Three new decrees concerning prison life, prison work and juvenile detention facilities in Italy are the shredded and faded version of what was hoped for. In particular, it is striking that in the final version of one...

Human rights judges have declared Italy was wrong to stop a transgender person from changing her male forename prior to surgery.

The trial of a 94-year-old former SS guard has begun in Germany. Johann Rehbogen is accused of complicity in mass murder at a Nazi death camp during the Second World War. Rehbogen served in the Stutthof, in...

At the Greste Baltic Freedom of Speech Awards, held on 6 November, the Lithuanian journalistic community as a whole was honored for its efforts in combatting the state’s attempts to limit public information. Also...

Lithuania has issued a postage stamp to commemorate Lithuanian women being granted voting rights. Lithuania became one of the first states in Europe to allow women to vote, on 2 November 1918. This shows that even at...

CIVICUS Monitor update on Hungary - November 2018

Although the attitudes of authoritarians haven't changed all the much over time, the media landscape has. It's now more accessible – and ripe for abuse – than ever before.

The centre-right European People's Party (EPP), wants to adopt a resolution in defence of liberal democracies. The largest political grouping in the EU is reacting to mounting pressure that has allowed the rise of...

Over 1,000 Irish citizens have signed a letter to Irish PM Leo Varadkar to "defend the rights of Irish citizens" in Northern Ireland. According to its initiators, this is necessary due to Brexit. It has been signed by...

Bulgaria and Romania should be admitted to the Schengen area as soon as possible, members of the European Parliament's Civil Liberties Committee urge. MEPs want EU ministers to swiftly approve the accession of...