Conference for LGBT families in Europe

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Conference for LGBT families in Europe

• Overview of the work of the Council of Europe in
  the field of family law
• Sabrina Cajoly - Council of Europe
• Directorate General of Human Rights and Legal
  Affairs/ Directorate of Standard-Setting
• www.coe.int

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INTRODUCTION

• THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE IN BRIEF

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General data

• International Organisation distinct from the EU

• 47 Member States
• Observers Canada, Mexico, Holy See,Japan, USA
• Applicant State Belarus

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Objectives

• Protection and promotion of common values
• Democracy, Human rights, Rule of law
• Awareness and development of Europe's cultural
  identity and diversity
• Solutions to the challenges facing European
  society (e.g discrimination against minorities,
  xenophobia, intolerance, bioethics and cloning,
  terrorism, trafficking in human beings, organised
  crime and corruption, cybercrime, violence
  against children)
• Consolidation of democratic stability in Europe
  by backing political, legislative and
  constitutional reform

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Institutions
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The European Court of Human Rights

• ECHR concrete regional reflection of the 1948
  Universal Declaration of Human Rights at the
  European level

• Obligatory jurisdiction
• Binding decisions (condition for accession)
• Individual petition against alledged violations

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PART 1

• General work of the Council of Europe on
  discrimination based on sexual orientation

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ECHR

• ECtHR case-law from Dudgeon v UK (1981) to EB v
  France (2008)
• Protocol n12 general prohibition of
  discrimination

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PACE

• Adoption of Recommendations
• Recommendation 924 (1981) on discrimination
  against homosexuals
• Recommendation 1470 (2000) on situation of gays
  and lesbians and their partners in respect to
  asylum and immigration in the member states of
  the Council of Europe
• Recommendation 1635 (2003) Lesbians and gays in
  sport
• Draft recommendation on the legal recognition of
  same-sex couples (in progress)
• Draft recommendation on freedom of assembly and
  expression of LGBT

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Other institutions

• Congress of Local and Regional Authorities
• Recommendation 211 (2007) on freedom of
  expression
• Secretary General
• public declarations
• Commissioner for Human Rights
• public declarations and annual report
• Other campaigns, training, publications

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Committee of Ministers

• Statements
• Standards ?

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PART 2

• CoES INTERGOVERNMENTAL WORK IN FAMILY LAW

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Directorate General of Human Rights and Legal
Affairs (DG-HL)
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CJ-FA

• Objective harmonise policies and adopt common
  standards and practices in member States in the
  field of family law.
• Priority areas family law and protection of
  children (Third Summit of Heads of State and
  Government held in Warsaw in May 2005 and the
  Programme Building Europe with and for the
  Children)
• Main adopted texts
• 1975 European Convention on the Legal Status of
  Children Born Out of Wedlock, Recommendation
  (84)4 on parental responsibilities and the White
  Paper on principles concerning the establishment
  and legal consequences of parentage
• 1980 European Convention on Recognition and
  Enforcement of Decisions Concerning Custody of
  Children and a Restoration of Custody of Children
  
• 1996 European Convention on the Exercise of
  Childrens Rights (2000)
• 2003 European Convention on Contact Concerning
  Children (2005)

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Draft European Convention on Adoption (revised)
1/2

• Objective
• harmonise the law of the member states by setting
  minimum rules on adoption
• set core principles best interest of the child,
  childs consent to an adoption, the right of the
  adopted child to know his or her origin
• Takes into account
• the provisions of the United Nations Convention
  on the Rights of the Child of 1989
• the European Convention on the exercise of
  childrens rights (ETS No.160)
• the case-law of the European Court of Human
  Rights

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Draft European Convention on Adoption (revised)
2/2

• Added value
• updates the 1967 Convention on the adoption of
  children
• takes into account social changes over the last
  40 years
• deals with national adoption
• complements the Hague Convention of 1993 on the
  Protection of Children and Co-operation in
  Respect of Inter-country Adoption
• offers the possibility to the States which wish
  to do so to extend the scope of the revised
  Convention to adoptions by same-sex couples
• Status adoption expected in the near future

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Feasibility study (1/2)

• Scope
• Rights and legal status of children being brought
  up in various forms of marital or non-marital
  partnership and co-habitation
• Feasibility study on the appropriateness of
  preparing a standard on this issue
• Methodology
• independent expert
• proposals concerning the possible follow-up to be
  given

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Feasibility study (2/2)

• European Conference on Family Law 2009
• Possible outcomes
• Types of standards conventions / recommendations
• Standard-setting process
• Revision of the Convention for children born out
  of wedlock?
• Monitoring mechanism

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Conclusion

• Discrimination based on sexual orientation and
  LGBT families becoming a CoEs priority?
• Possible contributions of NGOs and activists to
  the work of the CoE

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Thank you for your attention!
www.coe.int