Jagland - “When the rule of law stops, tyranny begins"

Speech by Thorbjørn Jagland,
Secretary General of the Council of Europe
International Holocaust Remembrance Day
Strasbourg, 27 January 2011

66 years is a long time, but then again, it is not.  It is less than a lifetime.  If the Holocaust had not happened, if one and a half million children would not have lost their lives in the most horrible circumstances, there would have been a million and a half more grandfathers and grandmothers in Europe, enjoying their retirement, spending time with their grandchildren.  But they were murdered.

One and a half million children and millions more adults, Jews, Roma, homosexuals, disabled people, political dissidents, religious minorities and others, singled out for their race, religion, political beliefs, or their sexual orientation.  Murdered.

Video: Roma Mediators Training Programme - Day 1

On the first day of the Council of Europe's Roma mediators training programme, Ana Oprisan, 35, a Romanian living in Istanbul, Turkey, talks about the project, her experience and her expectations.

Background

Jagland: "Europe Torn Apart By Globalisation, Xenophobia And Social Exclusion"

Speech by Thorbjorn Jagland
Secretary General of the Council of Europe 
To the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe

Monday, 24 January 2011

Main News Report

All great projects in history combine vision with pragmatism. Believing in something, even very enthusiastically, is not enough. It is what we do about it which makes a difference between great ideas and great illusions.

This was true sixty years ago when our organisation was created, and it is very much true today.

Hearing On Education And Training: Tools For Roma Integration

Brussels, 14 January 2011
Contribution by Olöf Olafsdottir, Director of Education and Languages, Council of Europe

Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Participants,


May I begin by thanking the organisers for inviting the Council of Europe to participate in this Hearing. It is a pleasure for me to be here and to be able to inform you about our work for improving Roma education.