On the agenda of the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of Europe – the first meeting of the co-ordinators of the execution of judgments of the ECtHR
Under the initiative of the Ministry of Justice, on the agenda of the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of Europe, there is a particular focus on the execution of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights. At the joint event of the Council of Europe and the Ministry of Justice, the first meeting of the co-ordinators of the Council of Europe Member States responsible for co-ordinating the execution of judgments of the ECtHR took place on 24 June 2024 in Helsinki, Finland. It was attended by representatives of 43 Member States of the Council of Europe.
The event consisted of two autonomous but interrelated meetings. The morning session comprised of the First Annual Meeting between the National Co-ordinators and the Department for the execution of the judgments of the Court. This meeting was called for by the Reykjavik Declaration, whereby the Heads of States and Governments recommitted to ensuring the full, effective, and prompt execution of the final judgments of the Court, and also affirmed the need for a co-operative and inclusive approach, based on dialogue, in the supervision process. This regular meeting should allow for an exchange of views with the Secretariat.
In his welcoming speech H.E. Mr Giedrius Kazakevičius, Ambassador of the Republic of Lithuania to the Republic of Finland, emphasized that in these challenging times, compliance with international obligations is paramount and that within the context of human rights protection, executing the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights becomes a critical obligation for each Member State. “We safeguard European public order and maintain democratic stability and security by upholding these standards”, he noted.
In the afternoon session, the Execution Co-ordinators Network was formally established as a means to facilitate the exchange of expertise and experience among national co-ordinators of Member States. Mr Ričard Dzikovič, Head of the Legal Representation Group of the Ministry of Justice, in his welcoming speech of the launching of the network, congratulated the representatives of the Member States on the agreement on the establishment of the network and the real outcome of this initiative.
Mr Ričard Dzikovič pointed out in his speech that “this network not only will enable the sharing of experiences and good practices, strengthening the competences of the co-ordinators, but also will allow the development of the concept of collective responsibility for human rights and freedoms and this could be a potential tool for States to develop a common standard for the implementation of judgment, especially when addressing common problems”.
According to Mr R. Dzikovič: “timely execution of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights is an essential factor in building trust in the national legal system and in the decisions of the institutions. Timely and effective implementation of Court’s judgments prevents similar violations and, consequently, new complaints, reduces social tensions and strengthens the public’s sense of justice. For a person it is not enough to win a case, it is not enough to find a violation: persons must be guaranteed real rights and judicial decisions must be implemented effectively and in a timely manner. Sometimes the execution process is complicated or time-consuming, and the competences and experience of the Execution Co-ordinators Network should contribute to a prompt and qualitative execution process. A stronger dialogue will allow some of the obstacles to be overcome, building on the experience of other States”.
The Network will operate on a permanent basis and will be technically assisted by the Council of Europe and administered by the Member States themselves, also for its activities there will be a specific web platform set up.
A meeting of the co-ordinators of the execution of judgments of the ECtHR took place in Helsinki in coordination with the meeting of the Steering Committee for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, which also is taking place in Helsinki.
Last updated: 28-06-2024
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