PAGE 3 - > What to do if you feel your rights have been violated, where to complain and how to make a case
REGIONAL PROCEDURES
Taking a case to the European Court on Human Rights (ECHR)
The European Convention of Human Rights was adopted by the Council of Europe (Not to be confused by the Council of the European Union) in 1950 and led to the creation of the European Court on Human Rights. As I mentioned in a previous section, Ireland is party to this convention. The main rights under the convention are as follows:
Article 3: Inhuman treatment
Article 6: Right to a fair trial
Article 7: Retrospective crimes
Article 8: Right to privacy and family life
Article 9: Freedom of conscience
Article 10: Freedom of Expression
Article 11: Freedom of Assembly
Article 12: Marriage and the family
Article 14: Discrimination
The following information is taken from an excellent guide to Human Rights from the OneFamily organisation - “The Act puts a duty on the Organs of the State to perform their duties in a way that is compatible with the Convention. Organs of the State include health boards and local authorities, for example. Under the 2003 Act, if these bodies fail to perform their functions in a way that is compatible with the Convention, a complainant can go to the courts in Ireland and damages can be sought. The Act also requires the courts to interpret domestic legislation in a manner consistent with the Convention. The courts must therefore pay attention to any relevant judgment or opinion of the European Court of Human Rights when making a decision. The Convention also gives the High Court or the Supreme Court the power to declare any statutory provision to be in breach of the Convention. This does not declare the law in question invalid but it does place an obligation on the Taoiseach to put that law in front of the Oireachtas within 21 days. The Oireachtas does not have to change the law but it is likely that it will.â€
But
when
or
how
do
you
make
an
application
to
the
ECHR?
There
are
three
main
conditions
that
are
required:
1.
You
must
be
a
victim
of
a
violation
of
one
or
more
of
the
articles
of
the
Convention.
You
might
claim
for
instance
that
you
can’t
maintain
a
favorable
family
life
due
to
the
stress
created
because
of
lack
of
services.
2.
Before
you
make
an
application
to
the
ECHR
you
must
pursue
any
proceedings
that
you
could
take
in
Ireland
that
are
capable
of
providing
you
with
an
adequate
remedy
for
the
breach
of
your
Convention
rights.
3.
You
must
make
your
application
to
the
ECHR
within
six
months
of
the
conclusion
of
any
court
proceedings
that
you
have
taken
could
have
provided
you
with
a
remedy
or,
if
there
were
no
proceedings
that
it
was
reasonable
to
expect
you
to
take,
within
six
months
of
the
event
which
gives
rise
to
your
application.
When
you
make
an
application
to
the
ECHR
you
will
be
asked
to
complete
one
of
the
ECHR’s
application
forms.
However,
it
is
not
necessary
to
fill
out
one
of
these
forms
to
meet
the
six
month
rule.
All
you
need
to
do
is
to
get
a
letter
to
the
court
within
the
six
months
setting
out:
1.
Your
details
(name,
address
and
nationality).
2.
The
country
against
which
you
are
making
your
application.
3.
The
facts
that
have
given
rise
to
your
application.
4.
The
article
or
articles
of
the
Convention
that
you
say
have
been
breached.
You
should
send
your
letter
to:
The
Registrar
European
Court
of
Human
Rights
Council
of
Europe
F-67075
Strasbourg
Cedex
France
Fax:
00
33
3
88
41
27
30
When
it
has
received
your
letter
the
ECHR
will
send
you
one
of
its
application
forms
to
complete.
If
there
is
not
enough
space
on
the
form
you
can
set
out
your
case
in
a
longer
document
which
you
attach
to
the
form.
It
is
important
that
you
submit
your
completed
application
form
within
any
deadline
set
by
the
ECHR
or,
if
no
deadline
is
set,
within
a
few
weeks
of
receiving
it.
If
you
do
not
submit
the
form
speedily
you
run
the
risk
that
the
ECHR
will
decide
that
you
have
not
met
the
six
month
deadline.
If
you
cannot
meet
any
deadline
that
is
set
you
should
contact
the
ECHR
and
try
to
agree
an
extended
deadline.
Once
the
ECHR
has
acknowledged
receipt
of
your
application
form
it
may
be
some
time
(months
if
not
years)
before
you
hear
anything
further.
Please
click
on
the
PDF
Logo
to
download
Human
Rights
and
One
Parent
Families
Please
click
on
the
PDF
Logo
to
download
the
full
European
Convention
of
Human
Rights
document.
*News
-
Launch
of
Irish-funded
Programme
to
broadcast
the
European
Court
of
Human
Rights
public
hearings
on
the
internet
(25/06/2007)
Mr. Dermot Ahern T.D., Minister for Foreign Affairs, today welcomed the launch of a programme to broadcast the public hearings of the European Court of Human Rights on the internet. The project is being funded by Irish Aid at a total cost of €290,000 over two years.
Minister
Ahern
said:
“Ireland
has
been
an
active
member
of
the
Council
of
Europe
since
its
foundation
in
1949
and
strongly
supports
the
work
of
the
Strasbourg-based
European
Court
of
Human
Rights.
“The European Court of Human Rights, which ensures the implementation of the European Convention on Human Rights, is the most important forum for the protection of human rights in Europe. Its judgments have guided not only member states of the Council of Europe, but other countries throughout the world.
“In Ireland, we are very familiar with the work of the Court. This is not the case everywhere, above all in the Council of Europe’s newer member states in Eastern Europe. We are therefore very proud to support this project, which will help to improve the visibility of the Court and promote a wider understanding of countries’ civil and human rights obligations of countries bound by the European Convention on Human Rights.†Sourced from the Department of Foreign Affairs (Ireland)
-----------------------------------------------
INTERNATIONAL PROCEDURES
Complaints under the International Human Rights Treaties.
Anyone may bring a human rights problem to the attention of the United Nations and thousands of people around the world do so every year. What kinds of complaints about alleged human rights violations does the United Nations receive and how does it deal with them?
Regarding the seven core international rights treaties listed above (which Ireland is also party to), only four of the Treaty Bodies may, under certain circumstances, consider complaints or communications from individuals who believe their rights have been violated by a State party. These are as follows:
(i) Civil and political rights, set out in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;
(ii) Torture and cruel treatment, defined in the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment;
(iii) Racial discrimination, proscribed by the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination; and
(iv) Sex discrimination, defined in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
Each of these treaties establishes a quasi-judicial committee to examine complaints. The complaint mechanisms are designed to be uncomplicated and accessible to the layperson. You do not need to be a lawyer or even familiar with legal and technical terms to bring a complaint before the bodies concerned. On the contrary, the system is intended to be as straightforward as possible.
