First online HELP course for legal professionals on freedom of expression was launched in Skopje for 40 judges, prosecutors and lawyers who will be trained on various aspects on freedom of expression. The HELP course will be tutored by Council of Europe experts from both the Academy for judges and public prosecutors and the Bar Association of North Macedonia.

The course was initially created in 2016 and updated in 2020 in the framework of EU and Council of Europe joint programme “Horizontal Facility II. In order to help legal professionals in North Macedonia to expand their knowledge on freedom of expression, the HELP course was translated and adjusted to the local context under the EU and Council of Europe joint action “Freedom of expression and freedom of the media in North Macedonia (JUFREX).

During the event participants received the necessary information on the technical aspects of the online training on freedom of expression through the HELP platform. This course on freedom of expression was created to assist relevant professionals to get a comprehensive overview of European standards concerning freedom of expression, as well as domestic case-law. This would contribute to a more successful and consistent application of Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights in their daily work.

Due to the successful cooperation so far with the Academy for judges and public prosecutors, as well as the Bar Association of North Macedonia, HELP courses for legal professionals are now part of their regular curricula for education of legal professionals. This will aim to ensure sustainability in the process of capacity building for the judiciary. In particular, JUFREX action has proven to contribute in addressing key challenges in the process to ensure a better protection of freedom of expression and media.

According to Ms. Lejla Dervisagic, Head of Operations of the Programme Office of the Council of Europe in Skopje, the interventions of JUFREX action in North Macedonia and the continuous training programmes it offers are very important, especially considering the quick evolving of the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights. In this framework JUFREX is helping the legal professional towards a more effective application of the case-law of the Court, as well as of the European standards in the field.

This event was organised within the joint European Union/Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey 2019-2022”, and its action on “Freedom of expression and freedom of the media in North Macedonia (JUFREX)”, in co-operation with Academy for judges and public prosecutors and the Bar Association of North Macedonia.