As the Council of Europe prepares for its upcoming 4th Summit of Heads of State and Government in Reykjavik, SWPS University, Riga Graduate School of Law, and the University of Cologne, are organizing a series of online meetings to discuss the most pressing issues facing the Council, including the significant crisis of the universal character of human rights protection in Europe. The opening webinar will address the future of the European Court of Human Rights.
The European Court of Human Rights in times of political turmoil
The European Court of Human Rights, located in Strasbourg, France, is an international judicial body established under the European Convention on Human Rights. Its mandate is to protect and enforce the civil and political rights of individuals in Europe, and it is widely considered one of the most significant human rights courts in the world.
However, the Court is currently facing a crisis due to a range of factors, including the war in Ukraine, Russia's expulsion from the Council of Europe in March 2022, and the disregard of the Court's judgments by member states that are embracing democracy based on majority dictate and authoritarianism. These circumstances have raised questions about the Court's future.
The first webinar of the "Road to Reykjavik" series will address these issues, starting with a keynote speech by Professor Angelika Nußberger, a former European Court of Human Rights judge. After her lecture, our discussants, Anastasija Kaplane, LL.M, representing the Riga Graduate School of Law and Filip Cyuńczyk, Ph.D. / Assistant Professor from SWPS University's Faculty of Law in Warsaw will provide critical commentaries. The meeting will be moderated by Professor Adam Bodnar, a renowned expert on human rights and Dean of the Faculty of Law in Warsaw.
The webinar on the “Future of the European Court of Human Rights” will be held in English on the Zoom platform. Registration is open.
Road to Reykjavik: webinar series
The 4th Summit of the Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe is scheduled for May 16-17, 2023, in Reykjavik, Iceland, marking the first such meeting in 18 years. It will provide a unique opportunity to discuss urgent issues such as the Russian aggression on Ukraine, the crisis of multilateralism, democratic backsliding, and emerging social problems. Although there are easy solutions to these challenges, dialogue is essential to mitigate their consequences.
As the American philosopher Daniel A. Kaufman pointed out in one of his essays, academic discourse blends knowledge with wisdom. Our responsibility as academics is to seek knowledge to enrich the wisdom of decision-makers, especially during current times of social, political, and legal upheaval in Europe.
The joint webinars hosted by the Riga Graduate School of Law, SWPS University, and the University of Cologne aim to foster international cooperation and address the most vital issues concerning the crisis of human rights protection in Europe.
Keynote Speaker
Angelika Nußberger
Professor
Is a professor at the University of Cologne, where she teaches International Law and Comparative Constitutional Law. From 2011 until 2019, she served as the judge representing Germany at the European Court of Human Rights, and for three years, between 2017 and 2019, she was the Court’s Vice-President. Currently, she is the German member of the Venice Commission and an International Judge at the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Date and location
March 13, 2022 (Monday), 12:00–13:30 CET (UTC+1)
online
Contact
Filip Cyuńczyk
E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.