital for the execution of ECHR judgments
The Execution Department met today with the Consultative Board of the Council of Europe Programme for Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals (HELP). The Department recalled the Committee of Ministers 2022 Guidelines on the prevention and remedying of ECHR violations, underlining the need...
Meeting with Expert Network on the execution by Ukraine of ECHR judgments
On 18 and 19 April, the Department for the Execution of Judgments organised a meeting in Warsaw of the Network of Experts on the Implementation of ECHR judgments by Ukraine. The meeting was organised with the support of the Council of Europe Co-operation Programmes Division. It was a unique...
Mission to Paris takes stock of measures to combat prison overcrowding
On 14 April, the CPT (European Committee for the Prevention of Torture), its President, Mr Alan Mitchell, and the Department for the Execution of Judgments took part in a meeting in Paris, at the request of the French authorities, to discuss the status of execution of the case J.M.B. and Others...
New thematic factsheet on Excessive Formalism by Courts
The European Court has underlined that the right of access to a court is an inherent aspect of the safeguards enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights, referring to the principles of the rule of law and the avoidance of arbitrary power which underlie much of the Convention. Possible...
The Secretary General of the Council of Europe calls for increased political will to implement the European Court's judgments
The Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Marija Pejčinović Burić, has urged member states to show increased political will to implement judgments from the European Court of Human Rights, and to improve their capacity for doing so. Complying with court rulings is essential to the rule of...
Meeting with Bulgarian judges to discuss implemention of the European Court's judgments
On 30 March 2023, the Department for the Execution of Judgments met with Bulgarian judges from administrative courts and the Supreme Administrative Court, as well as with the President of the Supreme Administrative Court of Bulgaria. The visit allowed for exchanges on the mechanism of supervision...
