CEDH · PRESS;GENERAL;ENG — 8 décembre 2008

.s800EAC49 { font-size:12pt } .sFE10DC93 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:center } .s29100277 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold } .s40F41F73 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:right } .s30870011 { font-family:Arial; font-size:8pt; font-weight:bold; vertical-align:super } .s32563E28 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt } .sBB9EE52A { font-family:Arial } .s83BE5C30 { font-family:Arial; font-size:8pt; vertical-align:super } .s7ED160F0 { text-decoration:none } .s3DC36BA9 { font-family:Arial; text-decoration:underline; color:#0069d6 } .sCB9E0544 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:left } .sC7EAD8B { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold; text-decoration:underline } .s4DDA3AA3 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold; font-style:italic } .sA36B60A1 { font-family:Arial; font-style:italic } EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS   887 8.12.2008   Press release issued by the Registrar   60 th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: Three regional human rights courts meet in Strasbourg   As part of the celebrations to mark the 60 th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Jean-Paul Costa, President of the European Court of Human Rights, has opened a seminar on regional human rights courts at the European Court of Human Rights. The seminar has been organised with the French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs and the Strasbourg-based International Institute of Human Rights, and in association with the African Foundation for International Law and the Inter-American Institute of Human Rights.   The aim of the meeting is to establish a lasting network between the judges of human rights courts, in order to step up cooperation between these courts and strengthen regional human rights protection mechanisms on a political and practical level.   President Costa welcomed the fact that the three regional human rights courts – the European Court of Human Rights, the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights – were meeting for first time for a joint event.   He reiterated the political and moral role of the Universal Declaration, and the close ties between it and the European system for human rights protection, which was a direct extension of the Universal Declaration. President Costa expressed his esteem for the Universal Declaration, which, “60 years after it was drafted, continues to act as a benchmark for the Strasbourg Court”.   President Costa also used this occasion to pay a solemn tribute to René Cassin: one of the main authors of the Declaration, he was the first French judge at the Strasbourg Court (which he presided from 1965 to 1968), established the International Institute of Human Rights, which is named after him, and was awarded, among other honours, the Nobel Peace Prize (1968).   ***   Further information about the Court can be found on its Internet site ( http://www.echr.coe.int ).   Press contacts Adrien Raif-Meyer (telephone: 00 33 (0)3 88 41 33 37) Tracey Turner-Tretz (telephone: 00 33 (0)3 88 41 35 30) Sania Ivedi (telephone: 00 33 (0)3 90 21 59 45)   The European Court of Human Rights was set up in Strasbourg by the Council of Europe Member States in 1959 to deal with alleged violations of the 1950 European Convention on Human Rights.