scholarly journals The Conflict between the Principles of the National Identity of Member States and Values of European Union Such as Rule of Law, Respect for Human Rights and Liberal Democracy – Case Study of Hungary

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 159-173
Author(s):  
Kumush Suyunova
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Executive Power ◽  
Political Equality ◽  
Member States ◽  
Checks And Balances ◽  
Independent Judiciary ◽  
European Values ◽  
The Eu

Summary Human rights are indivisible. The EU holds resolute tone against the challenges of universal human rights. As an adequate method of governance the EU acknowledges the rule of law that encompasses transparent and reliable legal system, an independent judiciary, prevention of arbitrary executive power; legal egalitarianism and respect for rights and freedoms of individuals. The concept of democracy determines the values behind the governance of a country. Thus, the EU’s vision of democracy comprises several principles: political equality, representative and participative democracy, which include fair elections, separation of power, effective checks and balances. However, despite the EU’s efforts to promote human rights, rule of law and democracy, some member States are still lagging behind the overall positive achievement. Hungary, who pick up illiberal democracy over established European values, has become the focus of attention.

scholarly journals The Rule of Law Framework in the European Union: Its Rationale, Origins, Role and International Ramifications

2021 ◽  
pp. 305-331
Author(s):  
Artur Nowak-Far
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Member States ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
International Legal Order ◽  
High Level ◽  
The Eu

AbstractAt present, the European rule of law enforcement framework under Article 7 TEU (RLF) is vulnerable to unguaranteed, discretionary influences of the Member States. This vulnerability arises from its procedural format which requires high thresholds in decision-making with the effect that this procedure is prone to be terminated by the EU Member States likely to be scrutinized under it, if only they collude. Yet, the Framework may prove effective to correct serious breaches against human rights (in the context of ineffective rule of law standards). The European Commission is bound to pursue the RLF effectiveness for the sake of achieving relative uniformity of application of EU law (at large), and making the European Union a credible actor and co-creator of international legal order. The RLF is an important tool for the maintenance of relative stability of human rights and the rule of law in the EU despite natural divergence propensity resulting from the procedural autonomy of the EU Member States. By achieving this stability, the EU achieves significant political weight in international dialogue concerning human rights and the rule of law and preserves a high level of its global credibility in this context. Thus, RLF increases the EU’s effectiveness in promoting the European model of their identification and enforcement.

scholarly journals Illiberalism Within: Rule of Law Backsliding in the EU

2017 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
pp. 3-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurent PECH ◽  
Kim Lane SCHEPPELE
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Member States ◽  
European Values ◽  
Legal Strategies ◽  
The Eu

AbstractHow should the European Union cope with Member States that no longer respect the basic values of the Union? This article reviews the responses of the major European Union institutions to Poland and Hungary as their governments removed checks on their power, eliminated the independence of judiciaries and failed to honour their European commitments. As the article demonstrates, the responses of EU institutions have so far been ineffective in bringing these Member States back into line with European values. We examine the various proposals that have been made to do better, concluding that there is promise in some legal strategies that are available now, but have yet to be tried.

scholarly journals Rule of Law vs. Poland and Hungary – an Inconsistent Approach?

2021 ◽  
Vol 60 (3) ◽  
pp. 236-259
Author(s):  
Nasiya Daminova
Keyword(s):  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Case Law ◽  
Judicial Reform ◽  
Member States ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
European Arrest Warrant ◽  
European Values ◽  
Multiple Challenges ◽  
The Eu

The first attempts of the European Commission and Parliament to invoke Art. 7(1) of the Treaty on European Union against the Polish and Hungarian governments demonstrate the EU’s political willingness to claim its own authority in defending core European values (Art. 2 TEU) in case of state disobedience. However, despite these attempts to integrate the Rule of Law concept into the overall EU’s supervisory machinery, the Commission’s and the Parliament’s submissions indicate a lack of coherency in implementing the principle as a relevant tool to address multiple challenges arising within the EU Member States legal systems. The parallel developments in the CJEUs case-law (LM/ML, Torubarov) support this statement. Regardless of the Council’s yes/ no decisions in the Polish and Hungarian cases, these lines of reasoning are capable of giving rise to further questions in application of the European Arrest Warrant Framework decision or the Asylum Procedures Directive, in particular the EU Member States which remain within the scope of the EU’s attention in view of systemic Human Rights violations (Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia). Moreover, the series of the CJEU’s judgements on the Polish judicial reform are capable of paving the way to the de facto intervention into traditional areas of the EU Member States competence – the organisation of the national judicial systems, in light of the development of a EU-specific principle of effective judicial review.

scholarly journals Linking EU Budget Allocations to the Rule of Law: the Case of Poland and Hungary

2021 ◽  
pp. 38-48
Author(s):  
S. Kuvaldin
Keyword(s):  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Relative Effectiveness ◽  
Governance Mechanism ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Member States ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
External Relations ◽  
European Values ◽  
The Eu

The article discusses the possible introduction of the rule-of-law conditionality, linking the provision of payments from the EU budget with the observance of the principles of the rule of law by the Member States. It is noted that some other tools previously used to achieve integrity of values in the EU have proved to be inefficient. In particular, all attempts to impose sanctions provided for by Article 7 of the Treaty on the European Union for violating the principles of the rule of law against Poland and Hungary have not yet led to any result. At the same time, one can see how different conditionalities for receiving funds or other benefits from the EU are becoming an increasingly common internal EU governance mechanism, although initially this tool was used mainly in building external relations. It should be noted that the possibility of budgetary sanctions is spelled out in the draft budget, but the mechanism for their introduction is not precisely defined. This is partly due to the need to reach a consensus at the EU summit, which agreed on the budget in July 2020. European leaders opted for vague language for the budget sanctions mechanism to be approved in principle. This once again shows the complexity of making tough decisions within the EU. Nevertheless, one can see the consistent actions of European structures and Member States to provide a new mechanism for the protection of European values. The economic nature of this mechanism, as well as its relative effectiveness in other areas, may increase the interest of a number of EU Member States in it. This creates a potential risk for the authorities of Poland and Hungary, which may lose some of the subsidies from the EU. However, it cannot be ruled out that the EU approach of seeking a compromise will prevail even after a new sanctions instrument appears at its disposal.

scholarly journals The Values of the European Union and their Protection under European Law

2020 ◽  
pp. 27-37
Author(s):  
Stanislav Kuvaldin ◽  
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
European Law ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Member States ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
History Of ◽  
National Governments ◽  
The Eu

Article 7 of the Treaty on the European Union provides for a mechanism for responding to violations by member states of the values of democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights proclaimed by the Union, as well as the introduction of sanctions against the violating state. Nevertheless, the EU structures are extremely cautious about this mechanism, despite the reasons for its use. The article analyzes the history of the appearance of Article 7 in European legislation and the first attempts of a pan-European influence on dubious decisions of the member states. Based on the example of Poland and Hungary in respect of which the possibility of applying sanctions under the Article 7 procedure is now being discussed, it is concluded that such an outcome is unlikely. It is shown that Article 7 was deliberately created in such a way as to limit the actions of pan-European structures, to leave decisions in the hands of national governments and to provide an opportunity to solve the problem through negotiations. It also shows the process of searching for alternative ways of influencing the violating states.

Institutional organisation of the European Union in the time of crisis – horizontal division of power and functions

2016 ◽  
pp. 54-66
Author(s):  
Monika Poboży
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Separation Of Powers ◽  
European Council ◽  
Executive Power ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Checks And Balances ◽  
Court Of Justice ◽  
Strong Position ◽  
Institutional System ◽  
The Eu

The article poses a question about the existence of the rule of separation of powers in the EU institutional system, as it is suggested by the wording of the treaties. The analysis led to the conclusion, that in the EU institutional system there are three separated functions (powers) assigned to different institutions. The Council and the European Parliament are legislative powers, the Commission and the European Council create a “divided executive”. The Court of Justice is a judicial power. The above mentioned institutions gained strong position within their main functions (legislative, executive, judicial), but the proper mechanisms of checks and balances have not been developed, especially in the relations between legislative and executive power. These powers do not limit one another in the EU system. In the EU there are therefore three separated but arbitrary powers – because they do not limit and balance one another, and are not fully controlled by the member states.

scholarly journals SADC Mediation in Zimbabwe's Global Political Agreement (GPA): A Reflection on Opportunities and Complexities

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 21
Author(s):  
Modeni M. Sibanda
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Coming Out ◽  
Democratic Institutions ◽  
Member States ◽  
Peace And Security ◽  
Universal Human Rights ◽  
Regional Organisation ◽  
Power And Authority

This article analyses the opportunities and complexities of the SADC mediation in Zimbabwe’s Global Political Agreement (GPA) in facilitating and operationalising theprinciples and values of peace, security, human rights and democracy as set out in Article 4 of the SADC treaty. It attempts to interrogate the extent to which the regional grouping’s mechanisms for enforcing its principles and values have been successful.   The article argues that despite SADC’s noble commitment to promoting the development of democratic institutions and practices, as well as encouraging the observance of universal human rights, peace and security, the resolution of the Zimbabwe crisis shows that, in practice, the operationalisation of SADC protocol principles and values have been a sorry saga of delays, secrecy, purported agreements and nothing concrete coming out of it.  Using the Zimbabwe case study, this article further argues that SADC either lacks appropriate power and authority or is reluctant to hold member states accountable.  This seems so, given that as a regional body, it has allowed itself to be utterly inadequate to the task envisioned by the organ in resolving the Zimbabwe crisis. The paper concludes that the sum of all this has had the effect of exposing SADC and it being perceived as a weak regional organisation.

The EU's Economic Cooperation with North Korea: The Possibility as a Useful Tool to Complement Korea-US Cooperation

2009 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 125-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jong-Sue Lee
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Korean Peninsula ◽  
North Korea ◽  
The United States ◽  
Policy Position ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Member States ◽  
The North ◽  
The Eu

North Korea conducted 2nd nuclear test on May 25, 2009. It made a vicious circle and continued military tension on the Korean Peninsula. North Korea regime got a question on the effectiveness of the six party talks and ‘security-economy exchange model’. In addition, the North Korea probably disappointed about the North Korea issue has been excluded from the Obama administration's policy position. So the dialogue or relationship recovery with the United States and North Korea through six-party talks or bilateral talks will be difficult for the time being. This paper examines the EU policy on North Korea. Based on the results, analyzes the EU is likely to act as a balancer on the Korean Peninsula. Through the procedure of deepening and expanding the economic and political unification, the EU utilizes their cooperative policies towards North Korea as an ideal opportunity to realize their internal value and to confirm the commonness within the EU members. The acceleration of the EU's unification, however, began to focus on human rights, and this made their official relationship worse. Yet, the EU is continuously providing food as wells as humanitarian and technological support to North Korea regardless of the ongoing nuclear and human rights issues in North Korea. Also, the number of multinational corporations investing in North Korea for the purpose of preoccupying resources and key industries at an individual nation's level has been increasing. The European Union has unique structure which should follow the way of solving the problem of member states like subsidiary principle. It appears to conflict between normative power of the European Union and strategic interests on member states. This paper examines if the European Union is useful tool to complement Korea-US cooperation in the near future.

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