News on ensuring justice
Delegation from North Macedonia learns from Dutch experience in ensuring equal justice for all citizens
Legal aid professionals and policymakers from North Macedonia concluded a three-day study visit to the Netherlands, gaining first-hand insights into one of the world’s most advanced legal aid systems. The visit is part of the ongoing EU and Council of Europe efforts to strengthen access to...
Collaboration for change: fostering women’s rights through stronger local partnerships in Türkiye
Commitment, collaboration, and solidarity were at the forefront in Ankara as civil society organisations working in the field of women’s rights, bar associations and municipalities from across Türkiye, and international partners convened for the Final Review Meeting: Collective Impact for Women’s...
Youth in North Macedonia invited to share their vision on justice and equality in drawing and essay competition
The Council of Europe Programme Office in Skopje, is once again marking the European Day of Justice in North Macedonia, this time with a drawing and essay competition, under the slogan “Let’s bring justice closer to the citizens”. This initiative invites children and young people from North...
Final cascade training strengthens lawyers’ expertise on immigration detention
As many as 36 lawyers from the Gaziantep Bar Association deepened their knowledge of European and international human rights standards during the 10th and final cascade training on Detention in the Context of Migration held on 25–26 September 2025 in Gaziantep. Organised under the European Union...
Albanian judges drive judicial harmonisation with European Court standards
Over 40 judges and senior legal advisors from Albania’s Supreme Court and appeal courts participated in the Judicial Harmonisation Forum to strengthen uniform and coherent judicial practices, in line with the standards of the European Court of Human Rights (The Court). During the two-day forum,...
Towards victim-centered justice: Training for judges and prosecutors
Judges and prosecutors from across Montenegro participated in a specialised capacity-building activity on 18–19 September, aimed at improving the justice system’s response to victims of crime. Organised in cooperation with the Judicial Training Centre, the workshop focused on equipping legal...
Improving the pre-release preparation and post-penal support in North Macedonia
North Macedonia is successfully piloting the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) on pre-release preparation and post-penal support. Introduced as a novelty in the 2024, the SOP specifies the course of actions in the process prior to and after the release of sentenced persons. To assist the...
Prosecutorial authorities devise Guidelines for communicating in crisis situations
According to the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice’s (CEPEJ) Guide on communication with the media and public for courts and prosecution authorities, judicial power is the least visible to citizens, as it least intervenes in the public debate. As a result, the function of justice...
Electronic data management to be introduced in prisons in Bosnia and Herzegovina
The European Union and the Council of Europe continue to support the introduction of an electronic system for collecting, storing and exchanging prison-related data in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The new hardware equipment donated through the joint EU/CoE programme “Horizontal Facility for the...
Multi-professional group drafts forensic manual in Bosnia and Herzegovina
The training teams formed of law enforcement and prison professionals held an online co-ordination meeting with the team of the action on “Strengthening human rights treatment of detained persons based on European standards and best practices in Bosnia and Herzegovina” on 25 June 2020. The aim of...
“Videoconference in Court proceedings & human rights standards” – Regional Roundtable with Legal Professionals
Judiciaries in the Western Balkans faced extraordinary challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic. The courts are required to comply with restriction measures while ensuring the right to a fair trial. As a result, many of them resorted to the increased use of online tools to conduct hearings. To...
Ванреднe ситуације: Збирка мишљења и извештаја Венецијанске комисије
Научни савет Венецијанске комисије је припремио Збирку мишљења и извештаја те Комисије о уставним одредбама и законодавном оквиру у погледу ванредних ситуација. Овај документ олакшава приступ анализама Комисије о усклађености ванредних овлашћења са основним принципима демократије, поштовања...
Published Handbook on case-law of the European Court of Human Rights in relation to right to property
The Handbook on case-law of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in relation to the right to property (Article 1 Protocol 1) has been published. It will serve as a useful toolkit for legal practitioners in application at the national level of the standards developed in the practice of the...
Care for vulnerable groups in times of crisis: treatment of persons deprived of liberty in context of Covid-19
Highlighting the importance of consistent treatment of persons deprived of their liberty, Mykola Gnatovsky, President of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) stated: “There are specific and intense challenges for staff working...
Supporting the development of statistical reports and electronic assignment of cases in Kosovo*
From 17 to 20 December 2018, the Strengthening the Quality and Efficiency of Justice in Kosovo action organised an expert mission to follow-up on the issues raised at the workshop held in May 2018 with high level international expertise to support the development and implementation of the Case...
Call for tender: provision of intellectual services on efficiency and quality of justice in Albania
Under the framework of the joint European Union / Council of Europe Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey, the Council of Europe is looking for a maximum of 6 Provider(s) at local level in order to support the implementation of the Action on ‘Strengthening the efficiency and...
Call for tender: intellectual services on efficiency and quality of justice in Albania
Under the framework of the European Union/Council of Europe Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey, the Council of Europe is looking for a maximum of 6 Provider(s) in order to support the implementation of the Action on "Strengthening the efficiency and quality of justice in...
Call for projects to strengthen rehabilitation and reintegration in enclosed institutions in Montenegro by enhancing occupational therapy
Within the scope of the European Union and the Council of Europe programmatic framework “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey” (Horizontal Facility) - Action “Enhancing human rights protection for detained and sentenced persons in Montenegro”, the Council of Europe Programme...
Fostering communications between courts and their users to improve the quality of justice in Kosovo*
According to the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice Handbook for conducting satisfaction surveys, the organisation and communication of feedback to the users are an integral part of the survey process. Following the satisfaction surveys that were held at the end of 2017 with the...
Disciplinary and ethical liability of judges in Montenegro
In the framework of the European Union and the Council of Europe joint programme "Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey" the Council of Europe Programme Office in Podgorica in cooperation with the Judicial Council and the Supreme Court of Montenegro organises the round table...
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