Human rights in Europe
Encyclopedia
The current human rights situation in Europe on the whole is believed by many to be good. However, there are several human rights
alleged problems ranging from the treatment of asylum seekers through police brutality to various infringements of the judicial rights and freedoms of businesspersons under bureaucratic regulatory sub-regimes. Individual European states are mentioned in the yearly Amnesty International
Reports for different human rights violations. One of the main culprits is Belarus
, which is the only country in Europe to be rated "authoritarian" by the Economist. All other countries are considered to have "some form of democratic government", having either the "full democracy", "flawed democracy", or "hybrid regime" ratings.
Unlike its member states, the European Union itself has not yet joined the Convention on Human Rights, as of 2011.
1367: Statutes of Kilkenny
15th to 19th centuries: African slave trade
.
1529: Statutes of Lithuania
.
1550-1551: Bartolomé de Las Casas
debates Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda
on human rights (Valladolid debate
).
1650-1660: Jesuit priest Antonio Vieira
fights for the Human Rights of the Indigenous Population of Brazil, and obtains regal decrees that the Brazilian Indigenous populations shall not be enslaved.
1689: The English Bill of Rights, England.
1689: The Claim of Right, Scotland
.
1690: The Second Treatise of Civil Government by John Locke
.
Between 1750 and 1860: The majority of the Inclosure Act
s, a number of United Kingdom Acts of Parliament inclosed common land
in the country recognized private property rights to lands which formerly had not been private property. People often grazed animals on these areas when not planted by crops, and their owners continued to do so afterward. N.B: Common usage is enclosure, but this is not the name of the acts.
1772: British court ruling by William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield
set a precedent
that slavery
had no basis in law.
1781: Abolition of serfdom
in the Habsburg
countries through the emperor Leopold II
( Bohemia
, Moravia
and Austrian Silesia)
1783: Abolition of serfdom
in the first German state, Baden
, 1810 in Prussia
.
1789: The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
, France.
1790: Rights of Man
by Thomas Paine
.
1794: France abolished
slavery.
1802: France re-introduced slavery.
1804: The Napoleonic code
, France and French conquests under Napoleon.
1807: British abolition of the slave trade (but not of slavery itself).
1832: British Reform Act
extended voting rights and made trade union
s legal.
1833: British abolition of slavery.
1845: Another United Kingdom General Inclosure Act allowed for the employment of inclosure Commissoners who could enclose land without submitting a request to parliament. The private property rights over formerly unenclosed lands expanded.
1848: French abolition of slavery.
1859: On Liberty
by John Stuart Mill
.
1861: Russian abolition of serfdom
.
1863: Netherlands abolition of slavery.
1867: British Second Reform Act
extended voting rights to all urban male householders.
1884: British Representation of the People Act
extended male voting rights from the town to the country.
1906: Finland introduced universal suffrage
in national elections as the first European country. In 1917 this was extended to local elections.
1918: Another British Representation of the People Act
removed most the restrictions on male voting rights, permitting nearly all men to vote and also granting the vote to women over 30 if they owned property.
1932-1945: The Holocaust
.
Universal suffrage was introduced in the following European countries in these years:
Universal suffrage granted in these countries in the following years:
Beginning of the European Committee of Social Rights
Human right protected by national laws (Constitutions...)
, constant conflict between minority group separatists in the Caucasus
has meant that successive governments in these states have passed strict laws with the aim of limiting the chance of rebellion.
In Latvia, Citizenship, usage of mother tongue and ethnic-based discrimination are the main acute problems for Latvia's Russian minority. At present, one half of the Russian-speaking community of Latvia are Latvian citizens, while those belonging to the other half do not have citizenship of any country in the world. They form the unique legal category of "Latvian non-citizens". In some spheres their status is similar to that of citizens of Latvia (for example – consular support abroad), in some spheres the non-citizens have less rights then foreigners (recent immigrants from EU countries can vote at municipal and EP elections but Latvian non-citizens cannot).
Since 2004 most subjects in Russian minority secondary schools have had to have been taught in Latvian. This practice is called "bilingual education". Over the four years since bilingual education was introduced, the process of education in Russian schools has deteriorated. The state did not introduce mandatory bilingual education in Latvians’ majority schools in order to prevent the same problems for Latvian children. The state has discontinued the training of teachers who can instruct in Russian (excluding teachers of Russian language and literature).
The ruling Latvian parties never take into account the opinion of the local Russian minority in the decision making process related to the issues of citizenship, language or the future of minority schools. Democracy in Latvia is limited and is ethnic in character.
Latvian citizens of Russian origin have very little representation at the higher levels of state administration. For many years the Latvian government has not had any minister of Russian origin, rare exceptions are Russian judges, heads of government departments or professors at state universities. This situation is as a result of the unwritten rules of ethnic preferences.
The Russian minority in Latvia is in decline because of emigration and the negative birth rate. The death rate among Russians in Latvia is higher than that of Latvians in Latvia and Russians in Russia. This can be explained in part by the unfavourable social conditions that have come about in Latvian cities, following the enforced destruction of the industrial economy in the beginning of the 90s.
Belarus itself, often described as "Europe's last dictatorship", has retained a shocking record on human rights, at least compared to its European neighbors. The press is strictly censored and controlled by the government, and the freedom to speech and protest has been removed. Although Belarus' post-independence elections match the outward forms of a democracy, election monitors have described them as unsound.
Russia has done some questionable policies itself, (such as replacing of elected governors with appointed ones, and censorship
of the press) claiming many of these measures are needed to maintain control over its volatile Caucasus
border, where several rebel groups are based. However it is still rated to be a democracy by the Economist having a "hybrid regime" rating.
Following the collapse of communism in Yugoslavia
, the state held together by the strong rule of Josip Broz Tito
, several of the nations which made it up declared independence. What followed was several years of bloody conflict as the dominant nation, Serbia
, attempted at first to hold the state together, and then instead to hold onto Serb-populated areas of neighbouring nations, in order to create a "Greater Serbia
." Within Serbia itself there was conflict in the region of Kosovo
, where Serbs are a minority.
The now six states of the former Yugoslavia, (Bosnia and Herzegovina
, Croatia
, Macedonia
, Montenegro
, Serbia
, and Slovenia
) are in various stages of human rights development. Slovenia, which suffered least in the Yugoslav wars
, has since joined the EU and is widely considered to have a good human rights record and policy. Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Montenegro, which have formed stable government, have a fair human rights record, with only a few criticisms of the treatment of Serb and Albanian minorities. Croatia is also an EU applicant.
However, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia retain poor questionable rights records, the former is entirely governed under UN mandate, while the latter's Kosovo region is too. Bosnia-Herzegovina is the most ethnically diverse of the current states of former Yugoslavia, with large groups of Bosniaks
, Croats
and Serbs
. This is what has made peace hard to come by in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and has restricted the growth of human rights. Although several laws are in place, policing them is a difficult task. However, Bosnia and Serbia are both rated to be democracies by the Economist (with the former being rated a "hybrid regime, and the latter,a "flawed democracy").
The states of the EU, as well as Iceland
, Norway, Switzerland and the European microstates
, have world-class human rights records. The prospect of EU membership (which also entails subscription to the European Convention on Human Rights
) has encouraged several European states to improve their human rights, most notably Croatia
and Turkey
, and especially on key human rights issues such as freedom of speech and the banning of the death penalty. However, certain laws passed in the wake of the fears over the War on Terrorism
have been condemned for encroaching on human rights. There has been criticism of the French law on secularity and conspicuous religious symbols in schools
and the French legislation for protecting the public against certain cultic groups. In the UK, a new indigenous British Bill of Rights
has been advocated to protect a far wider range of economic, political, judicial, communication, and personal rights and freedoms than are currently protected under basic rights laws and conventions; extend normal rights and freedoms before the law to various presently disprivileged and exploited business-economic minority classes; generally strengthen and extend the liberal social order; and establish a new independent Supreme Court
with the power to actually strike down government laws and policies that violate basic rights and freedoms.
The problem is particularly severe in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and Turkey
(these countries, along with Thailand
, Japan, Israel
and the USA are listed by the UNODC as top destinations for victims of human trafficking).
The The Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings was adopted by the Council of Europe
on 16 May 2005. The aim of the convention is to prevent and combat the trafficking in human beings. Of the 46 members of the Council of Europe, so far 23 have signed the convention and none have ratified it yet (15 December 2005). Amnesty International has called on European states to sign and ratify the convention as part of the fight against human trafficking.
is responsible for both the European Convention on Human Rights
and the European Court of Human Rights
. These institutions bind the Council's members to a code of human rights which, though strict, are more lenient than those of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
. The Council also promotes the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages
and the European Social Charter
.
The Council of Europe is separate from the European Union
, but the latter is expected to join the European Convention and potentially the Council itself. The EU also has a separate human rights document; the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union
. Since March 2007 the EU has had a Fundamental Rights Agency based in Vienna (Austria).
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
is responsible for promoting and protecting the human rights defined in international human rights treaties also in Europe. In late 2009, the High Commissioner opened a Regional Office for Europe which is mandated to promote and protect human rights in 40 European countries, including the EU Member States, the candidate and potential EU candidate countries of the Balkans, Iceland, Norway and Turkey.
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
alleged problems ranging from the treatment of asylum seekers through police brutality to various infringements of the judicial rights and freedoms of businesspersons under bureaucratic regulatory sub-regimes. Individual European states are mentioned in the yearly Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
Reports for different human rights violations. One of the main culprits is Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
, which is the only country in Europe to be rated "authoritarian" by the Economist. All other countries are considered to have "some form of democratic government", having either the "full democracy", "flawed democracy", or "hybrid regime" ratings.
Unlike its member states, the European Union itself has not yet joined the Convention on Human Rights, as of 2011.
History of human rights in Europe
The history of human rights in Europe is marked by a contradictory combination of, on the one hand, legislative and intellectual progress, and, on the other hand, violations of fundamental human rights in both the colonies of Europe, and at home.Pre-1945 human rights developments
1215: Magna CartaMagna Carta
Magna Carta is an English charter, originally issued in the year 1215 and reissued later in the 13th century in modified versions, which included the most direct challenges to the monarch's authority to date. The charter first passed into law in 1225...
1367: Statutes of Kilkenny
Statutes of Kilkenny
The Statutes of Kilkenny were a series of thirty-five acts passed at Kilkenny in 1366, aiming to curb the decline of the Hiberno-Norman Lordship of Ireland.-Background to the Statutes:...
15th to 19th centuries: African slave trade
African slave trade
Systems of servitude and slavery were common in many parts of Africa, as they were in much of the ancient world. In some African societies, the enslaved people were also indentured servants and fully integrated; in others, they were treated much worse...
.
1529: Statutes of Lithuania
Statutes of Lithuania
The Statutes of Lithuania originally known as the Statutes of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania were a 16th century codification of all the legislation of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and its successor, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth...
.
1550-1551: Bartolomé de Las Casas
Bartolomé de Las Casas
Bartolomé de las Casas O.P. was a 16th-century Spanish historian, social reformer and Dominican friar. He became the first resident Bishop of Chiapas, and the first officially appointed "Protector of the Indians"...
debates Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda
Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda
Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda was a Spanish humanist, philosopher and theologian. In 1533 and 1534 he wrote to Desiderius Erasmus from Rome concerning differences between Erasmus's Greek New Testament , and the Codex Vaticanus Graecus 1209...
on human rights (Valladolid debate
Valladolid debate
The Valladolid debate concerned the treatment of natives of the New World. Held in the Colegio de San Gregorio, in the Spanish city of Valladolid, it opposed two main attitudes towards the conquests of the Americas...
).
1650-1660: Jesuit priest Antonio Vieira
António Vieira
Father António Vieira was a Portuguese Jesuit and writer, the "prince" of Catholic pulpit-orators of his time.-Life:Vieira was born in Lisbon to Cristóvão Vieira Ravasco, the son of a mulatto woman, and Maria de Azevedo. Accompanying his parents to Brazil in 1614, he received his education at the...
fights for the Human Rights of the Indigenous Population of Brazil, and obtains regal decrees that the Brazilian Indigenous populations shall not be enslaved.
1689: The English Bill of Rights, England.
1689: The Claim of Right, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
1690: The Second Treatise of Civil Government by John Locke
John Locke
John Locke FRS , widely known as the Father of Liberalism, was an English philosopher and physician regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers. Considered one of the first of the British empiricists, following the tradition of Francis Bacon, he is equally important to social...
.
Between 1750 and 1860: The majority of the Inclosure Act
Inclosure Act
The Inclosure or Enclosure Acts were a series of United Kingdom Acts of Parliament which enclosed open fields and common land in the country. They removed previously existing rights of local people to carry out activities in these areas, such as cultivation, cutting hay, grazing animals or using...
s, a number of United Kingdom Acts of Parliament inclosed common land
Common land
Common land is land owned collectively or by one person, but over which other people have certain traditional rights, such as to allow their livestock to graze upon it, to collect firewood, or to cut turf for fuel...
in the country recognized private property rights to lands which formerly had not been private property. People often grazed animals on these areas when not planted by crops, and their owners continued to do so afterward. N.B: Common usage is enclosure, but this is not the name of the acts.
1772: British court ruling by William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield
William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield
William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, SL, PC was a British barrister, politician and judge noted for his reform of English law. Born to Scottish nobility, he was educated in Perth, Scotland before moving to London at the age of 13 to take up a place at Westminster School...
set a precedent
Precedent
In common law legal systems, a precedent or authority is a principle or rule established in a legal case that a court or other judicial body may apply when deciding subsequent cases with similar issues or facts...
that slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
had no basis in law.
1781: Abolition of serfdom
Serfdom
Serfdom is the status of peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to Manorialism. It was a condition of bondage or modified slavery which developed primarily during the High Middle Ages in Europe and lasted to the mid-19th century...
in the Habsburg
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg , also found as Hapsburg, and also known as House of Austria is one of the most important royal houses of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian Empire and...
countries through the emperor Leopold II
Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor
Leopold II , born Peter Leopold Joseph Anton Joachim Pius Gotthard, was Holy Roman Emperor and King of Hungary and Bohemia from 1790 to 1792, Archduke of Austria and Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1765 to 1790. He was a son of Emperor Francis I and his wife, Empress Maria Theresa...
( Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
, Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
and Austrian Silesia)
1783: Abolition of serfdom
Serfdom
Serfdom is the status of peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to Manorialism. It was a condition of bondage or modified slavery which developed primarily during the High Middle Ages in Europe and lasted to the mid-19th century...
in the first German state, Baden
Baden
Baden is a historical state on the east bank of the Rhine in the southwest of Germany, now the western part of the Baden-Württemberg of Germany....
, 1810 in Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
.
1789: The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen is a fundamental document of the French Revolution, defining the individual and collective rights of all the estates of the realm as universal. Influenced by the doctrine of "natural right", the rights of man are held to be universal: valid...
, France.
1790: Rights of Man
Rights of Man
Rights of Man , a book by Thomas Paine, posits that popular political revolution is permissible when a government does not safeguard its people, their natural rights, and their national interests. Using these points as a base it defends the French Revolution against Edmund Burke's attack in...
by Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine
Thomas "Tom" Paine was an English author, pamphleteer, radical, inventor, intellectual, revolutionary, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States...
.
1794: France abolished
Abolitionism
Abolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...
slavery.
1802: France re-introduced slavery.
1804: The Napoleonic code
Napoleonic code
The Napoleonic Code — or Code Napoléon — is the French civil code, established under Napoléon I in 1804. The code forbade privileges based on birth, allowed freedom of religion, and specified that government jobs go to the most qualified...
, France and French conquests under Napoleon.
1807: British abolition of the slave trade (but not of slavery itself).
1832: British Reform Act
Reform Act 1832
The Representation of the People Act 1832 was an Act of Parliament that introduced wide-ranging changes to the electoral system of England and Wales...
extended voting rights and made trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
s legal.
1833: British abolition of slavery.
1845: Another United Kingdom General Inclosure Act allowed for the employment of inclosure Commissoners who could enclose land without submitting a request to parliament. The private property rights over formerly unenclosed lands expanded.
1848: French abolition of slavery.
1859: On Liberty
On Liberty
On Liberty is a philosophical work by British philosopher John Stuart Mill. It was a radical work to the Victorian readers of the time because it supported individuals' moral and economic freedom from the state....
by John Stuart Mill
John Stuart Mill
John Stuart Mill was a British philosopher, economist and civil servant. An influential contributor to social theory, political theory, and political economy, his conception of liberty justified the freedom of the individual in opposition to unlimited state control. He was a proponent of...
.
1861: Russian abolition of serfdom
Serfdom
Serfdom is the status of peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to Manorialism. It was a condition of bondage or modified slavery which developed primarily during the High Middle Ages in Europe and lasted to the mid-19th century...
.
1863: Netherlands abolition of slavery.
1867: British Second Reform Act
Reform Act 1867
The Representation of the People Act 1867, 30 & 31 Vict. c. 102 was a piece of British legislation that enfranchised the urban male working class in England and Wales....
extended voting rights to all urban male householders.
1884: British Representation of the People Act
Representation of the People Act 1884
In the United Kingdom, the Representation of the People Act 1884 and the Redistribution Act of the following year were laws which further extended the suffrage in Britain after the Disraeli Government's Reform Act 1867...
extended male voting rights from the town to the country.
1906: Finland introduced universal suffrage
Universal suffrage
Universal suffrage consists of the extension of the right to vote to adult citizens as a whole, though it may also mean extending said right to minors and non-citizens...
in national elections as the first European country. In 1917 this was extended to local elections.
1918: Another British Representation of the People Act
Representation of the People Act 1918
The Representation of the People Act 1918 was an Act of Parliament passed to reform the electoral system in the United Kingdom. It is sometimes known as the Fourth Reform Act...
removed most the restrictions on male voting rights, permitting nearly all men to vote and also granting the vote to women over 30 if they owned property.
1932-1945: The Holocaust
The Holocaust
The Holocaust , also known as the Shoah , was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews and millions of others during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored murder by Nazi...
.
Universal suffrage was introduced in the following European countries in these years:
- Finland—1906 (note: Finland gave full parliamentary rights to women as the first country in the world in 1906. New Zealand had given women the vote before Finland but not the right to stand as candidates in elections.)
- Norway—1913
- Denmark—1915
- Iceland—1915
- Russia—1917
- Lithuania—1917
- Latvia—1917
- Estonia—1917
- After the Central PowersCentral PowersThe Central Powers were one of the two warring factions in World War I , composed of the German Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulgaria...
' defeat in World War I- Austria—1918
- Germany—1918
- Hungary—1918
- Poland—1918
- Czechoslovakia—1918
- Luxembourg - 1918
- Netherlands - 1919
- Sweden—1919
- Ireland—1922 (received independence)
- Romania—1923
- United Kingdom—1928
- Turkey—1930
- Portugal—1931 (women lost the right to vote under Salazar, and it was reintroduced again in 1975)
- Spain—1931 (but women lost the vote under Franco in 1936 and did not vote again until 1976)
- France—1944
- Italy --- 1946
1945-1984
- 1954–62: Torture by the French of Algerians during the Algerian War of IndependenceAlgerian War of IndependenceThe Algerian War was a conflict between France and Algerian independence movements from 1954 to 1962, which led to Algeria's gaining its independence from France...
. - 1954-1956: Torture and killing of at least 50,000 Kenyans, perhaps far more, by the British during the Mau Mau Rebellion.
- Government sanctioned Human Rights abuses leading to massacres in Europe:
- Paris massacre of 1961Paris massacre of 1961The Paris massacre of 1961 was a massacre in Paris on 17 October 1961, during the Algerian War . Under orders from the head of the Parisian police, Maurice Papon, the French police attacked a demonstration of some 30,000 pro-FLN Algerians...
- Bloody Sunday (1972)Bloody Sunday (1972)Bloody Sunday —sometimes called the Bogside Massacre—was an incident on 30 January 1972 in the Bogside area of Derry, Northern Ireland, in which twenty-six unarmed civil rights protesters and bystanders were shot by soldiers of the British Army...
- Paris massacre of 1961
- 1978: Ruling by the European Court of Human Rights that torture by the British government of suspect IRAIrish Republican ArmyThe Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
members constituted "cruel and inhuman treatment."
Universal suffrage granted in these countries in the following years:
- Italy—1945
- Yugoslavia—1946
- Malta—1946
- Belgium—1948
- Greece—1952
- Cyprus—1960
- San Marino—1960
- Monaco—1960
- Switzerland—1971
- Portugal—1975
- Spain—1976
- Liechtenstein—1984
Beginning of the European Committee of Social Rights
Human right protected by national laws (Constitutions...)
1984-present
Following the collapse and break-up of the Soviet Union, its history of severe human right abuses were laid in the open. The situation has since improved in the majority of former-Communist states of Europe, mainly those in Central Europe. These Central European states aligned themselves with the EU (most of them becoming members in 2004), and underwent a rigorous reform of human rights laws, most notably regarding freedom of speech and religion, and the protection of minorities, particularly the Roma. However, the former USSR states have made far slower progress. Despite all but Belarus becoming members of the Council of EuropeCouncil of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
, constant conflict between minority group separatists in the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
has meant that successive governments in these states have passed strict laws with the aim of limiting the chance of rebellion.
In Latvia, Citizenship, usage of mother tongue and ethnic-based discrimination are the main acute problems for Latvia's Russian minority. At present, one half of the Russian-speaking community of Latvia are Latvian citizens, while those belonging to the other half do not have citizenship of any country in the world. They form the unique legal category of "Latvian non-citizens". In some spheres their status is similar to that of citizens of Latvia (for example – consular support abroad), in some spheres the non-citizens have less rights then foreigners (recent immigrants from EU countries can vote at municipal and EP elections but Latvian non-citizens cannot).
Since 2004 most subjects in Russian minority secondary schools have had to have been taught in Latvian. This practice is called "bilingual education". Over the four years since bilingual education was introduced, the process of education in Russian schools has deteriorated. The state did not introduce mandatory bilingual education in Latvians’ majority schools in order to prevent the same problems for Latvian children. The state has discontinued the training of teachers who can instruct in Russian (excluding teachers of Russian language and literature).
The ruling Latvian parties never take into account the opinion of the local Russian minority in the decision making process related to the issues of citizenship, language or the future of minority schools. Democracy in Latvia is limited and is ethnic in character.
Latvian citizens of Russian origin have very little representation at the higher levels of state administration. For many years the Latvian government has not had any minister of Russian origin, rare exceptions are Russian judges, heads of government departments or professors at state universities. This situation is as a result of the unwritten rules of ethnic preferences.
The Russian minority in Latvia is in decline because of emigration and the negative birth rate. The death rate among Russians in Latvia is higher than that of Latvians in Latvia and Russians in Russia. This can be explained in part by the unfavourable social conditions that have come about in Latvian cities, following the enforced destruction of the industrial economy in the beginning of the 90s.
Belarus itself, often described as "Europe's last dictatorship", has retained a shocking record on human rights, at least compared to its European neighbors. The press is strictly censored and controlled by the government, and the freedom to speech and protest has been removed. Although Belarus' post-independence elections match the outward forms of a democracy, election monitors have described them as unsound.
Russia has done some questionable policies itself, (such as replacing of elected governors with appointed ones, and censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
of the press) claiming many of these measures are needed to maintain control over its volatile Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
border, where several rebel groups are based. However it is still rated to be a democracy by the Economist having a "hybrid regime" rating.
Following the collapse of communism in Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
, the state held together by the strong rule of Josip Broz Tito
Josip Broz Tito
Marshal Josip Broz Tito – 4 May 1980) was a Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman. While his presidency has been criticized as authoritarian, Tito was a popular public figure both in Yugoslavia and abroad, viewed as a unifying symbol for the nations of the Yugoslav federation...
, several of the nations which made it up declared independence. What followed was several years of bloody conflict as the dominant nation, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, attempted at first to hold the state together, and then instead to hold onto Serb-populated areas of neighbouring nations, in order to create a "Greater Serbia
Greater Serbia
The term Greater Serbia or Great Serbia applies to the Serbian nationalist and irredentist ideology directed towards the creation of a Serbian land which would incorporate all regions of traditional significance to the Serbian nation...
." Within Serbia itself there was conflict in the region of Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
, where Serbs are a minority.
The now six states of the former Yugoslavia, (Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
, Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, and Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
) are in various stages of human rights development. Slovenia, which suffered least in the Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
, has since joined the EU and is widely considered to have a good human rights record and policy. Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Montenegro, which have formed stable government, have a fair human rights record, with only a few criticisms of the treatment of Serb and Albanian minorities. Croatia is also an EU applicant.
However, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia retain poor questionable rights records, the former is entirely governed under UN mandate, while the latter's Kosovo region is too. Bosnia-Herzegovina is the most ethnically diverse of the current states of former Yugoslavia, with large groups of Bosniaks
Bosniaks
The Bosniaks or Bosniacs are a South Slavic ethnic group, living mainly in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a smaller minority also present in other lands of the Balkan Peninsula especially in Serbia, Montenegro and Croatia...
, Croats
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
and Serbs
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
. This is what has made peace hard to come by in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and has restricted the growth of human rights. Although several laws are in place, policing them is a difficult task. However, Bosnia and Serbia are both rated to be democracies by the Economist (with the former being rated a "hybrid regime, and the latter,a "flawed democracy").
The states of the EU, as well as Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, Norway, Switzerland and the European microstates
European microstates
The European microstates or ministates are a set of very small states in Europe. While Andorra, Liechtenstein, Malta, Monaco, San Marino, and Vatican City are usually included, Luxembourg and Cyprus share certain features as well...
, have world-class human rights records. The prospect of EU membership (which also entails subscription to the European Convention on Human Rights
European Convention on Human Rights
The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is an international treaty to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by the then newly formed Council of Europe, the convention entered into force on 3 September 1953...
) has encouraged several European states to improve their human rights, most notably Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
and Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, and especially on key human rights issues such as freedom of speech and the banning of the death penalty. However, certain laws passed in the wake of the fears over the War on Terrorism
War on Terrorism
The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...
have been condemned for encroaching on human rights. There has been criticism of the French law on secularity and conspicuous religious symbols in schools
French law on secularity and conspicuous religious symbols in schools
The French law on secularity and conspicuous religious symbols in schools bans wearing conspicuous religious symbols in French public primary and secondary schools...
and the French legislation for protecting the public against certain cultic groups. In the UK, a new indigenous British Bill of Rights
British Bill of Rights
The British Bill of Rights can refer to:* Bill of Rights 1689, an Act of the Parliament of England made following the Glorious Revolution; considered one of the fundamental parts of the Constitution of the United Kingdom...
has been advocated to protect a far wider range of economic, political, judicial, communication, and personal rights and freedoms than are currently protected under basic rights laws and conventions; extend normal rights and freedoms before the law to various presently disprivileged and exploited business-economic minority classes; generally strengthen and extend the liberal social order; and establish a new independent Supreme Court
Supreme court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of many legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, instance court, judgment court, high court, or apex court...
with the power to actually strike down government laws and policies that violate basic rights and freedoms.
Human trafficking
The end of communism, the collapse of the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia and easier global travel has contributed to an increase in human trafficking, with many victims being transported into forced prostitution, hard labour, agriculture and domestic service. The conflicts in the former Yugoslavia have also been a key factor in the increase of human trafficking in Europe.The problem is particularly severe in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
(these countries, along with Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, Japan, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
and the USA are listed by the UNODC as top destinations for victims of human trafficking).
The The Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings was adopted by the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
on 16 May 2005. The aim of the convention is to prevent and combat the trafficking in human beings. Of the 46 members of the Council of Europe, so far 23 have signed the convention and none have ratified it yet (15 December 2005). Amnesty International has called on European states to sign and ratify the convention as part of the fight against human trafficking.
Minority languages
In Slovakia, a country with 10% of its population being ethnically Hungarian, a new law came into force in 2009 about using state language:Council of Europe / European Union
The Council of EuropeCouncil of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
is responsible for both the European Convention on Human Rights
European Convention on Human Rights
The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is an international treaty to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by the then newly formed Council of Europe, the convention entered into force on 3 September 1953...
and the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
. These institutions bind the Council's members to a code of human rights which, though strict, are more lenient than those of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a declaration adopted by the United Nations General Assembly . The Declaration arose directly from the experience of the Second World War and represents the first global expression of rights to which all human beings are inherently entitled...
. The Council also promotes the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages
European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages
The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages is a European treaty adopted in 1992 under the auspices of the Council of Europe to protect and promote historical regional and minority languages in Europe...
and the European Social Charter
European Social Charter
The European Social Charter is a Council of Europe treaty which was adopted in 1961 and revised in 1996. The Revised Charter came into force in 1999 and is gradually replacing the initial 1961 treaty...
.
The Council of Europe is separate from the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
, but the latter is expected to join the European Convention and potentially the Council itself. The EU also has a separate human rights document; the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union
Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union
The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union enshrines certain political, social, and economic rights for European Union citizens and residents, into EU law. It was drafted by the European Convention and solemnly proclaimed on 7 December 2000 by the European Parliament, the Council of...
. Since March 2007 the EU has had a Fundamental Rights Agency based in Vienna (Austria).
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights is a United Nations agency that works to promote and protect the human rights that are guaranteed under international law and stipulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948...
is responsible for promoting and protecting the human rights defined in international human rights treaties also in Europe. In late 2009, the High Commissioner opened a Regional Office for Europe which is mandated to promote and protect human rights in 40 European countries, including the EU Member States, the candidate and potential EU candidate countries of the Balkans, Iceland, Norway and Turkey.
See also
- Capital punishment in EuropeCapital punishment in EuropeThe death penalty has been abolished in almost all European countries . The moratorium on the death penalty is enshrined in both the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the European Convention on Human Rights of the Council of Europe, and thus considered a central value...
- Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European UnionCharter of Fundamental Rights of the European UnionThe Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union enshrines certain political, social, and economic rights for European Union citizens and residents, into EU law. It was drafted by the European Convention and solemnly proclaimed on 7 December 2000 by the European Parliament, the Council of...
- European Convention on Human RightsEuropean Convention on Human RightsThe Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is an international treaty to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by the then newly formed Council of Europe, the convention entered into force on 3 September 1953...
- European Court of Human RightsEuropean Court of Human RightsThe European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
- Council of EuropeCouncil of EuropeThe Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
- List of human rights articles by country
- Human rights in East AsiaHuman rights in East AsiaThe situation of human rights in East Asia varies between the region's countries, which differ in history and political orientation, as well as between contexts within each country.See the following for more details on each country:* Brunei* Cambodia...
- Human rights in the Soviet UnionHuman rights in the Soviet UnionHuman rights in the Soviet Union have been viewed differently, one view by the communist ideology adopted by the Soviet Union and another by its critics. The Soviet Union was established after a revolution that ended centuries of Tsarist monarchy...
- Human rights in the United StatesHuman rights in the United StatesHuman rights in the United States are legally protected by the Constitution of the United States and amendments, conferred by treaty, and enacted legislatively through Congress, state legislatures, and plebiscites...