As of 16 March 2023, the Committee of Ministers has issued a Recommendation regarding rights, services and support for victims of crime to Council of Europe Members.

Date: 20/03/2023

Anouk PINAUD

International Justice and Human Rights Researcher 

Global Human Rights Defence

As of 16 March 2023, the Committee of Ministers has issued a Recommendation regarding rights, services and support for victims of crime to 46 Council of Europe members. 

The Council of Europe is an international organization with its headquarters in Strasbourg (FRANCE). Its mission is to promote democracy and protect human rights and the rule of law in Europe. The Committee of Ministers is the decision-making body of the Council of Europe. It is composed of the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the member states.

According to its recommendation, the Committee of Ministers invites member states to identify and remove any obstacles that victims of crime may encounter in obtaining justice. This new recommendation updates and replaces a recommendation adopted in 2006. 

Indeed, The 2006 Recommendation proved at the time to be a useful tool to advance the issue of victims' rights in Council of Europe member states. However, since 2006, there gave been significant developments in the areas of victims’ rights as well as legislation and practice at the national and international levels. Thus, this 2023 Recommendation provides updated and more detailed guidance. It is important to note that, the Recommendation is a non-binding instrument. As a result, it does not seek to harmonize the national laws of the Member States, but instead to be sufficiently general to accommodate the different legal systems. 

The first obvious evolution between the two recommendations is that the new one has a more global approach. Indeed, the 2006 Recommendation aims to “assistance to crime victims” while the 2023 Recommendation is entitled “Recommendation […] on rights, services and support for victims of crime”. As the title suggests, this Recommendation is more general and inclusive than victim assistance. However, some of the provisions of the 2006 Recommendation have been retained. 

There has also been an evolution of definitions. As a result, some definitions have been changed and new definitions have emerged. For example, the definition of the victim has evolved. Based on the EU Victims Directive, the new definition of victim provides greater clarity and precision than the definition contained in the 2006 Recommendation. Now, the concept of harm is central to the definition of victimization. The text distinguishes four types of harm: physical, mental, emotional and material. Moreover, the definition of victim refers only to natural persons and not to legal persons. But, Member States are free to have a more comprehensive approach to the notion of victim in their national law.
Finally, there is a clarification regarding the victim’s family members. In the sense of the text, they are also direct victims. Article 1 of the 2023 Recommendation provides this new definition: “victim means: family members of a person whose death was directly caused by a criminal offence and who have suffered harm as a result of that person’s death”. 

In conclusion, through these examples, legal evolution is very important in order to respond to the current obstacles. This 2023 Recommendation is a serious attempt to address the current gaps and limitations in the treatment of victims of crime. Furthermore, this text could not be the definitive text on the subject. Indeed, knowledge of the operation of provisions and services for victims of crime is an area that is rapidly changing. 

Source and further reading: 

Website official, The Presidency of the Council of the European Union? What is it ?: https://france.representation.ec.europa.eu/informations/la-presidence-du-conseil-de-lunion-europeenne-quest-ce-que-cest-2021-12-01_fr#:~:text=Le%20Conseil%20de%20l%E2%80%99Europe%2C%20quant%20%C3%A0%20lui%2C%20est,de%20droit%20en%20Europe.%20Pour%20plus%20d%E2%80%99informations%20%E2%80%AF%3A

Council of Europe Portal, Committee of Ministers, About the Committee of Ministers: https://www.coe.int/fr/web/cm/about-cm 

Recommendation Rec(2006)8 of the Committee of Ministers to member states on assistance to crime victims:https://search.coe.int/cm/Pages/result_details.aspx?ObjectId=09000016805afa5c 

Recommendation CM/Rec(2023)2 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on rights, services and support for victims of crime : https://search.coe.int/cm/Pages/result_details.aspx?ObjectID=0900001680aa8263