International Human Rights
Regimes
IREn4004 International Law and Regimes
Hubert Smekal
hsmekal@fss.muni.cz
Aims of the seminars
• Intro to HR
• Intro to IHR research
• Understanding uniqueness of IHR treaties
• Knowledge of major IHR regimes
• Discussion:
• Why do states make IHR commitments?
• What are the effects of IHR commitments?
• Compliance, effectiveness, implementation
• ECHR system
What are the effects of IHR commitments?
“Almost all nations
observe almost all
principles of international
law and almost all of their
obligations almost all the
time”
3 reasons for compliance
with international treaties
(3 Rs of compliance)
• Reciprocity
• Reputation
• Retaliation
Logic of appropriateness x Logic of consequences
Constructivism x Rational choice
Why compliance?
Social mechanisms facilitating compliance:
Capacity building, persuasion, incentives, coercion
3 ways how IL promotes change
in domestic politics:
• Agenda setting
• Legitimacy of IL as source of law
• Mobilization of civil society
Compliance / effectiveness / implementation
Solution: less law, less violation of law, more compliance (Leo Gross, s. 52)
What influences compliance with IHR decisions?
• Issuing body (courts x committee)
• State characteristics:
• Quality of institutions
• Relation to IL
• Democracy
• Size
• EU membership
Council of Europe
„Pan-European“
47 states
Council of Europe
• Terminology (not confuse with EU bodies!)
• UK (IG x SN)
• 1949
• What does it do?
Eur Convention on HR (ECHR, 1950)
THE most effective IHR regime
Eur Court of HR (ECtHR 1959)
Protocol 11 (1/11/1998)
Source: echr.coe.int
How to get to the ECtHR?
• Who
• When
• Where
• Which rights?
ECHR – Analysis of Statistics 2019
ECHR – Analysis of Statistics 2019
ECHR – Analysis of Statistics 2019
ECHR – Analysis of Statistics 2019
ECHR – Analysis of Statistics 2019
ECHR – Overview ECHR 1959-2019
ECHR – Overview ECHR 1959-2019
Effects of IHR decisions
• Inter partes
• Erga omnes
Ostrava
D.H. and others v Czech Republic (GC 2007)
MEdu
Clients
Schoolmasters
Pedagogues
Sp. pedagogues
Psychologists
Parents (R/NR)
NGOs
COEIOs + INGOs
MJus
MFA
Ombudsman
HR Comm
SQ (MEdu + Clients) > Change (Internal + External)
Smekal - Šipulová