Agreement signed by members of the council of EUROPE in November 1950. It became formally operative in 1953, though its institutional centerpiece, the European Court of Human Rights (see EUROPEAN court[2]), was not functional until 1959. The Convention reflected a tradition of concerns with liberty and dignity that dated back at least to the time of the 1789 Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (see rights of man). It was inspired more immediately by the Declaration of Human Rights approved by the fledgling united nations in December 1948. The 1950 Convention was the first regional instrument to give, by supervision and legal enforcement, significant substance to promises about ensuring the accountability of those who violated basic freedoms and entitlements. so long as the COLD WAR persisted, it lacked applicability beyond western Europe. Since the early 1990s, however, nearly all the countries of eastern Europe (including post-communist Russia) have come, at least formally, within its ambit. As and when domestic processes of remedy might be exhausted, both individuals and governments are entitled to call upon the Court of Human Rights to consider relevant complaints against signatory states. The Convention’s achievements have stemmed largely from the influence that the judgments ofthis court have increasingly exerted over governments and public opinion, in the direction of improving the respect for human rights contained within the various domestic legal systems at issue.
European Council (see under European integration)
European Court This label tends to be applied, confusingly, to two separate bodies.
[1] The Court of Justice of the European Communities, established in 1952 within the broader context of European integration. It was originally created to oversee the legal working of the European COAL AND STEEL COMMUNITY. Its functions were extended in 1957 to the whole trio of communities operative after the rome treaties, and it has subsequently retained “Communities” within its formal title. Based in Luxemburg, it adjudicates on the implementation of treaties and other legal agreements as between member states of the European Union (EU).
[2] The European Court of Human Rights, which sits at strasbourg under the auspices of the COUNCIL OF EUROPE. This was established in 1959 to consider cases brought under the European CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS.
World History
