Call for applications: EIN training on how NGOs can advance ECtHR judgment implementation

The European Implementation Network (EIN) and the Netherlands Helsinki Committee (NHC) are calling for applications by non-governmental organisations (NGOs), human rights defenders (HRDs) and human rights lawyers to participate in a training on advocating for full and effective implementation of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR, ‘the Court’) in Ukraine.

The magnitude of the non-implementation problem is of concern in Ukraine: of the ‘leading’ judgments from the last ten years, i.e. those identifying new and structural problems calling for wider reforms, 63% remain pending (statistics as of 19/01/2021).

All of these pending judgments represent an unresolved human rights problem. However, they are also an opportunity to challenge the lack of progress in national legislative and judicial systems to tackle the policies and practices at the root of these repeated violations.

NGOs are accorded a critical role in the Council of Europe’s (CoE) process that underpins the supervision, by the Committee of Ministers (CM), of the implementation of these judgments (known as the CM judgment execution process). This is made possible under Rule 9.2. of the Rules of the CM. NGO recommendations can also be supported by sustained advocacy at the domestic level.

The aims of the training are to equip NGOs so that they know how to use the CM judgment execution process and which advocacy tools they can apply to support full and effective implementation of ECtHR judgments. A thematic session will be focused on the implementation of ECtHR judgments related to freedom of expression.

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For information about the NHC, visit our website at https://www.nhc.nl/ and/or follow us on Twitter @NHC_nl, Facebook or LinkedIn.

Date and format of the training:

The training will be held either as an in-person event or online. The decision to hold the event as an in-person or rather online event will be taken by early September. Further practical information about the meeting venue will be sent to participants in the course of September.

In-person event: Tuesday 26th October 2021 afternoon and Wednesday 27th October 2021 whole day in Kyiv. On Thursday 28th October 2021, a seminar gathering legal experts from the academic, judicial, and governmental sectors will be organised, in order to engage in more holistic/big-picture discussions that go beyond the strategic litigation sphere. All participants in the training will be invited to attend the seminar.

Online: on the afternoons of 26th, 28th and 29th October 2021 (3 three-hour sessions from 14.00-17.00 Ukrainian time). Links to join the Zoom conference calls will be sent to participants 1 week before the start of the sessions.

Simultaneous interpretation from English into Ukrainian and vice versa will be provided.

Training methodology:

A detailed agenda for the training and the seminar will be sent to selected participants by mid-September. The training will combine:

• Presentations by Council of Europe staff members, experts and peers on how to engage effectively with the CM judgment execution process;
• Sharing of learning by participants who have already engaged with implementation of ECtHR judgments, whether through the CM judgment execution process or at domestic level;
• Group exercises to draft a Rule 9.2 submission on a case pending before the CM. The session is aimed at helping participants who have not engaged with the CM judgment execution process to do so – acquiring knowledge and expertise from other participants; and
• Brainstorming sessions to set up (joint) strategies for the implementation of pending cases.

Target audience:

Staff of NGOs working on, or planning to work on, implementation of ECtHR judgments in Ukraine; independent lawyers or HRDs supporting NGOs in these activities, or working in an independent capacity on these issues.

Staff from specialised organisations working on freedom of expression who intend to engage into the ECtHR judgment implementation process.

People do not have to be based in the target country, but must have a clear work focus on Ukraine.

Criteria for selection of participants:

Participants will be selected on the basis of the following criteria:

• The impact resulting from full and effective implementation of any cases they are working on or intend to work on; and
• Any relevant experience the participant is able to share.

Costs:

The training is free of charge. In case of an in-person event, lunches will be provided for on each day of the training (and of the following seminar), as well as accommodation for a limited number of participants based outside Ukraine. Eligible participants will be informed directly by the NHC.

Application process:

If you would like to attend the training, please complete the application form below and return it to: hrd@nhc.nl

Deadline to apply: Thursday 16/09/2021

The results of the application review will be made known to applicants by the end of September. Selected participants will be invited to fill in a questionnaire about their experience in the ECHR supervision process.

Questions:

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the EIN: contact@einnetwork.org

Application form (in English): Apply here!

Read more about the call here (only in Ukrainian): Українська

Application form (only in Ukranian): Подати заявку тут