75 years of the European Convention on Human Rights: young people must be able to help shape the future

The European Convention on Human Rights is one of the key achievements of the Council of Europe. The fact that its 75th anniversary was celebrated in the German Bundestag with a conference is an important signal. At the same time, it shows that anyone who wants to make democracy and human rights fit for the future must not only address young people, but also involve them effectively.

Important debate on human rights and democracy

With the conference "75 years of the European Convention on Human Rights: a European triumph in danger", the German delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has taken up a highly topical issue. In view of the pressure on democratic institutions, human rights and European cohesion, this debate is urgently needed.

 

Young people are more than just an audience

It is particularly important that young people are explicitly named as the central target group of these debates. Clara Föller, member of the Advisory Council on Youth of the Council of Europe, emphasises this: "The future of democracy, human rights and Europe also depends on whether young people can support and further develop the Council of Europe. It is up to the member states to live and defend these values and to involve young people accordingly. From a youth association perspective, however, it is not enough to invite school classes as an audience and individual youth association representatives as visitors. Good participation means that young people can contribute their perspectives, questions and demands independently.

 

Y-SPACE stood for genuine participation

This is exactly what the international youth conference Youth-SPACE Berlin (Y-SPACE for short) has stood for in recent years. In 2022, 2023 and 2024, it brought together young people from various European countries in the German Bundestag together with the German PVER delegation, the German Federal Youth Council and the Council of Europe. The aim was not only to exchange ideas, but also to actively engage young people in political dialogue on democracy, human rights and the future of Europe. In 2024, more than 50 young representatives of national youth organisations from 21 countries discussed these issues in the German Bundestag and developed joint recommendations.

 

Strengthening partnership formats again

Özge Erdoğan, spokesperson for the DNK, is convinced: "If you want to strengthen the Council of Europe and human rights in the long term, you have to take the young generation seriously as political actors". This shared responsibility requires formats that not only name participation, but also enable it in practice. The Federal Youth Council is therefore in favour of returning to a format such as Y-SPACE: as a European conference that puts young people at the centre of the debate and can have a political impact beyond the day of the event. The past few years have shown how valuable this cooperation is - for the exchange on democracy and human rights as well as for a lively European culture of participation.

Themen: DNK - News Europarat