Tag: Council of Europe

The Council of Europe, the oldest European institution which specialises in human rights, today (20 July) strongly criticised recent French and Belgian legislation targeting the burqa, a veil that covers entirely women's faces.

If it continues to consider immigrants as "totally unwanted," Europe will have very little credibility to talk about human rights in international fora, warns Thomas Hammarberg, human rights commissioner at the Council of Europe.

Newly re-elected Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi is one of the "biggest fish" in organised crime in the country, according to NATO documents leaked to the UK's Guardian newspaper. The European Commission said it was taking reports of war crimes and organised crime "extremely seriously," but added that it was seeking concrete evidence.

The Council of Europe's human rights body last week called on governments across Europe to fight racism in sport ahead of last Saturday's international day for the elimination of racial discrimination (21 March).

The country hosting the EU institutions may soon face a monitoring procedure by the Council of Europe, according to human rights envoys from the oldest European organisation speaking in Brussels yesterday at the end of a fact-finding mission.

Practical ideas on how to involve young people in sport was the focus during the Council of Europe's 'European Crossroads: Sport - Front Door to Democracy' conference on 13-14 May.

Council of Europe racism reports find causes for concern in Austria, Denmark and UK