“The
impact of the Covid-19 restrictions on civil society space and activities”,
the Parliamentary Assembly recommends that the Committee of Ministers:
1.1 continue to implement its decision
on “the need to strengthen the protection and promotion of civil society
space in Europe”, adopted at its 129th session in Helsinki on 17
May 2019;
1.2 call again on the member States of the Council of Europe
to implement its recommendations CM/Rec(2007)14 on the legal status
of non-governmental organisations in Europe and CM/Rec(2018)11 on the
need to strengthen the protection and promotion of civil society
space in Europe;
1.3 reflect, in co-operation with relevant Council of Europe
bodies, on the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the measures
taken to counter it on civil society, and in particular non-governmental organisations
(NGOs) and human rights defenders, as well as on the measures that
could be taken in order to improve their situation;
1.4 organise exchanges of views on these issues with civil
society actors;
1.5 give priority to judgments arising from systemic problems
concerning NGO rights and freedoms embodied in Article 11 of the
European Convention on Human Rights (ETS No. 5), as well as those concerning
measures taken to counter the Covid-19 pandemic, when supervising
the execution of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights;
1.6 establish a mechanism for monitoring and responding to
attacks against civil society actors;
1.7 continue to promote European and international standards
to protect civil society space and exchange information on good
practices developed in this area during the Covid-19 pandemic, particularly
in co-operation with other international organisations such as the
United Nations, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in
Europe and the European Union.
