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Too often victims of crime are denied their rights. They are left voiceless and unsupported. Young people and minorities particularly suffer, as FRA will reveal during a debate on 19 February.
Crime can touch any of us – as witnesses or as victims. But no matter who you are, we all have rights when it comes to justice. These three short clips show some aspects of working together for justice, rights of victims of crime and rights of witnesses of crime.
We don’t all experience crime in the same way, and we might deal with it differently. But it’s vital – as victims or witnesses – that our rights are guaranteed, because access to justice is our fundamental right. Watch FRA Director Michael O’Flaherty speaking on the Fundamental Rights Survey report on crime, safety and victims’ rights.
Crime can touch any of us – as witnesses or as victims. But no matter who you are, we all have rights when it comes to justice. It is for this reason that the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights asked 35,000 people across Europe about their experiences of crime in its Fundamental Rights Survey, and the results are in.
More than one in four Europeans were victims of harassment and 22 million were physically attacked in one year. But crime victims typically do not report their experiences. They often have difficulties accessing their rights and may feel voiceless. These are the results of the first-ever EU-wide survey on the general population’s experience of crime, carried out by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA). The results reveal how targeted measures can help governments support victims and make it easier to report crime and receive justice.
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In his latest vlog FRA Director Michael O'Flaherty calls for making Covid-19 vaccine equality a top priority for 2021.
News Item
On 12 February, the European Guardianship Network held a meeting to discuss the development of FRA’s Trainers’ Manual on Guardianship.
FRA presented areas where EU funding could help address fundamental rights challenges in the field of asylum, borders and immigration. This could support Member States om their the implementation of EU law safeguards as they prepare their multiannual programmes under the new migration and security funds.
FRA will take part in a discussion on the application of the Framework Decision on the European Arrest Warrant. The discussions form part of a FairTrials webinar on 18 February.
The European Asylum Support Office will host a webinar on 16 February where FRA will present the results of its LGBTI survey.
FRA carried out fundamental rights training during a webinar on interoperability of the EU large-scale IT systems.
FRA attended the EU-funded LA-Child project’s online conference ‘Legal aid for children in criminal proceedings’. The project aims to strengthen the procedural rights of children in conflict with laws enshrined in the EU’s Procedural Safeguards Directive.
As part of a series of national Fundamental Rights Charter events across the EU, FRA joined a roundtable discussion in Hungary. The discussion celebrated the 20th anniversary of EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the 2019 laureate of the European Parliament’s Sakharov-prize for the freedom of thought, Ilham Tohti.
FRA will join the close of the European Commission’s online conference on the feasibility of a child guarantee. The event will cover some of the findings from a feasibility study, the second phase of the Preparatory Action for a Child Guarantee.
FRA’s Fundamentally Right podcast series launched on 19 January. The final episode, Law: a bird's eye view, with FRA's Gabriel Toggenburg, is now out.
FRA Director, Michael O’Flaherty, will address the online high-level international conference on ‘Human Rights Go Local: What Works’ on 9 February. He will join discussions on building bridges with local governments on human rights.
The Agency’s Scientific Committee will meet on 5 February.
FRA gave a presentation on good practices to protect and promote human rights during and after COVID during the EU Migration Preparedness and Crisis Management Mechanism (Blueprint) Network meeting on 4 February.
FRA took part in an expert meeting on children in migration. Member States’ authorities and EU agencies attended the 28 January event. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the state of play in the implementation of the 2017 European Commission’s Communication on protecting migrant children.