Council of Europe

The Council of Europe (CoE) (French: Conseil de l’Europe (CdE), German: Europarat) is an international organisation whose stated aim is to uphold human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it has 47 member states, with a population of approximately 820 million, and operates with an annual budget of approximately 500 million euros.

The organisation is distinct from the 27-nation European Union (EU), although it is sometimes confused with it, partly because the EU has adopted the original European Flag which was created by the Council of Europe in 1955, as well as the European Anthem. No country has ever joined the EU without first belonging to the Council of Europe.

The Council of Europe cannot make binding laws, but it does have the power to enforce select international agreements reached by European states on various topics. The best known body of the Council of Europe is the European Court of Human Rights, which enforces the European Convention on Human Rights.

The Council’s two statutory bodies are the Committee of Ministers, comprising the foreign ministers of each member state, and the Parliamentary Assembly, composed of members of the national parliaments of each member state. The Commissioner for Human Rights is an independent institution within the Council of Europe, mandated to promote awareness of and respect for human rights in the member states.

The headquarters of the Council of Europe are in Strasbourg, France.

From Law to Practice

This report, commissioned by the Council of Europe’s Committee on Bioethics (DH-BIO),has a two-fold aim; first, to assess whether and to what extent the existing body of international and European law provides adequate protection to the rights of children in relation to biomedicine and, second, to recommend actions (‘roadmap’) the Council of Europe could undertake to strengthen the rights of children in that regard.

2020-08-12T13:40:02+00:00June 30th, 2017|Categories: COE, DH-BIO|Tags: , , , , |

The Rights of Children in Biomedicine

The Committee on Bioethics of the Council of Europe commissioned this study to identify potential areas of heightened concern for the rights of children that may be unfavorably affected by scientific advances and uncertainties in biomedicine. This report is the result of that study.

2020-08-04T13:09:28+00:00January 11th, 2017|Categories: COE, DH-BIO|Tags: , , , , , |

Intersex Awareness Day 2016

Speaking ahead of Intersex Awareness Day on 26 October, a group of United Nations and international human rights experts is calling for an urgent end to human rights violations against intersex children and adults. They urge Governments to prohibit harmful medical practices on intersex children, including unnecessary surgery and treatment without their informed consent, and sterilization.

2020-08-04T11:15:53+00:00October 24th, 2016|Categories: ACHPR, CAT, CEDAW, CESCR, COE, CRC, CRPD, HRC, OAS, UN|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |
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