Amicale

The European Parliamentary Association and the EU Delegation to the Council of Europe are glad to invite you to a public debate in English entitled “Protecting fundamental rights in Europe: forward and back?”, which will take place on Wednesday 17 December, from 20:00 to 21:15, in the villa of our Association (76 allée de la Robertsau, Strasbourg).

To participate in this event, please fill in this form: https://forms.gle/7aBk4sJk9bYLvEE17

This year, Europe marks two major milestones: the European Convention on Human Rights turns 75, and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights turns 25. These instruments have long safeguarded citizens’ rights and driven social progress. Yet today, our fundamental values face unprecedented pressures: shrinking space for civil society, rising digital surveillance, restrictions on protest and press freedom, and threats to privacy, equality, and citizens’ full participation in democracy.

Questions to be addressed include: What recent developments pose the greatest risks to fundamental rights in Europe? How are European institutions adapting to new and emerging challenges? Does Europe still have the tools - and the political will - to uphold fundamental rights effectively in practice?

We will explore these questions with:

• Helmut Brandstätter, Member of the European Parliament (Austria, Renew Europe), rapporteur for the Renew Europe Group on the report on the Implementation of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union in the EU legal framework;

• Rachael Kondak, Head of Cabinet to the President of the European Court of Human Rights.

This debate is organised in collaboration with the Young Europeans of Strasbourg, who will enrich the discussion by hosting two pre-debate workshops at 19:30 on:

• Freedom of demonstration and police violence
• Pressures on freedom of expression and of the media

These workshops will provide an opportunity to examine the issues from a focused perspective, brainstorm collectively, and prepare concrete questions to be put to the guest speakers during the debate.

If you wish to participate in the workshops, please indicate this in your reply: https://forms.gle/7aBk4sJk9bYLvEE17

The debate will be followed by a cocktail reception.

This event is supported by the City of Strasbourg, the Collectivité européenne d’Alsace, the Région Grand Est, and the Préfecture de la Région Grand Est.

We hope to see you there.