The Council of Europe defines the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) as an international court set up in 1959 which rules on individual, or state, applications alleging violations of the civil and political rights set out in the European Convention on Human Rights.[1]
The European Convention on Human Rights is an international treaty under which the member States of the Council of Europe promise to secure fundamental civil and political rights, not only to their own citizens but also to everyone within their jurisdiction. The Convention, which was signed on 4 November 1950 in Rome, entered into force in 1953.[2]
According to the simplified version of the convention and its protocols prepared by the ECtHR the European Union Convention on Human Rights reinforces the following rights contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights:
Article 1 ‐ Obligation to respect human rights
Article 2 ‐ Right to life
Article 3 ‐Prohibition of torture
Article 4 ‐ Prohibition of slavery and forced labour
Article 5 ‐ Right to liberty and security
Article 6 ‐ Right to a fair trial
Article 7 ‐ No punishment without law
Article 8 ‐ Right to respect for private and family life
Article 9 ‐ Freedom of thought, conscience and religion
Article 10 ‐ Freedom of expression
Article 11 ‐ Freedom of assembly and association
Article 12 ‐ Right to marry
Article 13 ‐ Right to an effective judicial remedy
Article 14 ‐ Prohibition of discrimination
Article 15 ‐ Derogation in time of emergency
Article 16 ‐ Restrictions on political activity of foreigners
Article 17 ‐ Prohibition of abuse of rights
Article 18 ‐ Limitation on use of restrictions of rights
Articles 19 to 51- explain how the European Court of Human Rights works.
Article 34 ‐ If your rights contained in the Convention have been violated in one of the member states, you should first appeal to all competent national authorities. If that does not work, then you may appeal directly to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
Article 52 ‐ If the Secretary General of the Council of Europe requests it, a government must explain how its national law protects the rights of this Convention.
Protocols to the Convention
Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 ‐ Protection of property
Article 2 of Protocol No. 1 ‐ Right to education
Article 3 of Protocol No. 1 ‐ Right to free elections
Article 2 of Protocol No. 4 ‐ Freedom of movement
Article 1 of Protocol No. 6 ‐ Abolition of the death penalty
Article 2 of Protocol No. 7 ‐ Right of appeal in criminal matters
Article 3 of Protocol No. 7 ‐ Compensation for wrongful conviction
Article 1 of Protocol No. 12 ‐ General prohibition of discrimination
The full text of the convention and its protocols can be found here.
A short video, produced by the court that presents these rights can be found here.
What does ECtHR do for Security Sector Reform and Governance?
The European Court of Human Rights’ main security governance role is dispensing justice in cases of human rights abuses at the hands of security sector personnel where national courts have – or would – not become involved, or in instances where options for appealing their decisions were exhausted.
In 2015, according to the court’s Facts and Figures publication, a fourth of the violations handled by the ECtHR concerned Article 6 (right to a fair hearing). Almost 23% of them concerned the prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment (Article 3), and 15% concerned the right to liberty and security (Article 5). All in all, 30% of the violations constituted a serious breach of the Convention (concerning the right to life or the prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment).
Sources:
European Court of Human Rights