Common legal space
The creation of a common legal space based on European and international standards between both shores of the Mediterranean has been at the heart of the programme since its beginning in 2012. It represents undisputed gains for the consolidation of human rights, democracy and the rule of law in the region by enshrining international standards in national legislation.
Promoting the creation of a common legal space also translates into providing technical support to ongoing national legislative reforms with a view of aligning legislation with European standards, which is in some cases a prerequisite to accede to Council of Europe conventions. At the request of beneficiary authorities, the programme supports legislative reviews or produces opinions through the Venice Commission and/or other relevant instances of the Council of Europe.
At last, the programme will continue to work with the countries that have been invited to accede or are in the process of acceding to Partial Agreements, namely through technical support to finalise existing accession processes and to ensure a better understanding of the commitments that they will entail. Participation in such bodies and in Council of Europe intergovernmental and conventional committees is a key aspect of creating a common legal space as it allows beneficiaries to participate in the Organisation’s work in many areas of interest covered by the programme and contributes to awareness-raising efforts and better understanding of European and international standards.
Picture: Naziha Laâbidi (left), Minister of Women, Family and Children, and Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni (right), Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe, on the occasion of Tunisia’s accession ceremony to the Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse (Strasbourg, 15 October 2019)
Conventions and additional Protocols
Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data (CETS 108): FR/EN AR
European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CETS 126): FR/EN AR
Criminal Law Convention on Corruption (CETS 173): FR/EN AR
Civil Law Convention on Corruption (CETS 174): FR/EN AR
Compendium of key Council of Europe Conventions on Human Rights: AR-FR
Convention on Cybercrime (CETS 185): FR/EN AR
Additional Protocol to the Convention on Cybercrime, concerning the criminalisation of acts of a racist and xenophobic nature committed through computer systems (CETS 189): FR/EN AR
Additional Protocol to the Criminal Law Convention on Corruption (CETS 191): FR/EN AR
Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (CETS 197): FR/EN AR
Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse (CETS 201): FR/EN AR
Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (CETS 210): FR/EN AR
Questions and answers on the Istanbul Convention (also in AR)
Council of Europe Convention on the counterfeiting of medical products and similar crimes involving threats to public health (CETS 211): FR/EN AR
European Court of Human Rights case-law
Quality of justice/Independence of judiciary
Beian v. Romania (no. 1), no. 30658/05, ECHR 2007‑V (extracts): FR/EN AR
Oleksandr Volkov v. Ukraine, no. 21722/11, ECHR 2013: FR/EN AR
Kyprianou v. Cyprus [GC], no. 73797/01, ECHR 2005‑XIII : FR/EN AR
Zielinski and Pradal and Gonzalez and Others v. France [GC], nos. 24846/94 and 34165/96 to 34173/96, ECHR 1999‑VII: FR/EN AR
Kress v. France [GC], no. 39594/98, ECHR 2001‑VI: FR/EN AR
Kleyn and Others v. the Netherlands [GC], nos. 39343/98, 39651/98, 43147/98 and 46664/99, ECHR 2003‑VI: FR/EN AR
Cyprus v. Turkey [GC], no. 25781/94, ECHR 2001‑IV: FR/EN AR
Brumărescu v. Romania [GC], no. 28342/95, ECHR 1999‑VII: FR/EN AR
DMD GROUP, a.s., v. Slovakia, no. 19334/03, 5 October 2010: FR/EN AR
Taxquet v. Belgium [GC], no. 926/05, ECHR 2010: FR/EN AR
Trafficking in human beings
Combating trafficking in human beings: compilation of legal summaries and decisions of the European court of human right : FR/AR
Rantsev v. Cyprus and Russia, no. 25965/04, 7 January 2010: FR/EN AR
C.N. and V. v. France, no. 67724/09, 11 October 2012: FR/EN AR
Siliadin v. France, no. 73316/01, 26 July 2005: FR/EN AR
Corruption and money-laundering
Ramanauskas v. Lithuania [GC], no. 74420/01, ECHR 2008: FR/EN AR
Michaud v. France, no. 12323/11, ECHR 2012: FR/EN AR
Grifhorst v. France, no. 28336/02, 26 February 2009: FR/EN AR
Ismayilov v. Russia, no. 30352/03, 6 November 2008: FR/EN AR
Fruni v. Slovakia, no. 8014/07, 21 June 2011: FR/EN AR
AGOSI v. the United Kingdom, 24 October 1986, Series A no. 108: FR/EN AR
Promotion of democratic values
Bowman v. the United Kingdom, 19 February 1998, Reports of Judgments and Decisions 1998‑I: FR/EN AR
Bladet Tromsø and Stensaas v. Norway [GC], no. 21980/93, ECHR 1999‑III: FR/EN AR
Jersild v. Denmark, 23 September 1994, Series A no. 298: FR/EN AR
Steel and Morris v. the United Kingdom, no. 68416/01, ECHR 2005‑II: FR/EN AR
Féret v. Belgium, no. 15615/07, 16 July 2009: FR/EN AR
Vogt v. Germany, 26 September 1995, Series A no. 323: FR/EN AR
Gündüz v. Turkey, no. 35071/97, ECHR 2003‑XI: FR/EN AR
Prager and Oberschlick v. Austria, 26 April 1995, Series A no. 313: FR/EN AR
De Haes and Gijsels v. Belgium, 24 February 1997, Reports of Judgments and Decisions 1997‑I: FR/EN AR
Nikula v. Finland, no. 31611/96, ECHR 2002‑II: FR/EN AR
TV Vest AS and Rogaland Pensjonistparti v. Norway, no. 21132/05, ECHR 2008 (extracts): FR/EN AR
Guja v. Moldova [GC], no. 14277/04, ECHR 2008: FR/EN AR
Cumpǎnǎ and Mazǎre v. Romania [GC], no. 33348/96, ECHR 2004‑XI: FR/EN AR
Guides on Court's case law
Guide on Article 6: Right to a fair trial (criminal limb) : EN FR AR
Guide on Article 6: Right to a fair trial (civil limb) : EN FR AR
Guide on Article 9: Freedom of thought, conscience and religion: EN FR AR
Guide on Article 2 of Protocol No. 1: Right to education: EN FR AR
Guide on Article 3 of Protocol No. 1: Right to free elections: EN FR AR
Guide on Article 4 of Protocol No. 7: Right not to be tried or punished twice: EN FR AR
Other manuals and documents
Human rights
Glossary of the European Convention on Human Rights : EN-AR AR-EN
Guideline on Freedom of Association : EN FR AR
Trafficking in human beings
Combating trafficking in human beings: compilation of legal summaries and decisions of the European court of human right : FR/AR
Combatting violence against women
Questions and answers on the Istanbul Convention EN FR AR
Combating violence against women and domestic violence: compilation of legal summaries and decisions of the european court of human rights : FR/AR
Morocco - The National Commission for the Care of Women Victims of Violence (CNFV) FR AR
Morocco - Fighting violence against women according to Law No. 103.13 FR AR
Justice
CEPEJ declaration : Lessons learnt and challenges faced by the judiciary during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. EN FR AR
Good gouvernance
Toolkit on teleworking in Public Administrations : EN AR
Democtratic citizenship and human rights education
Charter on Education Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education : EN FR AR
Compass Arabic: Manual for Human Rights Education with Young people : EN AR
Bookmarks - A manual for combating hate speech online through human rights education : EN FR AR
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Council of Europe conventions and standards are recognised as a key reference for the promotion of human rights, the rule of law and democracy. They form the legal acquis of the Council of Europe, and of the whole European continent, as they are also an essential part of the Organisation’s instruments used to harmonise national laws at the pan-European level and beyond. Out of more than 200 conventions, around 150 of them are open for accession by non-member States of the Organisation which is a key asset of this legal acquis.
