Call for Participants: Workshop on Emergency Justice From European Court of Human Rights
09 November 2016
Using the European Court of Human Rights to Get Urgent Justice for Roma
Are you an activist or lawyer working with Roma communities at risk of serious human rights violations? These might include forced evictions, having their water or electricity shut off, or having their children sent against their parents’ wishes to segregated schools and receiving inferior education. We want you to come to Belgrade next month so we can work together to think about how we can use the European Court of Human Rights to get justice for urgent human rights cases.
The Court does not normally deliver justice quickly: cases usually take years, and first you have to go through national courts. But this year, the ERRC managed to secure “interim measures” (a kind of emergency order) to stop evictions of Romani communities in two places, and in a third eviction case, the Court agreed to hear the case urgently. We want to see more of this happening. This workshop is designed to share our experience in taking urgent cases to the European Court so that you can do it to – with us, or on your own. Over two days, we will be thinking creatively about securing the next generation of Roma rights judgments from the European Court on the urgent issues that are affecting the everyday lives of Roma.
The conference will take place in Belgrade on 7-8 December 2016. The ERRC can cover accommodation, meals, and travel for selected participants, who must be working in one or more of the following countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia, Ukraine, and Turkey. The working language of the conference is English; interpretation will only be provided for Serbian and Rromanes.
If you are interested in participating, please email Vivien Brassói (vivien.brassoi@errc.org) by Friday 25 November 2016 with the following information:
- Your contact details
- A brief description of your work, including the place you work
- Your travel needs, any dietary requirements, and any other issues (such as whether you have a mobility disability)
This information is also available in Serbian Српски.
