Impact on Democracy of Emergency Measures Against Covid-19

Whilst there is significant discussion globally on the thesis that the Coronavirus is emboldening autocrats the world over through vastly expanded emergency powers, extraordinary measures and reliance on enforcement rather than on expendable democratic subtleties, this paper focuses on the particular case of Albania to show that even though the level of illiberal thrust in this country is far from equalling that of authoritarian regimes, a host of key similarities are already there, and the substance behind those similarities is equally worrying. In Albania, the operationalisation of the pandemic has made room for the relentless advancement of the government’s political agenda, giving rise to serious doubts about the sincerity of the government-sponsored measures, their end effects and their compatibility with public interest and constitutional framework.

The Hellenic Parliament’s Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic

Because of their particular nature, representative institutions around the globe are usually well equipped, both legally and capacity-wise, to adequately respond to political crises; this is what political evolution has taught them. Responses to political crises have been developed and take the form of formal or informal rules of procedure that lie at the disposal of the Speaker or other parliamentary functionaries. On the contrary, battling a health crisis does not immediately belong to the issues a parliament under normal circumstances deals with. Hence, the scattered responses by the world’s parliaments, as pointed out by recent studies, come as no surprise. This article showcases the Hellenic Parliament, which constitutes a classic example of a legislature combating the pandemic situation through a gradual and multidimensional response. Its relevant actions are displayed and analysed vis à vis the average global response. As the pandemic seems far from being over, the article attempts a series of future projections on how to deal with it in the long run.

Editor's introduction

In this Editorial, Tugçe Yalçin (Editor-in-Chief of ISLRev, Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, University of London) welcomes you to the COVID Special issue of the IALS Student Law Review (ISLRev) and introduces the articles featured in this issue of the journal.

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Are emergency measures in response to COVID-19 a threat to democracy?

The unprecedented outbreak and spread of the COVID-19 virus in the world and its grave consequences on human health, the economy and the everyday life forced national parliaments either to change its standard work mode or transfer their constitutional competences to the executive by declaring state of emergency. The detrimental effects of this unorthodox situation, especially on functioning of democracies, government branches’ division, economic disturbances and losses of jobs are yet to be determined and analyzed. Not expecting that the virus will reach pandemic proportions, the Macedonian parliament was dissolved for early parliamentary elections that ought to be carried out by a technical government, a commitment taken from the Przino Agreement in 2015. The state had faced a unique situation to get through the pandemic with a dissolved parliament and a technical government with limited competences. The constitutional vagueness regarding the work of the parliament in emergency situations and the duration of mandate of the parliamentarians allowing for different interpretation thereof, made the situation even more complicated than before. Consequently, the Government had to propose a proclamation of state of emergency for the first time since the independence, in order to be able to adopt legally binding regulations to manage the crisis. The State President proclaimed state of emergency on 18 March 2020 that had to be extended two more times, once for an additional 30 days and another for 8 days, in order to observe the electoral deadlines for the re-scheduled parliamentary elections. Some experts have strongly argued that the government with its hands untied in these challenging and de-parliamentarized times might abuse its competences by adopting regulations that have nothing to do with the state of emergency. This paper will reflect on the unique political and legislative processes in the state and its effects on the parliamentary democracy.

Constitutional Theories, International Legal Doctrines and Jurisprudential Foundation for State of Emergency

The conceptualisation of a state of emergency has emerged in the discourse of politics, international human rights and constitutional law as the most potent threat to the full realisation and implementation of constitutional and international human rights. During the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, state of emergency has become a tool for the violation of fundamental human rights not only in the West African region, but globally. This article seeks to examine the concept of state of emergency in international law and constitutional jurisprudence in order to understand whether recent claims of many governments declaring states of emergency can be justified. This article analyses and reviews the constitutional history of the use of state of emergency in Europe, United States and eventually three West Africa counties in Ghana, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.

Editorial Board and Associate Editors

Editorial Board and Associate Editors

Monitoring and Evaluating the Impact (Post-Legislative Scrutiny) of Emergency Regulation in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic

The threat posed by passing emergency laws and policies in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic can be said to be a critical precursor of human rights abuses. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Nigerian President issued the COVID-19 REGULATION 2020 exercising his powers under the Federal Quarantine Act, CAP Q2 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004. Based on this, the Nigerian Federal Government has undertaken stringent measures, enforced restrictions and cessation of movement, social and economic activities in Nigeria to curtail the pandemic. Nigeria has employed human control to stop the disease's spread, including travel bans, quarantine orders, social distancing, and lockdowns. The measures applied to curtail the spread of COVID-19 have an undoubted impact on human rights.The Nigerian government implemented these restrictive measures which impinge on human rights and democratic processes with authoritarian provisions. This study analyses the emergency measures implemented by the Nigerian government and human rights' infractions and considers Post-Legislative Scrutiny to mitigate the government's legislative actions as a safeguard for human rights and democracy in Nigeria.To ensure true democracy, Nigerian regulations, laws, and policy response to COVID-19 must align with international human rights commitments. And the temporarily imposed restrictions on rights are reviewed by the Legislature and do not become permanent. Questions to be addressed in this paper are: (1) Is the breadth of powers currently enjoyed by executive bodies, such as Public Health authorities and security forces under scrutiny and review of the Legislature? (2) Are there safeguards put in place by the Legislature, as an oversight to ensure democratic rule and respect for human rights in Nigeria?The paper uses the qualitative research method. It relies on content analysis of COVID-19 regulatory and legislative provisions, academic literature, articles, journals, and newspaper publications.

Coronavirus and Effects on the Rule of Law

In the management of the Coronavirus Pandemic, law is called to play a synergistic role with the science to guarantee the public order and safety. In the European context Italy is to be examined, i.e. the first state in Europe to launch containment measures of the spread of the virus and to protect public health. Through a comparative approach, the purpose here is to examine the assumptions and the impact of the emergency legislation on the Italian democratic system. Evaluating within what limits fundamental human rights and freedoms’ compression can be legitimated on a national and international basis in exceptional events allow to analyse the relative reflections on the rule of law. Finally, the discussion focuses on the compatibility of using mass surveillance technologies on the International and European regulatory framework where balancing techniques and the principle of proportionality represent the core in framing the regulatory activity. Despite undoubted short-term benefits, the concern is to safeguard both the protection of personal data and health, in the face of this 'invisible enemy', considering that the link between emergency regulation and prolonged compression of rights in technological innovation requires special attention.

The impact of the Covid-19 related emergency measures on the democracy and human rights in Armenia

This paper analyses the adoption, enforcement and parliamentary oversight of the emergency measures in response to COVID-19, and their impact on the democracy, human rights and good governance in Armenia.