European Union

Whistleblowers, fragile defenders of democracy

22/06/2017 -  Gian-Paolo Accardo

They put in danger their private and professional lives to reveal the embezzlement and irregularities they discover in their workplaces, yet whistleblowers do not enjoy the protection they deserve. But things in Europe are now starting to shift

A plan to strengthen the social dimension of Europe

24/05/2017 -  Sara Gradilone

The European Commission's proposal to create a European Pillar of Social Rights is a step towards an integrated and coherent framework on social rights at the European level. This will also provide member states with a frame of reference for developing their own individual policies

Violence against women: the EU's potential accession to the Istanbul Convention

24/05/2017 -  Lorenzo Ferrari

Half of the EU member-states have not yet ratified the Convention on violence against women. The European Parliament and the Commission have decided that the EU as such should adhere to the Convention, which could signal a breakthrough for a genuine European policy against violence

Konstantina Kuneva: for an inclusive European society

28/04/2017 -  Gilda Lyghounis

Cleaners, care-givers, baby-sitters: 9 out of 10 are women, often exploited. MEP Konstantina Kuneva, who was personally attacked for her activism, now fights for female workers' rights in Europe

EU-Bulgaria, a multi-speed anniversary

06/04/2017 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

Bulgaria, the EU, and the 60th anniversary of the Treaties of Rome. From the collapse of the Berlin Wall to ''multi-speed Europe". An interview with Professor Anna Krasteva

The House of European History

03/04/2017 -  Marco Abram

A museum that seeks to project a transnational vision of European history. An ambitious project that has not escaped controversy and criticism. An interview with director Taja Vovk van Gaal

Humanitarian Visas, still an open question

23/03/2017 -  Francesca Spinelli

The recent verdict of the European Court of Justice comes as a blow to those who want to see safe and legal access to the EU for refugees. But the reform of the Code on Visas offers another chance for change, and the European Parliament is keen on not letting it get away

Defending in Court the case of humanitarian visas for refugees

06/03/2017 -  Francesca Spinelli

The EU Court of Justice Advocate General Paolo Mengozzi demonstrated that governments are legally obliged to grant asylum to Syrian refugees. In a landmark verdict to be delivered on 7 March, the Court could decide to adopt Mengozzi’s arguments or to strike a blow to the hopes of so many Syrians

Targeting Russian TV channels

15/03/2017 -  Lorenzo Ferrari

The tensions between the European Union and Russia are changing the ways in which the EU defines and combats hate-speech. Attention is growing on the role of Russian TVs in Eastern Europe

Bosnian ethnopolis in Strasbourg: a controversial resolution

03/03/2017 -  Alfredo Sasso

Tensions between Zagreb and Sarajevo over potential further decentralization of Bosnia Herzegovina, following the positions exposed in a resolution recently adopted by the European parliament

Women are the first victims

21/02/2017 -  Sergio Cebrián

Trafficked women in EU countries most commonly end up in sexual exploitation. And Member States’ different legal processes and legislation are not helping to combat this evil

Serbia: how the authorities block access to information

23/02/2017 -  Simon Lenormand

Serbia has one of the best laws in the world to guarantee public access to information. The problem is, the state does not respect its own laws. And the situation may get worse in the future

The EU opens to Georgians travellers

10/02/2017 -  Monica Ellena Tbilisi

On Thursday, February 2nd, the European Parliament approved visa liberalisation for Georgia. Now the formalities at the EU Council of Ministers, and by the end of March the first travellers

Refugees in Europe: “Let's not make it a battle of the bottom feeders”

07/02/2017 -  Fazıla Mat

More Eu funds are needed to support reception measures for refugees as well as European citizens experiencing poverty. Interview with Brando Benifei, Italian MEP, on the management of the refugees crisis in Europe

Diplomacy and change: on Georgia's recent access to H2020 funds

19/01/2017 -  Abel Polese

Georgia has now full access to Horizon 2020: a great opportunity for research and innovation but at the same time a challenge for scientists and academia

European Union: Who enforces fundamental rights?

10/01/2017 -  Alberto Tagliapietra

Setting high standards for aspiring member countries, but ineffective with Member States: European institutions have problems with fundamental rights

Cécile Kyenge on Europe and migrations

22/12/2016 -  Fazıla Mat

Facing the migration problem means keeping the European project alive. We spoke to the author of a recent report on the issue, Cécile Kyenge, Italian member of the European parliament

EU-Turkey Agreement: an appeal to the European Court of Justice

06/12/2016

Access Info Europe, a Madrid-based organization promoting access to information, filed a petition to the European Court of Justice asking the disclosure of the legal details of the EU-Turkey deal on migration

Our man in Moldova

21/10/2016 -  Eleanor KnottMihai Popșoi

In courting the country’s most loathed oligarch, the EU and US will only lose the sympathy of ordinary Moldovans

Hungary, after the referendum

07/11/2016 -  Marzia Bona

After a controversial and divisive referendum, what is the outlook for Hungary and the region on the subject of refugees? We interviewed Gábor Gyulai, of the Hungarian Helsinki Committee

IFJ and EFJ discuss media freedom in Turkey with CoE's General Secretary

13/10/2016

International and European Federations of Journalists and other partner media organisations of the Council of Europe Platform for the Safety of Journalists met in Strasbourg with the CoE's General Secretary

EBU concerned about threat to HRT and public service media in Croatia

29/09/2016

The EBU is deeply concerned about the threat to HRT in Croatia by plans to make a reduction of the licence fee part of the negotiations to form a new government

Government steps up its “no” campaign

28/09/2016 -  Yann Schreiber

On 2 October, Hungary will vote on a EU refugee distribution scheme. The government, who is calling on the population to reject the Commission's proposal, recently stepped up a taxpayer-funded campaign many say is xenophobic and fear-mongering

South Caucasus and the Balkans: child protection

27/09/2016 -  Mariana IanachieviciDaniela Buzducea

An Index that serves to remind countries of their commitments to child protection. Created jointly by World Vision and ChildPact, it will be launched in Brussels on 28 September

European Commission eager to foster media pluralism and public service media in Western Balkans

08/09/2016

A delegation of the EFJ met EU Commissioner Johannes Hahn to discuss how to improve working conditions of journalists in the Western Balkans

Albania, the justice reform

04/08/2016 -  Tsai Mali

The justice reform, approved on July 21st, amends as many as 45 articles of the Albanian Constitution. Citizens, however, still know little about it

F1 and the limits of public diplomacy

21/07/2016 -  Chiara Loda

The economic crisis and the cold international attendance at the Baku European Games are some possible explanations for the partial change of diplomatic strategy of Azerbaijan

Brexit: the consequences for the EU enlargement

27/06/2016 -  Marzia Bona

The results of the referendum held in the UK will have significant consequences for the process of European integration of the South-Eastern European countries

Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Turkey: the 2016 winners of the EU Awards for Investigative Journalism

01/06/2016

The second EU Investigate Journalism Awards in the Western Balkans and Turkey have been announced in Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Turkey

The crisis of the EU solidarity: legal issues

17/05/2016 -  Luisa Chiodi

A review of some conflictual issues dividing Member States dealing with the refugee crisis. Interview with Irene Wieczorek, researcher at the Institute for European Studies