Human Rights

ECtHR Calls on Belgium to Reorganize Psychiatric Detention

September 13, 2016

Concluding that Belgium's confinement of a convicted sex offender in a prison psychiatric ward for over nine years without "appropriate treatment" of his mental illness violated his human rights, the European Court of Human Rights has launched a procedure pushing the country to reorganize its system of psychiatric detention to respect the "dignity" of such detainees.
FRA Trains EU Border Agency on Rights

September 07, 2016

In partnership with the UN Refugee Agency, the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights has launched the second phase of its training of the EU border entity, Frontex, consisting of specialized training on how to avoid human rights violations while managing the protection of the bloc's external borders.
ECtHR: Prison Failed to Adequately Treat Heroin Addict

September 07, 2016

The European Court of Human Rights has held that the German government failed to meet its burden of proof in showing that it adequately consulted medical professionals when declining to provide methadone treatment to a prisoner addicted to heroin and therefore violated his right against torture.
CoE Demands Transparency in Swiss Political Funding

August 31, 2016

According to news website SWI, a report from the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption calls for Switzerland to "fall into line" in adopting CoE recommendations on the public reporting of political finance.
Official Warns of Sovereignty Threat to CoE System

August 29, 2016

The Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights, Nils Muižnieks, has warned that assertions that national sovereignty trumps the implementation of European Court of Human Rights judgments, which he notes are legally binding, are a threat to the Council of Europe human rights apparatus and to the rule of law in Europe.
ECtHR: Deporting Iraqi Asylum Seekers Would Violate Rights

August 29, 2016

The European Court of Human Rights has held that, in light of the deteriorating Iraqi security situation, Sweden's deportation of an Iraqi family whom al-Qaeda had threatened and attacked due to the family's business relationships with Americans would violate the family's rights against torture.
NGOs Challenge UK Bulk Hacking at ECtHR

August 09, 2016

A group of nongovernmental organizations led by Privacy International has filed a complaint against the UK in the European Court of Human Rights challenging the government's practice of "bulk hacking" the computers and other devices of foreigners.
EU Prepares Centralization of "Social Rights" Policy

August 01, 2016

Politico reports that European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker is backing the preparation of a "European pillar of social rights" that will centralize decisions on labor and employment policy, including minimum wages and job training, in EU institutions.
Observer Calls for EU Human Rights Education

July 29, 2016

Asserting that external pressure on member states, including through the European Commission's Rule of Law Framework, is not sufficient to counter "illiberal" national tendencies, advocacy consultant Dr. Israel Butler writes that the EU must deploy funding for civic education on global human rights and legal standards to protect the rule of law in EU countries.
Journalist: ECtHR Must Hold UK in Check

July 27, 2016

In a piece on government surveillance of UK citizens, journalist Jason Parkinson indicates that the only way for individuals to hold the UK Government to account for human rights violations is to retain the UK Human Rights Act and permit review of government actions by judges on the European Court of Human Rights.