IDEES, the publication edited by the Centre for the Study of Contemporary Issues of the Ministry for Foreign Action and European Union, yesterday presented its latest issue dedicated to reflecting on human rights in 21st century Europe. The publication has been launched to coincide with the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The monograph brings together some fifteen reflections on the violations of fundamental rights occurring in Europe, related to the war in Ukraine, threats to the rule of law, attacks on freedom of expression and the right to protest, the outsourcing of border control, the denial of fundamental rights in Europe, the denial of citizenship rights to migrants and the dangers posed by new technologies, by authors such as Paul Mason, Simona Levi, Francesc Claret and Adriana Ribas, accompanied by a selection of images by the renowned photojournalist Alessio Mamo.

The presentation ceremony took place on Sunday 12 December in the auditorium of the La Model Cultural Centre with the participation of Christos Giakoumopoulos, Director General of Human Rights and Rule of Law of the Council of Europe – the main institution for the defence of human rights in Europe – and the journalist Cristina Mas. The Minister for Equality and Feminisms, Tània Verge Mestre, gave the closing address.

The Director of the Centre for the Study of Contemporary Issues (CETC), Pau Mas Codina, opened the session by highlighting the role of the CETC in the field of strategic foresight, and emphasised the quality of the reflections included in IDEES magazine. Meanwhile, the Director General for the Promotion and Defence of Human Rights of the Government of Catalonia, Adam Majó Garriga, praised the joint efforts to promote this publication and highlighted the importance of human rights institutions in Europe.

Christos Giakoumopoulos, Director General of Human Rights and Rule of Law of the Council of Europe, underlined the importance and relevance of fundamental rights in today’s world, 75 years after the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. According to Giakoumopoulos, human rights "must not be understood from an ideological point of view, but as a necessary instrument for everyone, without geographical, social, economic or racial distinction". In this regard, he pointed out that one of the reasons behind the loss of consensus on human rights is the fact that "institutions have not been sufficiently capable of explaining the relationship between social stability, economic prosperity and respect for fundamental rights".

The Minister for Equality and Feminisms of the Government of Catalonia, Tània Verge Mestre, was in charge of bringing the event to a close. Minister Verge stated that Catalonia wants to be a key player in guaranteeing human rights on an international scale. "In today’s context of a risk of regression, in which we are seeing governments repealing legislation on human rights on a daily basis, we need courageous governments and international organisations that are committed to guaranteeing fundamental rights that goes beyond mere rhetoric.The Catalan Government wants to be a bastion of human rights".