CEDH · PRESS;GENERAL;ENG — 18 janvier 2010

.s800EAC49 { font-size:12pt } .sA678F94A { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:right; font-size:11pt } .s29100277 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold } .s598389F8 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:center; font-size:11pt } .s2E932ED2 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; font-size:11pt } .sBB9EE52A { font-family:Arial } .s32563E28 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt } .s4BAE41EE { font-family:Arial; font-size:11pt } .s7ED160F0 { text-decoration:none } .s92A5AB2 { font-family:Arial; font-size:11pt; text-decoration:underline; color:#0069d6 } .s99A63BFE { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:left; font-size:11pt } .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 } 038 18.01.2010   Press release issued by the Registrar   EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS’ ACHIEVEMENTS RECOGNISED BY PRESTIGIOUS AWARD   The Roosevelt Stichting of Middelburg, the Netherlands, has granted the European Court of Human rights the Franklin D. Roosevelt International Four Freedoms Award for 2010.   Noting its remarkable record in establishing solid foundations for the rule of law in the field of human rights, the Roosevelt Institute has expressed its appreciation for the Court’s contribution to the protection of individual human rights in post-war Europe, offering in particular an accessible tool to strengthen an effective democracy.   The President of the Court, Jean-Paul Costa, will attend the award ceremony to receive the Four Freedoms Medal on the Court’s behalf in May 2010 in Middelburg, the Netherlands.   Commenting today in Strasbourg, Erik Fribergh, the Court’s Registrar, said: “This recognition reaffirms at international level that the Court has a major role to play in the protection mechanism of human rights, notably as an independent body empowered to call States to account for any breach of the European Convention on Human Rights and its Protocols.”   The Freedom Medal was created to honour individuals and institutions whose work has given special meaning to the freedoms which President Roosevelt described in his memorable speech of 1941 in which he outlined four essential human freedoms: the freedom of speech and expression, the freedom of religion, the freedom from want and the freedom from fear. Among the recipients of the award in the past years have been Nelson Mandela, Vaclav Havel, the Dalai Lama and Kofi Annan.   ***   Further information about the Court can be found on its Internet site ( http://www.echr.coe.int ).   Press contacts Tracey Turner-Tretz (telephone : 00 33 (0)3 88 41 35 30) or Stefano Piedimonte (telephone : 00 33 (0)3 90 21 42 04) Kristina Pencheva-Malinowski (telephone : 00 33 (0)3 88 41 35 70) Céline Menu-Lange (telephone : 00 33 (0)3 90 21 58 77) Frédéric Dolt (telephone : 00 33 (0)3 90 21 53 39) Nina Salomon (telephone: 00 33 (0)3 90 21 49 79)   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.