Horizontal Facility - News
Council of Europe reaffirms commitment to advance support for LGBTI rights and freedom of expression
The Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) has reaffirmed its support for the fundamental rights of freedom of expression and assembly for LGBTI people across member states. In its last meeting PACE approved the Resolution 2543 (2024) on Freedom of expression and assembly of LGBTI people...
Albanian prison service to adopt Trauma Informed Therapy and Cognitive Behaviour Therapy aiming to improve the rehabilitation of prisoners
The European Union and Council of Europe are helping domestic prison authorities to introduce Trauma Informed Therapy and Cognitive Behaviour Therapy Albanian prisons. In this framework the staff from the only women prison in Albania - “Ali Demi”, was part of the two-day training on...
Protecting journalists and fighting disinformation in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Enhancing the safety of journalists, combating strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), and supporting co-regulation of harmful content online are among the key priorities for protecting freedom of expression and the media in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The second Steering Committee...
Penitentiary practitioners of Montenegro enhance their skills for pre-release work and rehabilitation of violent extremist prisoners and prisoners at risk of radicalisation
The management of the Montenegrin penitentiary system recognises the need for developing the skills of its front-line practitioners in proper application of specific instruments and rehabilitation approaches to strengthen the rehabilitation of violent extremist prisoners (VEPs), vulnerable and...
Increasing legal literacy of women in the earthquake-affected regions of Türkiye
Between 7 – 10 May 2024, a total of 87 women affected by the earthquakes of February 2023 attended a training aiming at empowering them to claim their rights and increased their knowledge on how to access support services. The trainings were organised in the container cities - housing more than...
Albanian prison and probation staff strengthen their skills on the rehabilitation tools and pre-release programme for violent extremist prisoners and those vulnerable to radicalisation
The Council of Europe continues to assist the penitentiary institutions in Albania by improving prison and probation staff capacities related to management of violent and extremist prisoners (VEPs), and those vulnerable to radicalisation. In this context, a 3-day advanced training for 22 prison...
60 members of Albanian anti-corruption structures commence the online course on ‘Introduction to corruption prevention’
The European Union and the Council of Europe Action against Economic Crime in Albania, in cooperation with the Minister of State for Public Administration and Anti-Corruption, and the Albanian School of Public Administration, launched the Albanian language version of the Council of Europe’s HELP...
Preparation of persons serving long prison sentences for better reintegration into society
A new, comprehensive, and structured reintegration programme for persons serving long prison sentences (over 5 years), has been presented to treatment prison officers from Central, Western and Northern Serbia at the beginning of June. Presentations were organised in Novi Sad and Belgrade and...
The Government of Montenegro adopts the Strategy for the Fight against Corruption
The Government of Montenegro set out its strategic response to corruption on 4 June by adopting the Strategy for the Fight against Corruption for 2024-2028 and its Action Plan for a two-year period. The adoption of the next generation of anti-corruption strategic documents sets the fight against...
The award ceremony of the Podcast contest gathers the winner students in Ankara
The award ceremony for the Podcast contest organised under the joint European Union and Council of Europe “Pilot project on digital citizenship education in Türkiye”, in co-operation with the Ministry of National Education, was held on 28 May in Ankara. The ceremony gathered ten winning students...
Monitoring bodies of Montenegro further strengthen their ability to conduct visits to places of detention
The joint European Union and Council of Europe action “Enhancing human rights protection for detained and sentenced persons in Montenegro” organised a specialised training for the National Preventive Mechanism and the Ministry of Justice monitoring officers on 3-4 June in Podgorica. The training...
Second peer learning and training of mentor schools for democratic culture took place in Serbia
Mentors for Democratic Culture, an initiative established within the joint European Union and Council of Europe action Quality education for all Serbia, gathered from 30 May to 1 June to exchange knowledge, share best practices and create new, innovative concepts to mark the Day of Education for...
Navigating the AI frontier: ChatGPT and academic integrity in higher education in Montenegro
The joint European Union and Council of Europe action “Quality education for all” hosted on 29 – 30 May in Podgorica an important workshop focusing on the potential for and challenges in integrating artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT into higher education. This event aimed to...
Improving public reporting on human trafficking in North Macedonia through a victim-centred approach
Twelve communication officers of the Ministry of interior (MoI) and journalists participated in a training on victim-oriented and gender-sensitive public reporting related to human trafficking cases. The aim of this activity, supported by the European Union and the Council of Europe was two-fold:...
Role of religion in promoting human rights: how can religion and religious communities contribute to combating hate speech?
The European Union and the Council of Europe, in partnership with the Ministry of Human Rights and Refugees of Bosnia and Herzegovina, organised on 17-18 May on Jahorina a discussion with the title How can religion and religious communities contribute to combating hate speech. This activity...
Council of Europe Provides Legal Support for Kosovo*’s Draft Law on the Independent Media Commission (IMC)
In response to a request from the Committee on Public Administration, Local Governance, Media, and Rural Development, and the Independent Media Commission (IMC) in Kosovo, the Council of Europe has provided a Legal Opinion on the Draft Law on the IMC. This initiative reflects Kosovo’s commitment...
Strengthening media engagement and freedom of expression: Albanian Media Magistrates raise their capacities
Albanian prosecutors and judges who serve as media magistrates in their judicial institutions participated in a two-day intensive training aimed at enhancing their understanding of freedom of expression standards and improving their media communication skills. This capacity building activity,...
Key recommendations on enhanced prevention of various forms of child trafficking endorsed by anti-trafficking actors in North Macedonia
The Sub-group on Child Trafficking of the National Anti-trafficking Commission of North Macedonia gathered in Skopje to discuss concrete ways of preventing child trafficking for labour exploitation, begging and forced marriages. The aim of the Conference, supported by the European Union and the...
Law enforcement and civil society representatives strengthen co-operation on protecting the rights of vulnerable groups
The European Union and the Council of Europe organised a peer exchange between law enforcement and civil society representatives from Albania, Kosovo* and Ukraine to strengthen their cooperation on protection of vulnerable groups. Organised as part of activities marking the International Day...
Call for tenders: Purchase of communication and visibility services in the context of the Horizontal Facility III action on “Promoting equality and combating racism and intolerance in the Western Balkans”
Within the framework of the joint European Union and Council of Europe “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye” programme, aiming at supporting the Western Balkans and Türkiye to comply with European standards, the Council of Europe is currently implementing the action “Promoting...