The European Convention on Human Rights

• Author: Catalina Mititelu
• Pages: 248-257

European Integration - Realities and Perspectives. Proceedings 2015

248

The European Convention on Human Rights

Cătălina Mititelu1

Abstract: Since 1950 - when it was ratified – the European Convention on Human Rights has had a decisive

impact on the legislation, jurisprudence and judicial practice of the signatory States of its text. A true

“Charter” of Human Rights, th e Convention - which was revised and amended by additional Protocols –

enounced not only the human rights and fundamental freedoms, but also provided the framework of their

legal protection, which laid the foundation of a new era in the history of human rights. Among others, our

paper emphasizes also the fact that the European Convention on Human Rights sets not only the general

principles of the EU law, principles that have the force of “Jus cogens” for all EU states in the field of human

rights and fundamental freedoms, but also it guarantee them a proper legal protection. Since this reality was

not yet fully noticed and analyzed in the juridical literature, we believe that, by emphasizing it, we bring a

real contribution to a better understanding and to a better capitalization of the first “Charter” of European

Human Rights.

Keywords: European Union; rights and freedoms; legal protection

1. Introduction

“The European Convention on Human Rights” – which was drafted by the Council of Europe and

ratified by the representatives of governments-member, in Rome, on 4 November 1950 – would

become, across time, “one of the most important and effective international instruments for the

protection of human rights in the world” (Bîrsan, 2005, p. V). Moreover, as Professor Jean-Paul Costa

– former Vice-President of the European Court of Human Rights – noticed, the Convention exercises

“a profound influence on the legislation, jurisprudence and legal practice” of the States that ratified it.

Additionally, it actually involves “a supranational judicial mechanism” (Bîrsan, 2005, p. V), hence the

obligation of these States to affirm and respect the human rights and fundamental freedoms

proclaimed by the force of “Jus cogens”.

The Convention had been ratified “with more than forty years before the entry into force of Protocol

11, which profoundly changed the institutional mechanism of protection by abolishing the European

Commission of Human Rights. This led to the transformation of the European Court of Human Rights

into a permanent and unique jurisdiction, eliminating the judicial role of the Committee of Ministers of

the Council of Europe” (Bîrsan, 2005, p. VI).

1 Associate P rofessor, PhD, Ovidius University of Constanta, Romania, Address: 124 Mamaia Blvd., Aleea Universității

no.1, Constanta, Romania, Tel./fax: +4 0241670900, Corresponding author: ovidiustomis@yahoo.co.uk.