European System – Page 16 – International Justice Resource Center

In Baytar v. Turkey, European Court of Human Rights Holds Criminal Defendants Have the Right to an Interpreter during Investigatory Proceedings

October 15, 2014 IJRC due process & judicial protection, European System, liberty & security of person, security & rule of law

Earlier this week, the European Court of Human Rights unanimously held that a criminal defendant has the right to free assistance from a translator during criminal investigatory proceedings if language barriers prevent the accused from having a full understanding of the consequences of waiving his or her rights to keep silent and to legal assistance. See ECtHR, Baytar v. Turkey,

In Karimov v. Azerbaijan, European Court of Human Rights Holds Special Polling Stations for Military Personnel Violate the Right to Free Elections

September 30, 2014 IJRC democracy & political rights, due process & judicial protection, European System, Uncategorized

Last week, the European Court of Human Rights held that the establishment of military polling stations, in contravention of the Azerbaijani Electoral Code, violated the right to free elections under the First Protocol to the European Convention on Human Rights. ECtHR, Karimov v. Azerbaijan, no. 12535/06, ECHR 2014, Judgment of 25 September 2014, para. 52. The applicant, Mr. Hasan Huseyn

In Hassan v. United Kingdom, the European Court of Human Rights Finds Extra-territorial Jurisdiction over Iraqi Detainee and Examines Interplay between Geneva Conventions and European Human Rights Obligations

September 17, 2014 IJRC European System, extrajudicial executions, international human rights, international humanitarian law, liberty & security of person, military and humanitarian intervention

On September 16, the European Court of Human Rights delivered its Grand Chamber judgment in Hassan v. United Kingdom, which involved the detention of an Iraqi national, Tarek Hassan, by the British army in Iraq in 2003. The applicant alleged that the United Kingdom was responsible for Tarek’s unlawful detention, ill-treatment, and death. The key issues before the Court were whether

European Convention on Violence against Women Enters into Force, Codifying Advances in the Protection of Women’s Human Rights

August 7, 2014 IJRC children, discrimination, European System, LGBTI rights, liberty & security of person, regional human rights protection, reproductive and sexual rights, women's rights

August 1, 2014 marked the entry into force of the first legally binding instrument in Europe that specifically targets violence against women and domestic violence. The “most far reaching international treaty to tackle this serious violation of human rights,” the Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic violence, known as the Istanbul Convention, requires States parties to

European Court of Human Rights: Poland Responsible for Secret Detention, Torture, and Rendition of Two Guantánamo Detainees

July 30, 2014 IJRC death penalty, due process & judicial protection, European System, international human rights, liberty & security of person, regional human rights protection, security & rule of law, torture, Uncategorized

In its first judgment concerning the human rights of current Guantánamo detainees, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) found that Poland failed to uphold its international obligations by allowing the secret detention, torture, and extraordinary rendition of a Saudi Arabian national and a stateless Palestinian, both suspected of terrorist acts. See ECtHR, Al Nashiri v. Poland, no. 28761/11, Judgment of 24

European Court of Human Rights Upholds Finnish Marital Restriction on Trans Gender Identity Recognition

July 21, 2014 IJRC discrimination, economic, social & cultural rights, European System, family, LGBTI rights, reproductive and sexual rights, women's rights

In a high profile new ruling, the European Court of Human Rights has held that requiring a transsexual woman to convert her marriage into a civil partnership in order to gain full legal recognition of her gender identity does not violate the European Convention on Human Rights (Convention). ECtHR, Hämäläinen v. Finland [GC], no. 37359/09, ECHR 2014, Judgment of 16 July

S.A.S. v. France: The European Court’s Decision in Light of Human Rights Doctrine on Restricting Religious Dress

July 11, 2014 IJRC cultural rights, discrimination, European System, freedom of religion, women's rights

Earlier this month, the European Court of Human Rights published its Grand Chamber decision in the case of S.A.S. v. France, which challenged the French “burqa ban” on wearing face coverings in public spaces. See ECtHR, S.A.S. v. France [GC], no. 43835/11, Judgment of 1 July 2014. The Grand Chamber held that prohibiting the concealment of a person’s face in public did

European Court of Human Rights Releases Six New Thematic Factsheets on Landmark Cases

June 17, 2014 IJRC democracy & political rights, discrimination, European System, immigration & asylum, liberty & security of person, persons with disabilities, thought, expression & association, women's rights

The European Court of Human Rights has released six new factsheets summarizing its jurisprudence on the topics of: hunger strikes in detention, migrants in detention, domestic violence, elderly persons, persons with disabilities, and political parties and associations. The factsheets provide valuable insights into the kinds of issues being raised before the Court, direct practitioners to key cases and decisions, and

European Court Finds Georgia Plea Bargain Procedure Compatible with Human Rights Convention, Despite “Shady Factual Circumstances”

May 13, 2014 IJRC due process & judicial protection, European System

In a judgment released on April 29, the European Court of Human Rights examined the compatibility of a plea bargain procedure with the fair trial protections of the European Convention on Human Rights. See ECtHR, Natsvlishvili and Togonidze v. Georgia, no. 9043/05, Judgment of 29 April 2014. This Chamber decision marks the first case in which the European Court has analyzed in detail any

Join the Conversation: Engaging with Regional Human Rights Mechanisms

April 18, 2014 IJRC African System, civil society, European System, human rights defenders, IJRC Updates, Inter-American System, regional human rights protection

Join the International Justice Resource Center and the New Tactics community for an online conversation on Engaging Regional Human Rights Mechanisms from April 21 to 25, 2014. IJRC’s executive director, Lisa Reinsberg, will join experts and practitioners from around the world in discussing the practical details of seeking justice, accountability, and reform through the regional human rights systems.