scholarly journals COVID- 19 PANDEMIC AND THE PROTECTION OF THE RIGHT TO ABORTION

Author(s):  
Ivana Tucak ◽  
Anita Blagojević

The COVID - 19 pandemic that swept the world in 2020 and the reactions of state authorities to it are unparalleled events in modern history. In order to protect public health, states have limited a number of fundamental human rights that individuals have in accordance with national constitutions and international conventions. The focus of this paper is the right of access to abortion in the Member States of the European Union. In Europe, the situation with regard to the recognition of women's right to abortion is quite clear. All member states of the European Union, with the exception of Poland and Malta, recognize the rather liberal right of a woman to have an abortion in a certain period of time after conception. However, Malta and Poland, as members of the European Union, since abortion is seen as a service, must not hinder the travel of women abroad to have an abortion, nor restrict information on the provision of abortion services in other countries. In 2020, a pandemic highlighted all the weaknesses of this regime by preventing women from traveling to more liberal countries to perform abortions, thus calling into question their right to choose and protect their sexual and reproductive rights. This is not only the case in Poland and Malta, but also in countries that recognize the right to abortion but make it conditional on certain non-medical conditions, such as compulsory counselling; and the mandatory time period between applying for and performing an abortion; in situations present in certain countries where the problem of a woman exercising the right to abortion is a large number of doctors who do not provide this service based on their right to conscience. The paper is divided into three parts. The aim of the first part of the paper is to consider all the legal difficulties that women face in accessing abortion during the COVID -19 pandemic, restrictions that affect the protection of their dignity, right to life, privacy and right to equality. In the second part of the paper particular attention will be paid to the illiberal tendencies present in this period in some countries of Central and Eastern Europe, especially Poland. In the third part of the paper, emphasis will be put on the situation in Malta where there is a complete ban on abortion even in the case when the life of a pregnant woman is in danger.

2021 ◽  
Vol 60 (90) ◽  
pp. 189-205
Author(s):  
Radmila Dragišić

In this paper, the author explores the sources of European Union Law that regulate one segment of parental responsibility - the right of access to a child. The focal point of research is the transition from the conventional (interstate) regulation of judicial cooperation in marital disputes and parental responsibility issues to the regulation enacted by the European Union institutions, with specific reference to the Brussels II bis Regulation. First, the author briefly points out to its relationship with other relevant international law sources regulating this subject matter: the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction; the Hague Convention on Jurisdiction, Applicable Law, Recognition, Enforcement and Cooperation in the Field of Parental Responsibility and Measures for the Protection of Children; and other international sources of law. Then, the author examines in more detail its relationship with the Brussels II bis recast Regulation, which will be applicable as of 1 August 2022. In addition, the paper includes an analysis of the first case in which the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) decided on the application of the Brussels II bis Regulation, at the request of granparents to exercise the right of access to the child. On the issue of determining the competent court which has jurisdiction to decide on how this right shall be exercised, the CJEU had to decide whether the competent court is determined on the basis of the Brussels II bis Regulation or on the basis of national Private International Law rules. This paper is useful for the professional and scientific community because it deals (inter alia) with the issue of justification of adopting a special source of law at the EU level, which would regulate the issue of mutual enforcement of court decisions on the right of access to the child. This legal solution was proposed by the Republic of France, primarily guided by the fundamental right of the child to have contact with both parents.


2021 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 69-84
Author(s):  
Csilla Polster

The study investigates the economic growth in Central and Eastern Europe in the last 25 years. The economy can be regarded as a substantial topic in any country, but it is even more interesting in developing countries. One of the basic ideas of the European Union is the convergence between member states, namely the reduction of development disparities, which can be achieved through faster economic growth in less‑developed countries. Growth theory is one of the main topics in economics. Its significant importance is because the desire for development is one of the main driving forces of mankind. The aim of the study is to reveal the crucial differences and common features between the growth paths of the eleven Central and Eastern European member states of the European Union. After presenting growth theories, the growth performance of the examined Central and Eastern European member states is pinpointed. During the research, GDP per capita, population, migration, activity rate, employment rate, unemployment rate, foreign direct investment and foreign trade openness are considered.


2019 ◽  
pp. 43-46
Author(s):  
O. M. Rym

The article deals with certain aspects of collective labour rights in the European Union. Prerequisites and procedure of this rights guaranting as general principles of EU law are analyzed and their content is characterized. It is emphasized that such legal establishing took place somewhat haphazardly, both at the level of the acts of primary and secondary law of the European Union and in the case law. As a result, there is no single position on the spectrum of collective labour rights as principles of EU labor law. The author focuses on significant changes in the understanding of the necessity of cooperation of social partners and the extension of their interaction at the supranational level. It is under the responsibility of the European Commission to promote cooperation between Member States and to facilitate coordination of their activities in the field of the right of association and collective bargaining between employers and employees. The article clarifies the content of collective labour rights as general principles of EU law on the basis of EU legal acts, the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union, as well as the scientific works of domestic and foreign scholars. It is noted that the system of collective labour rights, as general principles of EU labour law, consists of the right of collective bargaining and collective action, the right of employees to information and consultation within the enterprise, as well as the freedom of assembly and association. It is concluded that the necessity of cooperation between the social partners is recognized as one of the foundations of EU labour law. Herewith appropriate interaction is ensured through the normative-legal consolidation of collective labour rights and procedures for their implementation. After all, European Union legal acts allow employees and employers’ representatives to play an active role in regulating labour legal relations. For example, Member States may instruct employers and employees, upon their joint request, to implement Council directives or decisions. In addition, many directives contain warnings about the possibility of derogating from their provisions through the adoption of a collective agreement.


2020 ◽  
pp. 470-506
Author(s):  
Marios Costa ◽  
Steve Peers

This chapter examines the provisions of European Union (EU) law concerning economic rights provided by Articles 45, 49 and 56 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), concerning workers, establishment and services respectively. It discusses the Court of Justice’s (CJ) interpretation and its impact on Member States’ ability to regulate the right to trade within their own territory, as well as regulatory competition between Member States. The chapter discusses the harmonization of qualifications (including the Qualifications Directive), the free movement of lawyers and the Services Directive.


2017 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 43-66
Author(s):  
Saila Heinikoski

This article discusses how the right to free movement within the European Union is presented as a matter of obligation, a duty of the other EU member states, in the discourse of Romanian Presidents and Prime Ministers (2005–2015). An examination of speeches and other statements from these politicians illuminates Romanian political reactions during the period when Romania became an EU member state, and reflects perceptions of Europeanness and European agreements. These issues take on an additional contemporary significance in the context of the Brexit negotiations, and they also add to the broader debate on whether EU norms and obligations are seen as being both just and equally applied. By analysing different types of argumentative topoi, I examine the deontological (obligation-based) argumentation employed in the free movement context. Furthermore, I examine to what extent these arguments are invoked in support of the right to free movement and who this right applies to. I argue that for Romanian politicians, deontological free movement arguments are connected to other states’ compliance with European treaties and to demands for equal application of European rules without discrimination, or the delegation of responsibility to others. This manifested itself most frequently in the calls for the EU and its member states to do their duty by treating Romanians equally to other EU citizens.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Margot Horspool ◽  
Matthew Humphreys ◽  
Michael Wells-Greco

This introductory chapter traces the development of the European Union. Since its inception in 1952, the EU has matured and developed from a Community of like-minded states into a Union of a greater diversity of states, with a comprehensive legal system which is increasingly penetrating the national legal systems of Member States. From the six original members, the EU now counts 27 Member States. Eleven of the thirteen newer Member States are in Central and Eastern Europe, and have discarded their old Communist regimes, turning into democracies with the qualifications to join the Union. The latest developments and changes, including Brexit and the effects of Covid-19, are also discussed.


2016 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-50
Author(s):  
Anna Doliwa-Klepacka

Abstract The principle of multilingualism in the legal system of the European Union is one of the key elements that guarantees, among others, the right of access to EU legislation. It is particularly important not only in the sphere of the direct application of the EU law, but also in the sphere of access to information during the lawmaking procedures at the EU institutions. A special case is, however, a stage of preparing a draft legislative proposal by the European Commission. The EU member states agree to limit the use of official language version to the working documents for “working” languages of the Commission, i.e. English, French and German. In practice, English and French are the most widely used languages for the working arrangements in the preparation of the draft legislation, mainly due to costs of the necessary translations and an effectiveness of this stage. This article presents a course of the stage of the drafting a legislative proposal by the Commission and illustrates the scope of work partly exempted from the obligation to ensure the full application of the principle of equivalence of all the official languages of the European Union.


2006 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 753-772 ◽  
Author(s):  
MIELLE BULTERMAN

Under the UN sanctions regime of Resolution 1267, UN member states are obliged to freeze the assets of persons and entities which are associated with Usama bin Laden, and which therefore reason have been listed by the UN. Within the European Union this ‘UN sanctions list’ is implemented by means of a Community regulation, having direct effect in all EU member states. The regulation was challenged by several individuals and an organization, which were added to the UN sanctions list on the basis of their association with al Qaeda. The regulation was challenged on two grounds. First, the applicants claimed that the Community did not have the competence to adopt the contested regulation. In the second place, the applicants claimed that the Community regulation infringed their human rights (right to property, right of access to court). Thus the CFI was asked to determine to what extent it is competent indirectly to review measures adopted under the UN Charter. This delicate legal question is answered in a lengthy judgment, the legal reasoning of which is not always convincing.


Author(s):  
Kieran Bradley

The European Parliament is the first of the Union institutions listed in Article 13(1) TEU. As an ‘institution’, it enjoys a certain number of rights, prerogatives, and privileges, and is subject to a certain number of obligations. Thus, for example, in its decision-making, Parliament must ‘promote the Union’s values, advance its objectives, serve its interests and those of its citizens and … Member States’; it must also ‘ensure constant respect for the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality’, ‘act within the limits of the powers conferred on it in the Treaties’, and comply with any international agreements concluded by the Union. It must maintain a dialogue with civil society, conduct its work as openly as possible, grant citizens a right of access to documents it holds, and protect the personal data of individuals in its procession. Parliament may participate as of right in most types of proceedings before the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) and enjoys legal capacity in the Member States in respect of matters concerning its own functioning. It is also subject to the auditing authority of the Court of Auditors and the jurisdiction of the European Ombudsman as regards allegations or investigations of maladministration. More


Author(s):  
Margot Horspool ◽  
Matthew Humphreys ◽  
Michael Wells-Greco

This introductory chapter traces the development of the European Union. Since its inception in 1952 the EU has matured and developed from a Community of like-minded States into a Union of a greater diversity of states, with a comprehensive legal system which is increasingly penetrating the national legal systems of Member States. From the six original members, the EU now counts 28 Member States, after Croatia’s recent accession. Eleven of the thirteen States which have joined in the last decade are in Central and Eastern Europe and have discarded their old Communist regimes, turning into democracies with the qualifications to join the Union.


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