Human Rights, European and International
- Council of Europe / European Court of Human Rights
- European Union / European Court of Justice
- United Nations / International Court of Justice
- United Nations / International Criminal Court
was set up under the Treaty of London, signed on 5 May 1949, and thus pre-dates the Common Market (now the European Union). The Council of Europe is a completely separate entity from the EU. The primary purpose of the Council of Europe is "to protect human rights, pluralist democracy and the rule of law." The UK was a founding member.
Virtually the first act of the Council of Europe was to create the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, known as the European Convention on Human Rights ("ECHR"). The UK contributed greatly to its text, and was one of the first signatories (November 1950). The other first signatories were Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Turkey. Forty-seven countries have now joined the Council of Europe and ratified the ECHR.
The Convention came into force in 1953, and has legal force in all member-states of the Council of Europe.
The ECHR is enforced by the European Court of Human Rights ("ECtHR"), set up by the Council of Europe in 1959. It is based in Strasbourg. Individuals can bring complaints against member states to the Court as a last resort, but only after they have gone through the Court system in the relevant State.
is a completely separate body from the Council of Europe. It also has a Court, called the European Court of Justice ("ECJ"), which was set up in 1952 and sits in Luxembourg. Its role is to enforce European Union law. Like the ECtHR, the ECJ can hear complaints from individuals against states.
The EU's Amsterdam Treaty (1999) committed the EU to respecting "human rights and fundamental freedoms", and gave the ECJ the new power to enforce this within EU institutions. The Amsterdam Treaty did not define human rights and fundamental freedoms, however; which is one reason why the EU is currently considering adopting a formal Charter of Fundamental Rights. The current draft specifically includes "sexual orientation" in the key Article on Non-Discrimination (Article 21), which is a good sign. Some EU member states want to see the Charter adopted and incorporated into EU law (and they also want to see the EU join the Council of Europe and sign up to the ECHR). Other EU member states, including the UK, are currently resisting this idea. For more about the draft Charter, click on the link on the left.
Stop press (23 June 2007): the EU has agreed to incorporate the Charter of Fundamental Rights, but the United Kingdom has opted out. See our Breaking News page.
The International Court of Justice...
was set up in 1945 by the United Nations, to adjudicate on disputes between member-states of the United Nations. It sits in the Peace Palace at The Hague in the Netherlands. It cannot hear complaints by individuals: it can only settle disputes involving the governments of two States or the United Nations organisation itself. It is not primarily a human rights court.
The International Criminal Court...
is also an arm of the United Nations, and was set up in 1998. Its purpose is to try individuals who are accused of the most serious crimes: genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. Like the ECtHR, the International Criminal Court is a court of last resort, and can hear only those cases that cannot be heard in a national court system, or where the national courts system has failed to try a case properly. Like the International Court of Justice, it is based at The Hague in the Netherlands. By its nature, it has a great deal to do with human rights issues.
There are still more International Courts based at The Hague, such as the Permanent Court of Arbitration set up in 1899. These are not primarily Human Rights Courts. (See The Hague Justice Portal.).