Study visit of the delegation of judges, prosecutors and licensed lawyers on Article 10 of the ECHR

During 16-19 April 2018, supported by the Reinforcing Judicial Expertise on Freedom of Expression and the Media in South-East Europe Project – JUFREX, a study visit for judges, prosecutors and lawyers, licensed trainers by this Project on Article 10 of the ECHR was conducted in Strasbourg, France.

Purpose of the visit was to increase the participant’s knowledge in the area of the freedom of expression and of the media in Southeastern Europe.

The first day of the visit was dedicated to institutions operating within the Council of Europe on the right to freedom of expression. The training featured the latest results presented by the Media and Information Society Supervisory Commission, continuing with a presentation by the Human Rights Commissioner's Advisor, which included an analysis of the role of the institution and a focus on recent visits implemented by the commissioner in the Balkans, during which a great relevance was given to the topic of media freedom. Other issues tackled during the training focused on the role of the European Court of Human Rights, in setting standards for human rights and media freedom, and its judicial practice in relation to Article 10, especially in relation to its balancing with the protection of Article 8, and the role of a local judge within court proceedings.

During the second day the participants had the opportunity to attend a hearing on the case Ilias and Ahmed v. Hungary in the Grand Chamber of the ECHR, which, although directly related to a violation of Article 10 of the ECHR, allowed the participants to look at the Court's work through the case, and to give an opinion on the given case.

This visit concluded the second year of the project, a joint program funded by the Council of Europe and the European Union, aimed at meeting the specific needs in the area of freedom of expression and media in South East Europe.

Beneficiaries of the visit were judges, prosecutors and lawyers from Kosovo, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, as well as representatives from judicial training institutions from the region.

Also, representatives of key partners participated in the Steering Committee of the JUFREX project, where the actual results and future activities of the project were discussed.