The European Convention on Human Rights
The European Convention on Human Rights has established the most sophisticated and successful regional system of human rights protection in the world. The European Court of Human Rights, based in Strasbourg, holds to account member states for violations of the rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Convention to over 800 million persons.
In this module we analyse the jurisprudence of the Court on important topics including:
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the extent of states’ duties to respect life (eg control over anti-terrorist operations)
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the prohibition on torture and inhuman treatment (eg what types of interrogation techniques are prohibited under the Convention)
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securing the liberty of persons (eg protecting persons from forced disappearances at the hands of state agents)
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providing fair criminal trials for defendants (eg the requirements of judicial independence and the procedural rights of defendants)
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respecting persons’ private lives (extending from the regulation of secret surveillance of persons to providing legal recognition of their personalities)
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respecting family life (eg establishing safeguards over the taking of children into public care)
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protecting homes from environmental pollution and regulating the interception of communications
The importance of freedom of expression, particularly political expression in democratic societies, will be studied.
Overall, we shall learn how the creativity of the Court, adopting a dynamic approach, has consistently updated the obligations upon member states in the light of changing circumstances (especially social and cultural values).