10/12/2025 European Convention on Human Rights | President
PACE President Theodoros Rousopoulos, addressing an informal meeting of Council of Europe ministers in Strasbourg, has welcomed the beginning of a discussion about the European Convention on Human Rights and migration – but called for it to be rooted “not in fear, but in our commitment to the values that have defined Europe for 75 years”.
In May nine Council of Europe member states issued a joint open letter in which they called for a new conversation about how the Strasbourg Court interprets the Convention in migration-related cases.
“I am not opposed to any discussion about the future of our system,” the President said. “But such a discussion must not be driven by political spectacle, by populism or by the pursuit of short-term gains. It requires calm reflection, depth and intellectual honesty.”
The EU and UN often apply stricter standards than the European Convention on Human Rights in the area of migration, the President pointed out, especially on procedural safeguards and protection from ill-treatment: “The Convention is therefore not a maximum constraint but Europe’s minimum common standard.”
The Convention system had shown it was able to adapt to states’ concerns without weakening fundamental rights, he said, pointing to the adoption of Protocol No. 15 which strengthened national courts by embedding subsidiarity and the “margin of appreciation” offered to them when interpreting the Convention.
The informal meeting in Strasbourg was convened by Council of Europe Secretary General Alain Berset on Human Rights Day and brings together justice and migration ministers from the 46 member states. A second meeting is expected to take place in May.