EIN's 5th Anniversary

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EIN has been advocating for the full and timely implementation of ECtHR judgments since 2016, when the constitutive General Assembly took place with the adoption of the EIN Statute. Over the last five years, we have grown and expanded throughout Europe, providing more training, advocacy support, and resources relating to implementation. You can read more on our work over the last five years below. 

2016 - 2017

The first meeting of the Network took place in Istanbul on 11-12 April 2016. It was attended by 30 human rights lawyers from 23 litigating NGOs in 14 Council of Europe countries. Participants discussed their efforts on implementation at the national level and with Strasbourg-based institutions. These discussions would later develop EIN’s future strategy’s and pave the way for fundraising.

In 2017 we registered as a not-for-profit association in Strasbourg. We also received our first grant from the Oak Foundation and Open Society Foundations (more on our funders here). In 2017, our network grew to 21 members, almost tripling in size, and the first member of staff was appointed.

2018

At the start of 2018, we were able to open the EIN Secretariat office in the building of the International Institute for Human Rights (René Cassin Foundation,) in Strasbourg. In February EIN carried out its inaugural training on the implementation process, in Warsaw - as well as two further training events in Strasbourg.

In July EIN published its Handbook on the Implementation of Jugdments of the European Court of Human Rights - the only guide to the ECtHR implementation process for NGOs, lawyers, activists and human rights victims. In 2018 we had another increase in our network, with a further ten members joining.

2019

At the start of 2019, EIN began its programme of notifying organisations across Europe of relevant developments in the implementation process. Along with capacity building and resource-creation, this has helped faciltate a steady rise in the level of civil society participation in the implementation process of European Court of Human Rights judgments.

EIN carried out two training events in Zagreb, as well as capacity building in Turkey, Strasbourg and Warsaw.

At the end of 2019, the network counted 34 members and 4 partners from 24 European countries. The EIN Board adopted a new membership policy, which introduced a new “official partners” category, and sought to ensure that the network remain a manageable size.

2020

In early 2020, EIN published online mapping of the level of ECtHR judgment implementation across Council of Europe states, highlighting the extent of the implementation issue. We also published a Guide to Domestic Advocacy for the Implementation of ECtHR Judgments, along with further resources on making written submissions to the Council of Europe. Trainings were held in Yerevan, and then continued online for North Macedonia, Russia, Georgia, and NHRIs from across Europe.

At the end of 2020, the network had a total of 38 members and 10 partners from 25 European countries - including many of the most significant national human rights organisations across the continent. More information on our members and partners can be found here. 

2021

EIN looks to the future, with six training events planned for the year, a project to promote the EU’s role in the implementation of ECtHR judgments, and an expanding level of support for implementation work across Council of Europe states.

Some of our key achievements since 2016:

  • We organised 27 civil society briefings to Permanent Representations of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers before quarterly judgment execution meetings.

  • Our work helped to almost triple the annual number of civil society submissions to the implementation monitoring process, as well as improve the timing and quality of submissions. 

  • We carried out ECtHR implementation training for almost 400 participants from 28 countries.

  • We raised awareness of the ECtHR implementation problem, through resources, publications, and events. In early 2021 the Council of Europe made the implementation of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights its top priority in its strategy for 2021-2024.