On 26 June 2024 CEP participated in the Ad Hoc meeting of the Victims’ Rights Platform with civil society organisations. The Platform is composed of 34 members that include representatives of EU level networks, agencies, bodies and civil society organisations relevant for the implementation of the EU Strategy on victims’ rights, and its objective is to ensures a more horizontal approach to victims’ rights.

The meeting taking place face-to-face and online covered an overview of the EC’s work on victims’ rights with a focus the state of play of the revision of the Victims’ Rights Directive and the actions under the EU Strategy on victims’ rights such as the Eyes Open Campaign. Participants took part in the roundtable presentation and exchanged information on the ongoing and planned actions on victims’ rights as well as challenges faced by NGOs.

One outcome of the meeting was the consensus that to achieve victim-centered justice in the EU, criminal justice should prioritize healing harm and preventing its recurrence rather than focusing solely on punishing offenders. Participants discussed strategies to help practitioners, such as judges and prosecutors, understand the importance of victim-centered justice for the success of criminal proceedings. EFRJ highlighted the existing legislative limitations on restorative justice and the need to raise awareness about its role as a complementary tool to criminal justice. In this context, CEP emphasized the important role of victims in the rehabilitation of offenders.

CEP has been a member of the Platform since its establishment and with its members it participated in the Revision of the Victim´Rights Directive and, among others, it has supported and promoted among its members for the Victims’ Rights campaign: Keep your #EYESOPEN!.