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Rights Protection by the EU

All EU governments have promised to protect human rights, democracy and the rule of law. No country can join the EU until it has shown that it has laws, policies and institutions in place to uphold these fundamental values, such as a free media and an independent judiciary. Once a country is inside the EU, however, the Union has limited powers to make sure the government sticks to these promises. This topic covers the work we do to persuade the EU to create stronger powers to protect its fundamental values, and the work we do to persuade the EU to use the powers it already has to prevent governments inside the Union from abusing human rights.

Read our series of explainers on how fundamental rights are protected in the EU

Read our policy paper on how the European Parliament could better protect civil liberties

Read our policy paper on how the Council of the EU could better protect the rule of law

Read our policy paper on how the EU can require governments to protect the rule of law if they want EU funding

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Rights Protection by the EU articles

Changes to Italian Criminal Justice may Affect Right to a Fair Trial

May 27, 2020 • by Italian Coalition for Civil Liberties and Rights

The Italian government has introduced a number of changes to the way that courts are administered, including postponements and video links. These amendments are having a detrimental effect of defendants and detainees and must be strictly temporary.
Tags:
- access to justice
- humanrightsundercorona
Iranian Student Accused of Breaching Quarantine to be Expelled from Hungary

May 21, 2020 • by Gábor Medvegy, Hungarian Civil Liberties Union

Iranian twins, both medical students, were accused of breaching quarantine rules. Although criminal proceedings have been dropped, one of them is to be deported and HCLU is now helping her.
Quarter of All Dutch Residents Reported Discrimination in 2018

April 20, 2020 • by Nederlands Juristen Comité voor de Mensenrechten

In 2018, a quarter of all people living in the Netherlands experienced one or more incidents they perceived as discrimination. That is the same proportion as five years ago. There were some changes regarding where and who experienced discrimination, an...
Tags:
- the Netherlands
LDH Open Letter: Coronavirus Powers Must Comply With the Rule of Law

April 09, 2020 • by Camille Van Durme, Belgian League of Human Rights

As Parliament is about to grant special powers to the government, the Belgium League of Human Rights (LDH) has sent an open letter to MPs and to the government to recall that respect for Human rights and the rule of law is vital.