“I am deeply shocked by the terrorist attacks that took place in Turkey last Saturday and in Berlin and Zurich yesterday as well as by the assassination of Andreï Karlov, Russian Ambassador to Turkey.
I express my sincere condolences to the families of the victims and my sympathy to those injured. The Council of Europe stands by the authorities of our four member States in these tragic circumstances. More...

On behalf of the Council of Europe, Alexandre Guessel, Director of Political Affairs, noted positive developments in Belarus – Council of Europe relations, in particular the increased co-operation and the adoption of the Action Plan for 2016-2017. He stressed that the key to the European continent becoming a death penalty free zone lies in Belarus, and reiterated the appeal of the Council of Europe to the country’s authorities to impose a moratorium on capital punishment, as the first step towards abolition of death penalty. Guessel argued that while public opinion is important, the issues related to death penalty should not be decided in a referendum. More...

A new report by the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) on Greece finds that transparency in party financing and the incriminations of bribery and trading in influence have not improved further since it last issued a report in June 2015. More...

To mark the International Anti-Corruption Day, the president of the Group of States against Corruption of the Council of Europe (GRECO), Marin Mrčela, today made the following statement:
“Combating corruption is not only a matter of new laws, but also a matter of ethics and individual behaviour, and often implies changing people’s hearts and minds. More...

Speaking ahead of Human Rights Day on 10 December, the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjørn Jagland, has warned that hate speech and free speech should not be confused.
“Hate speech is an abuse of freedom of expression.
“Join the Action Day for Human Rights Online on 10 December. Say NO to hate speech,” he said. More...

The death penalty is a violation of fundamental human rights: the right to life and the right not to be subjected to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. It does not deter crime more effectively that other punishments, and it is impossible to ensure that innocent people are not executed.
The Council of Europe has made the abolition of death penalty one of its priorities, and has been fighting it for decades. As a result, no execution has taken plan in the Council of Europe’s member States since 1997.
Belarus, which is not a member of the Council of Europe, is the only country in Europe that still applies death penalty. The first ever Council of Europe’s Action plan for Belarus 2016-2017 stresses that “the abolition of the death penalty in Belarus remains the top priority for the CoE, as capital punishment is a major obstacle for Belarus to taking steps towards becoming a CoE member state.” Fostering dialogue between the authorities and civil society in Belarus on the issue; raising awareness of executive, legislative and judicial authorities and the general public on the need to introduce moratorium on execution of death sentences as the first step to the eventual abolition of capital punishment in Belarus is one of the key objectives of the Council of Europe’s co-operation with the country.
A conference on the abolition of the death penalty and public opinion organised by the Council of Europe in co-operation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus on 13 December 2016 in Minsk is part of these efforts. More...

“A series of terrorist attacks has deeply traumatised Europe. In Brussels, Paris, Copenhagen, Ankara and beyond, shock was followed by fear of further attacks and a sense of urgency about preventing them”, says Nils Muižnieks, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, in his latest Human Rights Comment published today. More...

Democracy should apply to all women and men equally, concluded participants at an international conference that took place in Kyiv on 1 December, where a new regional study on the situation in Eastern Partnership countries was presented.
The event focused on women’s political representation in the Eastern Partnership countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus) It brought together more than 80 participants representing Parliaments, Central Election Commissions, media, civil society organisations and independent gender experts, who exchanged opinions and discussed measures and strategies to enhance women’s political representation in their respective countries. More...

In the run-up to the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (3 December), the head of the 47-nation Council of Europe has called on European governments to draw on the newly-adopted Disability Strategy (2017-2023) to make human rights a reality for all. More...

Conveying these concerns and sharing the organisation’s expertise in the fight against cybercrime and the protection of privacy with governments, private companies, civil society and academia will be the key priorities of the Council of Europe’s participation in the 11th meeting of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), to be held in Zapopan (Jalisco, México) from 6 to 9 December. More...