Tuheljsko Toplice, Croatia, 6-10 February 2008
The first session of INTERIGHTS’ training for Croatian lawyers on the European Convention of Human Rights took place in Tuheljsko Toplice, Croatia, from 6-10 February 2008. The training is organised by the Center for Peace Studies, a Zagreb-based non-governmental organization, in cooperation with INTERIGHTS, and is based upon similar programmes carried out in the past by INTERIGHTS in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Bulgaria and Serbia and Montenegro.
The first session of the training included an introduction to the Convention machinery, as well in-depth analyses of Articles 2 (the right to life) and 3 (the prohibition of torture, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment) of the Convention. Twenty lawyers from all over Croatia were selected by the organisers to take part.
Ivana Radacic, a lawyer working with the Center for Peace Studies, gave a presentation on the principles of the Convention and interpretative techniques employed by the Strasbourg Court. Hasan Bakirci, a lawyer with the Registry of the Court, introduced participants to the Convention system. Constantin Cojocariu, lawyer with the INTERIGHTS’ Europe Programme, spoke about the admissibility requirements for applications to the European Court of Human Rights.
Hasan Bakirci and Constantin Cojocariu gave presentations on Articles 2 and 3 of the Convention respectively. Lovorka Kusan, a local lawyer and Ksenija Turkovic, professor at the Law Faculty of the University of Zagreb examined issues related to the compatibility of domestic law and practice in Croatia with these articles. Finally, participants took part in two moot court exercises, exploring the problems discussed during the training. During these exercises, the participants had to write submissions to the Court on behalf of the applicants and the Government and take part in a mock Court hearing.
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