“Fifty years ago today, the First World Romani Congress was held in London. This date, 8 April, was chosen as International Roma Day. (…)

As PACE General Rapporteur on combating racism and intolerance, I call on fellow parliamentarians in Council of Europe member States to support civil society organisations representing Roma and Travellers and to ensure that their voice is heard by the institutions and the entire population. Involving these organisations in parliamentary work is paramount to realise the principle of “Nothing for us without us” that should consistently inspire antidiscrimination policies.

As parliamentarians, we must strive to cooperate with and listen to all the groups within the countries that we represent, particularly with those who face discrimination and exclusion.”

Read the full statement here

• Monday 29 March 2021 – Webinar – Environmental rights and climate change in Europe: Hearing the voices of minorities and indigenous peoples

On 29 March, the No Hate Parliamentary Alliance and the Parliamentary Assembly’s Sub-Committee on the Rights of Minorities co-organised an event on “Environmental rights and climate change in Europe: hearing the voices of minorities and indigenous peoples”. The event was organised as a contribution to the March theme of the World Forum for Democracy campaign, “Inequalities, democracy and climate change”.

Guest speakers included Ms Susanna Israelsson, Arctic and Environment Unit of the Saami Council, Mr Florin Botonogu, President of the Policy Centre for Roma and Minorities, ERGO Network, Romania, Mr Carl Söderbergh, Director of Policy and Communications at the Minority Rights Group International and Ms Natalia Kobylarz, Environmental law specialist and Senior Lawyer at the Registry of the European Court of Human Rights. The event was moderated by Mr František Kopřiva (Czech Republic, ALDE), Chairperson of the Sub-Committee on the Rights of Minorities, and concluding remarks were made by Mr Momodou Malcolm Jallow (Sweden, UEL), General Rapporteur on combating racism and intolerance and coordinator of the No Hate Parliamentary Alliance.

Watch the video of the event here.

• Tuesday 2 February 2021 – Hearing on the Activities of the Council of Europe to counter Hate Speech and Intolerance

On 2 February, the No Hate Parliamentary Alliance held an online joint hearing with the Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination on the "Current activities of the Council of Europe to counter Hate Speech and intolerance”. Guest speakers included Ms Somi Nikol, Deputy to the Permanent Representative of Germany to the Council of Europe, Mr Menno Ettema from the Council of Europe’s No Hate Speech and Cooperation Unit and Mr Mats Lindberg, from the Secretariat of the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI).

The speakers shared information about the on-going activities of the Council of Europe in the area of hate speech and intolerance, with a particular focus on ECRI’s monitoring cycles, the preparation of a Committee of Ministers Recommendation on combating hate speech, and the conferences organised by the German presidency. The hearing was also an opportunity to remind members of the important role they may play in their respective parliaments by disseminating the texts and documents of the Council of Europe, as a source of inspiration for legislative work.

• The Alliance has published a compilation of relevant texts adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly on racism, intolerance and hate speech, with a foreword by Mr Momodou Malcolm Jallow, General Rapporteur on combating racism and intolerance. The publication is already available in English here and will soon be available in French. Stay tuned!

• Approving a resolution on “Combating Afrophobia, or anti-Black racism, in Europe”, based on a report by Momodou Malcolm Jallow (approved by the Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination on 07/06/2021), the Assembly called on Council of Europe member States to “recognise the legacy and negative impact of colonialism, enslavement and the transatlantic slave trade” and consider introducing reparations schemes and establishing ad hoc truth commissions to help stamp out Afrophobia, as well as positive action policies. Read the news here and watch the interview here.
• The General Rapporteur has released a declaration raising awareness on the recent wave of antisemitic attacks and hate speech as well as a statement focusing on France’s ‘anti-separatism’ bill.
• On the occasion of International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the General Rapporteur called on “the authorities of Council of Europe member States to seize this window of opportunity and step up efforts against Afrophobia - anti-Black racism - and all other forms of racial discrimination”. Read the full statement here.