Thousands of people are being stopped and searched by British police under their counter-­terrorism powers – simply to ­provide a racial balance in official statistics, the government's anti-terror law watchdog has revealed. Moreover, said Lord Carlile, the utility of the section 44 stop and search powers is questionable: "none of the many thousands of searches has ever resulted in a conviction for a terrorism offence."

More than a 100 Romanian immigrants in Northern Ireland were spending the night in a church after fleeing their Belfast homes following racist attacks. Some of their homes had been attacked, and earlier in the week there was an attack on an anti-racism rally in support of immigrants. Bottles were hurled and people made Nazi salutes at those taking part.

Growing right-wing extremism in the Czech Republic will continue to result in violent attacks targeting the Roma, and a new government initiative is unlikely to improve the situation, writes Anna Dunin. In two recent incidents, arsonists burned a Roma house down, leaving a two-year-old girl gravely injured, and over 500 neo-Nazis marched to celebrate the anniversary of Hitler’s birthday.

Amnesty International’s Report 2009 evaluates the human rights situation throughout 2008 in Austria. The report underlines that no progress was made on implementing safeguards against torture and other ill-treatment, as requested by regional and international human rights bodies. The authorities failed to protect the rights of asylum-seekers and migrants.

Amnesty International’s Report 2009 evaluates the human rights situation throughout 2008 in Cyprus. The report affirms that the new government elected in February pledged a series of policy changes aimed at strengthening respect for human rights. Migrants’ rights and anti-trafficking policies were two areas highlighted for improvement. The UN Committee on Missing Persons continued its work to exhume and identify victims of the inter-ethnic conflict who have been missing since 1963. Concerns remained in two cases regarding the authorities’ failure to carry out effective, thorough and impartial investigations.

Amnesty International’s Report 2009 evaluates the human rights situation throughout 2008 in Estonia. The report states that linguistic minorities continued to face discrimination in a number of areas, particularly in the fields of employment and education. Migrants were exposed to harassment by state officials and attacks by extremist groups. Criminal investigations into allegations of excessive use of force by law enforcement officials were dismissed. A human rights organization continued to be harassed by the government.

Amnesty International’s Report 2009 draws attention to the fact that at the beginning of August 2008, two European states went to war for the first time in almost a decade. The report states that since the conflicts of the early 1990s, Europe had assumed a degree of stability in terms of its economy, security and embedding the rule of law, but these events showed how potentially fragile the security assumptions underpinning post-Cold War Europe could be. The report affirms that human rights violations remained widespread across the world in 2008, including Europe, with the global economic crisis not only aggravating the existing problems, but creating new ones as well. The study also found that the crisis had increased the deprivation and the stigmatisation of certain communities - such as the Roma, as well as diverted governments' intention from human rights problems and has had a negative impact on their immigration and asylum policies.

Amnesty International’s Report 2009 evaluates the human rights situation throughout 2008 in Bulgaria. The report points out that asylum-seekers continued to be detained for months and even years, and were denied protection. Discrimination against minorities persisted. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people continued to experience violence and intolerance. Reports of ill-treatment by law enforcement officials were received throughout the year.

Amnesty International’s Report 2009 evaluates the human rights situation throughout 2008 in Albania. It states that domestic violence was widespread. The trafficking of women and children for forced prostitution or other forms of exploitation continued. There were incidents of torture and other ill-treatment of detainees in police stations and prisons. Detention conditions for remand and convicted prisoners sometimes amounted to inhuman and degrading treatment. Adult orphans were denied their legal right to adequate housing. Unemployment levels remained high, despite continued economic progress. More than 18 per cent of the population was estimated to be living below the national poverty line of US$2 a day. This sector of the population also suffered most acutely from limited access to education, water and health and social care. Prosecutions for corruption increased, but mainly targeted low-level officials. Public confidence in the judicial system was low.

Amnesty International’s Report 2009 evaluates the human rights situation throughout 2008 in Denmark. The report states that the government indicated that it would consider relying on diplomatic assurances to deport people to countries where they could be at risk of human rights violations. The system for investigating complaints against the police failed to ensure a remedy for ill-treatment. Discriminatory legislation and practice led to a lack of protection for survivors of rape.