Human Rights

ECtHR: Turkey Number One in Violations of Freedom of Expression

January 05, 2021

According to a report published by the Expression Interrupted project, Turkey tops the list of 47 Council of Europe (CoE) member states that received the most judgments from the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in cases concerning a violation of freedom of expression, with 356 out of a total of 845 cases.
EU Will Redouble Efforts to Save Iran Nuclear Deal

January 05, 2021

Despite Tehran's breach of commitments to the 2015 Iran Nuclear Deal by enriching uranium to new levels, the European Union has announced it will redouble efforts to save the agreement.
Poland Announces Online Freedom of Speech Bill

December 30, 2020

Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro has announced a new bill proposal that would create a special court for freedom of speech as well as an initiative to limit social media services removal or blocking of content if it does not break Polish law.
Ukrinform: Zelensky Signs Law Restoring Full Operation of NAPC

December 28, 2020

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has signed into law an Institutional Mechanism for Prevention of Corruption after Ukraine's Constitutional Court made a move in October to limit the National Agency on Corruption Prevention's (NACP) ability to check corruption in the country, including verifying state officials asset declarations.
Hackers Attack ECtHR Website After Ruling on Turkey Case

December 28, 2020

Following a ruling that ordered Turkey to immediately release Selahattin Demirtas, a former leader of the pro-Kurdish HDP party, hackers launched a cyberattack on the website of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) keeping it offline for over 16 hours.
EU Top Court Rules Hungary’s Asylum Policies Violate EU law

December 21, 2020

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) found that Hungary violated EU law after they set harsh asylum policies during the 2015 European refugee crisis when hundreds of thousands of refugees passed their border, crossing from Serbia.
EU Sets New Cybersecurity Plan

December 17, 2020

The European Commission and the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy presented a new Cybersecurity Strategy with the goal strengthening cooperation with partners around the world, and "promote a global, open, stable and secure cyberspace, grounded in the rule of law, human rights, fundamental freedoms and democratic values."
Former Judge to Lead Human Rights Law Review

December 08, 2020

The BBC reports that former Court of Appeal judge Sir Peter Gross has been appointed to lead an independent review of the Human Rights Act to examine whether the 1998 act that allows UK nationals to rely on the European Convention of Human Rights in domestic courts is working effectively
The Guardian: BPAS Reports "Two-Child Limit" Policy Influencing Abortions

December 07, 2020

According to the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS), the recent and controversial “two-child limit” policy, which restricts the amount that larger families can receive in social security benefits, was a key factor in many women’s decisions to terminate their pregnancy during the pandemic.
New EU Privacy Protects May Endanger Children

November 30, 2020

As new privacy protections are set to take effect in the European Union in December, children’s rights advocates argue that they will put millions of children at increased risk worldwide, as big tech firms will be banned from using automatic detection tools that are routinely employed to identify material containing images of child abuse, or to detect online grooming.