Instrumenti Horizontal - Lajme
Raising awareness on free legal aid for human trafficking victims in Montenegro
A new awareness raising initiative in Montenegro is putting the spotlight on free legal aid available to victims of human trafficking. An important part of this initiative are multilingual informational leaflets designed to inform victims about their legal rights. Created in collaboration with...
A public initiative to raise awareness on the fight against child trafficking for forced marriages to kick off in North Macedonia
"Change Your Mind - Stay Out of the Vicious Circle”
Forced child marriage is one of the common types of human trafficking, spiralling out of the circle of poverty. A significant number of the child trafficking victims in North Macedonia are victims of trafficking for forced marriage, who are often sexually abused and exploited for their labour. To...
Montenegro takes action to strengthen local response to human trafficking and boost victim support
In a move to combat human trafficking and protect victims’ rights, three workshops were organised across Montenegro in September — gathering local authorities, social welfare centers, labour inspections, law enforcement, and judicial representatives. As part of the Strategy for the Fight Against...
Strong joint action needed that will foremost protect youth and children
Traffickers easier recruit, control and exploit victims of human trafficking
How to meet the challenges posed by the growing use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) for the recruitment, control and exploitation of victims of human trafficking? More than 60 national and regional experts met at a two-day conference in Sarajevo on 2 and 3 October 2024 to...
Montenegro police to boost human rights standards with new procedures
Police officers in Montenegro are stepping up efforts to protect human rights through the introduction of newly developed Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). During two days of training, held on 26-27 September in Bijelo Polje, middle management staff from the Regional Centre “North” were...
Regional co-operation key to tackling discrimination and racism
Law enforcement institutions and civil society organisations (CSOs) from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and the Republic of Moldova met in Podgorica on 26-28 September with the aim to address racism, discrimination, and the protection of minority groups, especially the LGBTI community. This...
PRESS RELEASE
Advancing Serbia’s reform agenda in human rights, rule of law and democracy in line with European standards
Serbia has made progress on its reform agenda, ranging from strengthening human rights protections and anti-trafficking efforts to promoting equality, quality education for all, as well as safeguarding freedom of expression- all in the framework of the EU and Council of Europe joint programme,...
Towards ending discrimination against blind chess players
Representatives from Serbia’s Ministry of Sport and the Government Agent before the ECtHR, as relevant government officials, and experts from the Council of Europe's Department for the Execution of Judgment of the European Court of Human Rights, gathered in Belgrade on 24 September 2024 to...
Organet e barazisë, autoritetet publike dhe organizatat e shoqërisë civile në Shqipëri bashkojnë forcat në luftën kundër diskriminimit dhe urrejtjes
Partnerët dhe përfituesit e projektit Fuqizimi i mbrojtjes nga diskriminimi në Shqipëri vlerësuan kontributin e kësaj nisme bashkëpunimi të Bashkimit Evropian dhe Këshillit të Evropës, që synon të çojë përpara efektet e reformave në fushën e antidiskriminimit dhe luftimit të gjuhës së urrejtjes...
Software to support a more efficient system of treatment of prisoners launched for the beneficiaries of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
For the first time in a prison of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Federation an Integrated Prison Management Information System (IPMIS) was put into function. This prison software together with the procurement of hardware equipment was developed with the support of the EU and Council of Europe...
PRESS RELEASE
Përparimi i reformave në Shqipëri, në përputhje me vlerat evropiane: Të drejtat e njeriut dhe demokracia në fokus
Programi “Instrumenti Horizontal për Ballkanin Perëndimor dhe Turqinë”, një nismë thelbësore bashkëpunimi e Bashkimit Evropian dhe Këshillit të Evropës, është një mjet themelor në duart e autoriteteve publike në Shqipëri për të sjellë përpara mbrojtjen e të drejtave dhe lirive themelore të...
New course on combating trafficking in human beings in Serbia
To support lawyers in effective protection of victims of trafficking and prosecuting perpetrators, a new HELP (Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals) course has been launched within the action “Strengthening anti-trafficking action in Serbia”, in co-operation with the Serbian Bar...
Serbia Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media enhances knowledge on advertising standards
Representatives of the Serbia’s Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media (REM) had the opportunity to learn more on commercial communications and explore possibilities for co-regulation and self-regulation in various areas. The training was designed to provide an overview of the European...
Joining forces with women's organisations to combat violence against women in Türkiye
In the efforts to support civil society organisations in Türkiye to improve the accessibility and quality of legal aid services for women, an online discussion was organised with the support of European Union and Council of Europe. 34 civil society representatives (29 women and 5 men) exchanged...
Montenegro judges and media unite to improve court transparency
In a groundbreaking initiative, judges and media professionals in Montenegro met in Podgorica for the first time to strengthen collaboration on the dissemination of information from court proceedings. During the two-day event, participants delved into pressing issues, including the Council of...
Advancing support to legal professionals in the efforts to improve women’s access to justice in the Western Balkans
The Mentoring Programme for legal professionals, an initiative of the EU and Council of Europe regional action “Women’s access to justice in the Western Balkans”, proved to be a unique tool for equipping justice professionals including judges and prosecutors with necessary resources to champion...
Legislation Guide on the Protection of Migrant Children in Türkiye published
A new guide compiling Turkish domestic legislation and international human rights standards on child protection in the context of migration has been completed and published with the expert support of the European Union’s and Council of Europe’s joint action “Strengthening the human rights...
Study on preventing child trafficking for the purpose of labour exploitation, begging and forced marriages in North Macedonia reveals factual situation and trends
According to the 2023 third evaluation report on North Macedonia of the Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking of the Council of Europe, most of the trafficking victims are children. Although most of the trafficked children were subjected to sexual exploitation, child trafficking for the...
Protecting journalists and activists from SLAPPs in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) are a significant concern for journalists and activists, as they are used by political and economic power holders to suppress critical voices. Addressing this challenge from the perspective of journalists and lawyers, and exploring how to...
Call for Applications: Intercultural Cities - invitation for the participation of towns and municipalities in Serbia to promote diversity and tolerance at local level
Within the action "Combating discrimination and promoting diversity in Serbia", part of the joint programme of the European Union and the Council of Europe "Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye", we are inviting local self-government units to apply for the new initiative to...