No Hate Parliamentary Alliance
At a glance
[14/10/2019] Berlin, Parliamentary Conference on Counterstrategies against hate-speech – where are we now and what is our goal?
Why do some politicians refer to “waves” of migrants reaching Europe? Should journalists only report on facts or can they also mention possible solutions? Are criminal sanctions the only response to hate speech? These and many other questions were debated in Berlin on 14 October 2019 by members of the No Hate Parliamentary Alliance, German parliamentarians, human rights activists, journalists and other experts. Through three sessions, participants learnt more about “political framing”, “constructive journalism”, and examples of counter speech actions.
Wolfgang Schäuble, President of the Bundestag and former member of the German government, participated in the opening session together with Andreas Nick, Head of the German delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly, and Gabriela Heinrich, former General Rapporteur on combating racism and intolerance and initiator of this event. Franziska Giffey, Federal Minister for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth, opened the second session.
Momodou Malcolm Jallow, newly appointed General Rapporteur and coordinator of the No Hate Parliamentary Alliance, took the opportunity to present the political priorities for his term in office: strengthening cooperation with civil society organisations and integrating an intersectional approach will be at the forefront of the activities of the Alliance.
Audio recording of the conference
- Sitting 1 - English (link to German version)
- Sitting 2 - English (link to German version)
- Sitting 3 - English (link to German version)
[24/11/2017, Tirana] Albania: Alliance launches No Hate Certificate to acknowledge and make visible the role of civil society in combating intolerance
Co-operating with civil society has been part of the way of functioning of the No Hate Parliamentary Alliance from the start. Representatives of associations and non-governmental organisations have been crucial interlocutors and have helped members to understand the reality of hatred, racism and intolerance in Europe today.
The No Hate Parliamentary Alliance has now established a way to acknowledge the role of these actors in supporting its cause, and to promote and make visible the principles enshrined in the Alliance's Charter. Schools, sports clubs, youth and human rights non-governmental organisations, as well as online blogs, pages and new outlets, may be granted a No Hate Certificate which would confirm their contribution to fighting hatred and intolerance in Europe in whatever form it manifests itself. Candidates will be nominated by Alliance members in close co-operation with the No Hate Speech Movement campaign of the Council of Europe's Youth Sector, and by national committees of the campaign itself.
"Certified" entities will be featured in the website and social media of the Alliance and the Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination of the Parliamentary Assembly. They will be encouraged to work closely with the Alliance – it is hoped that the Certificate will only be the first step in this direction.
More information on the regulations and nomination form:
[24/11/2017, Tirana] Albania: A parliamentary seminar against hate
A seminar on the Albanian legislation with regard to the fight against intolerance, discrimination and hatred, organised by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in co-operation with the parliament of Albania and the No Hate Parliamentary Alliance, will take place in Tirana on Friday 24 November 2017.
"The positive developments in the country testify of the Albanian authorities' political will to fill the gaps and improve the legal framework in this area. Legislation and policies are still needed and the work to this ends should continue," said Gabriella Heinrich, General Rapporteur on combating racism and intolerance, coordinator of the No Hate Parliamentary Alliance.
The seminar – the last in a series of four held in Tirana, and in Rome to implement the Assembly's part in the Council of Europe Action Plan for Albania 2015-2017 – will bring together parliamentarians, institutions and local and international experts to look at what needs to change in the country's laws to bring them into line with international standards.
The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI)'s work on Albania and on hate speech will be among the main references for the discussion among participants. The experience of the No Hate Speech Movement campaign in Albania and in other Council of Europe member States, as well as the previous national seminars of the Alliance (Rome, Paris, Sarajevo, Berlin) will contribute to the exchanges.
A press conference was organised at the end of the seminar at 6pm, which will take place in the Parliament (Blv. Deshmoret e Kombit, Nr. 4, 1000 Tirana), from 10 am to 6 pm.
[02/08/2017, Strasbourg] Roma genocide: remembering the past to strengthen the fight against prejudice
PACE's General Rapporteur on combating racism and intolerance makes a declaration on the occasion of International Roma Holocaust Remembrance Day
"On the occasion of International Roma Holocaust Remembrance Day, I call on the member States of the Council of Europe to strengthen their efforts to ensure that sites where Roma were persecuted and exterminated during World War II are recognised and that the public knows about the horrific crimes that were committed against Roma during this conflict," said the PACE's General Rapporteur on combating racism and intolerance, Milena Santerini (Italy, SOC), speaking on the eve of this event (2 August 2017).
"In these troubling times of rising populism and as more and more survivors of the genocide pass away, International Roma Holocaust Remembrance Day reminds us that there is still much to be done. Today more than ever, places of remembrance must allow us to preserve the memory of victims while promoting tolerance and mutual understanding, so as to strengthen the fight against discrimination today," she said.
"Remembrance is not an abstract thing. We must apply the memory of the past to present events, to give meaning to Europe today," she concluded.
[06/07/2017, Rome] Italian parliament's Jo Cox Committee on hate, intolerance, xenophobia and racism adopts final report
In May 2016, accepting a call addressed to parliaments of Council of Europe member States by the No Hate Alliance, Italy's Chamber of Deputies set up a special committee on hate, intolerance, xenophobia and racism, in charge of studying hate phenomena and providing recommendations on how to counter them.
This committee, composed of one member of parliament for each political group, as well as independent experts and representatives of international governmental and non-governmental organisations, was chaired by Speaker Laura Boldrini. It was later named after Jo Cox, the British parliamentarian murdered during the Brexit referendum campaign. Deputy Secretary General Gabriella Battaini Dragoni and two members of the secretariat, respectively of ECRI and the Parliamentary Assembly, represented the Council of Europe within the committee.
On 6 July 2017, the Jo Cox Committee adopted its final report. The document presents evidence of high levels of prejudice and misinformation in Italy, with widespread forms of intolerance and discrimination based on grounds such as gender, ethnic origin, religion, sexual orientation and gender identity. The report describes a "pyramid of hate", an effective visual representation of how negative stereotyping and misrepresentation, which constitute the base of the pyramid, lead to discrimination and then to hate speech, which in turn escalates into hate crimes.
While it cooperated with the Council of Europe and made use of its work, including ECRI general policy recommendations and PACE adopted texts, the Jo Cox Committee collected and processed indications from a variety of actors at national level. The conclusions and recommendations presented in the final report, however, may be of interest for those committed to countering hatred and intolerance also beyond the boundaries of Italy.
- Summary of the main findings of the Jo Cox Committee
- Recommendations by the Jo Cox Committee
- Full report by the Jo Cox Committee (Italian only)
[08/04/2017, Strasbourg] 'We must break the cycle of ignorance and anti-Gypsyism'
General Rapporteur on combating racism and intolerance makes a declaration on the occasion of International Roma Day
"Discrimination against and exclusion of Roma and Travellers must give way once and for all to recognition and inclusion" said Milena Santerini (Italy, SOC), General Rapporteur on combating racism and intolerance, on the occasion of International Roma Day (8 April 2017). "On this day of commemoration, we should commit ourselves to engaging actively in promoting better knowledge of the culture and history of Roma and Travellers and improving intercultural coexistence."
"As the Assembly underlined in its recent Resolution 2153 (2017), nobody's life chances should be determined by their ethnic origin," Ms Santerini stressed.
"Integrating Roma and Travellers is in everyone's interests, and more and more States are adopting strategies to this effect. But for such initiatives to have a lasting impact, it is crucial to fight anti-Gypsyism and combat prejudices and stereotypes. Today more than ever, I invite national parliaments, political leaders and citizens to mobilise against anti-Gypsyism and all forms of racism and intolerance," she concluded.