Estonia, EU – Baltic States, Forum, Legislation, Technology

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"As the speaker for the member states of the Council of Europe, Estonia will stand firmly for the fundamental values of Europe – human rights, democracy and the rule of law," Kaljurand said according to spokespeople for the Estonian Foreign Ministry.

The Estonian minister congratulated Bulgaria on the conclusion of the successful chairmanship and said that Estonia will go on with the topics raised during the Bulgarian chairmanship and will add on its part some additional dimensions, including the digital one. "We will focus on delivering concrete results in the following three areas: human rights and rule of law on the internet, gender equality and children's rights," she said.

Based on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the European Convention on Human Rights and other legal standards, the Council of Europe promotes and protects the rights of 150 million children in Europe. During its chairmanship, Estonia will place emphasis on three key areas: child participation, children's rights in the digital environment and children in migration. These subjects will be addressed at several events taking place during the Estonian chairmanship.

In human rights and the rule of law on the internet, Estonia will seek to maintain the momentum and continuity of internet governance as a catalyst for protecting the human rights of internet users and ensuring their digital safety and security. To this end, Estonia will support the EuroDIG 2016 Conference, to be held in Brussels from June 9-10, 2016, which has become the main European platform for informal and inclusive discussion and exchange on public policy issues related to internet governance.  

On the subject of gender equality, a high-level stocktaking conference dealing with The Council of Europe Gender Equality Strategy 2014-2017 will be held in Tallinn on June 30 and July 1, 2016. In addition, more specific attention will be paid to the topics of gender mainstreaming, one of the five strategic objectives of the strategy, and the impact of new media on gender equality.

On Wednesday, speaking about ensuring human rights in conflict regions, Kaljurand underscored the need to keep a consistent focus on the situation in the occupied Crimea, Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

Estonia will be chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe until Nov. 22 this year when the chairmanship will be taken over by Cyprus.

The first time that Estonia served as chairman of the Council of Europe was in 1996.