OGRANIČENjE LjUDSKIH PRAVA U VREME PANDEMIJE COVID-19 I USKLAĐIVANjE SA EVROPSKIM VREDNOSTIMA

Author(s):  
Dragan Bataveljić ◽  

The situation in which the mankind found itself at the beginning of 2020 as a result of Covid-19 pandemic has and will have significant impact on human rights on the global level. Namely, the majority of countries worldwide have imposed various measures aimed at combating the pandemic and spreading of virus, like restrictions of free movement, border closures, travel bans within and outside the country, introduction of lockdown and curfew hours, closing of bars and restaurants or restricting of opening hours and the number of customers, etc. What is important to consider here is whether these measures have been imposed based on existing regulations and according to international standards, before all the European Convention on Human Rights and established European values. The pandemic which has spread to entire world and the measures that the countries have imposed aimed at its containment have challenged the compliance with human rights standards worldwide. Therefore it is necessary to conduct a detail analysis and point out to the possible violation of these rights and liberties, as well as to invest additional efforts in adjusting national legislation to European standards and international acts that regulate this matter in order to overcome the new challenges which the pandemic poses in our everyday life. Since January 2020 we have faced the problems related to the freedom of choice since freedom, in its general sense, assumes the freedom of choice for a human being to select an option of his own will and make sovereign decisions.

2004 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 365-405 ◽  
Author(s):  

AbstractThis article examines the problems concerning the observance by the Russian Federation of European conventions, in particular the European Convention on Human Rights and the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture. In recent years, there has been a signifi cant breakthrough in the development of Russian legislation in light of human rights' principles and standards laid down by the Council of Europe. At the same time, the implementation of European standards in the law enforcement area has been carried out at a distinctly slow pace, particularly in relation to the criminal–executive system (where the first tentative steps towards the reform of penitentiary institutions have only been recently taken), the rights of migrants and refugees, the protection of the rights of armed forces personnel, and human rights in Chechnya. This article analyses the problems involved in the legal and judicial protection of human rights in Russia as well as issues concerning the restriction of citizens' rights in special circumstances (such as war or a state of emergency) and the protection of social rights. Lastly, the creation of a unifi ed legal space for human rights in the Russian Federation will also be discussed.


2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 150-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
George Pavlidis

Purpose International asset recovery proceedings may be hindered by several obstacles, especially in the case of “failed states” or of states that experience a regime change. In this context, Switzerland, a country with extensive experience in asset recovery, attempted two legislative leaps forward, the first in 2011 and the second in 2016. The purpose of this paper is to critically examine the legislative innovations in Switzerland, with special reference to their strengths, weakness and compatibility with human rights standards. Design/methodology/approach This paper draws on legal scholarship, jurisprudence, reports and other open source data, to analyze two important legislative innovations in Switzerland [Law on the Restitution of Assets of Criminal Origin of 2010 (LRAI) and law on assets of illicit origin (LVP). Findings The two Swiss legislative initiatives that will be examined (LRAI and LVP) are innovative in nature, but serious weaknesses and obstacles to asset recovery remain unaddressed. Despite their flaws, these two legislative innovations can inspire positive change in international and national norms. They can be viewed as part of a work-in-progress for the reinforcement of asset recovery proceedings and international cooperation in this domain. Originality/value Since the new law on asset recovery (LVP) came into force (July 1, 2016), this has been the first study examining the strengths and weaknesses of the adopted text, its compatibility with human rights standards and its potential influence on international standards of asset recovery.


2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 355-360
Author(s):  
Wojciech Brzozowski

Religious education is probably one of the most attractive topics in law and religious studies – a truly bottomless pit which, every now and then, reveals new questions and new challenges. The most recent judgment of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) concerning this matter is the one delivered on 31 October 2019 in the case of Papageorgiou and others. The judgment only became final at the end of January 2020, under Article 44(2) of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR), so as yet it has not received much scholarly attention. However, it should be expected that there will be no lack of such attention, as the judgment deserves it for at least two reasons.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paola Maggio

Purpose This study aims to critically analyse the Law 9 January 2019, n. 3, on “Measures to fight crimes against the public administration and on the transparency of political parties and movements” (so-called bribe-destroyer law). Design/methodology/approach This paper draws on reports, legal scholarship and other open-source data to examine a legislative innovation for the corruption in Italy in relation to the general guarantees of the trial process and with the controversial paradigm of the national perception index of bribery. Findings The Italian legislative initiative that will be examined is innovative in nature and goes beyond the constitutional and conventional principles on procedural guarantees. The new initiative needs to be integrated into the international and European action against bribery that targets criminal proceeds, and at the same time, be anchored in respect for human rights during the process. Research limitations/implications The new initiative needs to be integrated into the international and European action against bribery that targets criminal proceeds, and at the same time, be anchored in respect for human rights during the process. Practical implications Despite the aggressiveness and lofty proclamations by those who aspire to fight corruption from the highest levels, the goal of rehabilitating Italy from one of the seven “deadly sins” that delay economic growth still seems far off. Social implications In the absence of public ethics, the increase in criminalisation does not seem sufficient on its own to guarantee the containment of the phenomenon. Originality/value This study examines the strengths and weaknesses of the important new law, its compatibility with human rights standards and its relationship to international standards of anti-bribery policies. The aggressive legislation critically relies on the pervasive and persistent lack of perception of corruption as a crime. In the confiscation (and now also reparation) of equivalent that normally addresses assets accumulated in a lawful manner, the periculum is even presumed in re ipsa and the classical aims of caution undergo a total torsion revealing an authoritarian face that takes on the meaning of anticipating further sanctioning contents. Finally, the presence of many levels of sanctioning in relation to the same fact poses serious problems of violation of the ne bis in idem rule.


SEEU Review ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 24-42
Author(s):  
Abdulla Azizi

AbstractConsidering that in times of state of emergency or civil emergency (such as the pandemic caused by COVID 19), governments in many countries around the world have restricted human rights and freedoms through legally binding government decrees. These restrictive measures increasingly raise dilemmas about their effect and possible violations by the government of international norms guaranteeing human rights. The paper aims to analyze whether these restrictive measures set out in the decisions of the Government of the Republic of Northern Macedonia (RNM) are in compliance with the derogations allowed under the European Convention on Human Rights and Freedoms (ECHR) and the positive laws in power. In the framework of this paper is analyzed whether these measures have the sole purpose of protecting the health of citizens or not.The work is limited in terms of time (as long as the state of emergency lasted three months) and territory (government decrees with the force of law).Descriptive, historical, analytical, comparative and citizen survey methods are used in this paper.Government decrees have been analyzed in order to assess whether they were prudent, in accordance with international standards and consequences that they have caused to citizens.The conclusions provide data on whether the management of the situation has been appropriate or not and to what extent it has been effective, as well as how much it has been within the international framework and how they have affected the quality of life of citizens.


Refuge ◽  
2002 ◽  
pp. 6-11
Author(s):  
Jaya Ramji

On paper, South African law concerning detention of asylum seekers appears consistent with international standards. However, the text of the Act is vague and overly broad, permitting interpretations inconsistent with international human rights standards. Further, in practice, officials often fail to uphold even the lowest standards of the Act, in violation of South African law. In order to protect the rights of asylum seekers, the South African government should institute formal guidelines and training programs, as well as a system of strong supervision and accountability, to ensure that the Act and Regulations are interpreted in a manner consistent with international law. Such a step will enable South Africa to live up to its noble post-apartheid human rights ideals.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lidiya Kotlyarenko ◽  
◽  
Nataliia Pavlovska ◽  
Eugenia Svoboda ◽  
Anatolii Symchuk ◽  
...  

International standards exist in any field of legal regulation however, they are mostly identified with standards that regulate the technical sphere, since they are the most common ones. Nonetheless, today it is hard to imagine any area of public life withno generally recognized international standards. European legal standards are formed within the framework of the two most regional international associations –the Council of Europe and the European Union. The Council of Europe sets, first of all, standards in the humanitarian sphere: human rights, environment protection, and constitutional law, which is determined by the goals and purpose of its functioning. The European Union (hereinafter referred to as the EU) using directives, regulations, and other legal acts sets standards for most areas of the EU population's life. It should be noted it is during the development of 'standardization' in the European law that specific development of public relations in the EU takes place. Defining the EU legal standardas a separate category of norms of the European law, it is noteworthy that this term is used in a broad sense as a 'legal standard' and incorporates such elements as the general principles of the EU law and the 'common values' of the EU –they relate to people, environment, economic issues, and so on. The European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms 1950 is a classic example of their implementation. In a narrow sense, this term has a specific meaning and does not coincidewith the concept of 'legal standard', e.g. these are standards in the technical field that are adopted by the European Committee for Standardization, that is, in its content, it is a technical publication that is used as a norm, rule, guide or definition.Therefore, they relate to products, services, or systems and are the basis for convergence and interaction within the growing market of various business sectors. Today, in international law de facto there is a system of standards that regulate various aspects of international relations.


2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (4) ◽  
pp. 815-833
Author(s):  
Vesna Stefanovska ◽  
Blerton Sinani

In many occasions, the European Court of Human Rights has reiterated that the ECHR is a ‘living instrument’. The rights enshrined in the Convention have to be interpreted in the light of present day conditions so as to be practical and effective. Therefore, the Court has on several occasions modified its views on certain subjects because of scientific developments. Although in the scope of Article 6(1) of European Convention on Human Rights are civil rights and obligations and criminal charges, the application to administrative disputes has arised from the Court’s case-law. This paper will try to analyze the framework of administrative disputes in the Republic of Macedonia, mainly the Law on Administrative Disputes and its consolidation with the international standards, specifically with the ECHR. Further, subject of elaboration will be the Macedonian dossier in Strasbourg and the judgments in which the ECtHR found violation of Article 6 of ECHR in relation to administrative disputes and procedures.


Author(s):  
Petro Rudyk

Ukraine's integration into the European Union binds the former to approximate its legislation to international and European standards in various fields, including justice. This is also prompted by the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement and by the need for judicial reform, subject to the amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine of June 2016. The purpose of the article is to disclose basic international and European standards in the field of justice and their role in ensuring the consistency of judicial practice, which has not been studied in this aspect before. Scholars have different approaches to defining the concept of "international" and "European" legal standards in the field of justice and their division into types. The author proposes the understanding and definition of these concepts and the division of international standards into two main groups: 1) basic generally recognized international standards, that is binding international legal standards; and 2) special international standards in the field of justice that are advisory. The first group consists of the basic internationally recognized standards enshrined in UN human rights instruments, which are closely related to justice and include, in particular, everyone's entitlement to a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal. They are enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 10), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (Article 14), the European Convention on Human Rights (Article 6, paragraph 1). These basic international standards are binding for democratic countries in the world and in Europe, in particular for Ukraine, as they have been ratified by it. A clear understanding of and adherence to mandatory basic internationally recognized international standards by courts of all tiers will help to ensure the consistency of judicial practice. The second group of international standards in the field of justice consists of the Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary, approved by the resolutions of the UN General Assembly (1985), the Bangalore Principles of Judicial Conduct, approved by the UN Economic and Social Council Resolution (2006), recommendations of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, and opinions of the Consultative Council of European Judges for the attention of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, etc. They emphasize the need to adhere to such basic international standards as guaranteeing the independence of the judiciary by the state and enshrining them in the constitution or laws of the country, and define such basic principles of the functioning of the judiciary and judges as independence, objectivity, honesty, incorruptibility, observance of ethical rules, equal treatment of all parties to the proceedings, competence and diligence of courts, and so forth. Compliance with these general international standards in the field of justice will help to ensure the integrity of the judiciary in the interests of a person. Such standards and specific recommendations for ensuring the integrity of the judiciary are broadly outlined in the Consultative Council of European Judges Opinion on the Role of Courts in Ensuring the Unity of Law (2017), namely the importance of uniform application of the law, the possibility of the use of precedents, the paramount role of the Supreme Court in ensuring the integrity of the judiciary, the creation of a mechanism for filtering appeals, the inadmissibility of conflicting decisions, the importance of the role of the courts of appeal, the solid reasons for deviation from previous judicial practice, the compliance with the reporting system of courts, the application of previous decisions to specific cases, the ensuring of the principle of independence of judges, the use of various mechanisms to ensure the integrity of judicial practice. These issues were also discussed during the presentation of the Opinion in Ukraine and holding the conference Integrity of judicial practice: the view of the European Court of Human Rights and of the Supreme Court (2019).


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document