Recently, the leaders of nine European states, out of 46 Council of Europe members, issued a joint statement calling for a fundamental revision of the interpretation of the European Convention on Human Rights (‘ECHR’) on immigration issues. Initially pioneered by Italy and Denmark, and supported by Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, the statement acknowledges commitment to a rule-based international order and “universal and everlasting” ideas underpinning the ECHR, yet questions whether existing treaties match contemporary challenges of immigration. It urges the European Court of Human Rights (‘ECtHR’) to revise its previously adopted interpretations, accusing it of “extend[ing] the scope of the Convention too far as compared with the original intentions”, limiting the governments’ discretion in protecting their “democratic societies and […] populations”, instead “result[ing] in the protection of the wrong people”. The governments call for “restor[ing] the right balance”, arguing that national security, as “the highest priority”, should leave more room for domestic decision-making. Politicians from other states, e.g., the United Kingdom’s shadow home secretary, followed up, declaring that…
Human Rights
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Capping Freedom of Expression? Assessing Kneecap’s Controversy under the ECHR
On Friday 23rd May, the Irish-language rap trio Kneecap headlined London’s Wide Awake music festival at Brixton’s Broxwell Park. Attended by 20,000 fans, this marked the Belfast group’s first stage performance since the announcement that the Metropolitan police charged one of the group’s members with terrorism offences. Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh (stage name Mo Chara), is…
The Pandemic Agreement: A Milestone in Global Health, but Will it Work?
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed significant weaknesses in the global legal framework for pandemics. In response, in 2021, WHO member states launched negotiations to develop a new pandemic agreement aimed at addressing the gaps revealed by the pandemic. After three years of negotiations, on 20 May 2025, the 78th World Health Assembly (WHA) adopted the WHO Pandemic…
Sanctions, Coercion and the Right to Development
Last week, the Trump administration sanctioned four judges of the International Criminal Court, who were subjected to an asset freeze and a travel ban simply for doing their job. Yesterday, the governments of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom sanctioned two extremist Israeli ministers, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, for inciting violence and…
Sex in Prison: The International Human Rights Framework on Conjugal Visits, Starting from the Case of Italy
When was the last time you had sex? For many detainees in Italian prisons, the answer is probably years. But things are changing. In April, the first intimate visit took place in an Italian detention centre. The inmate met his partner for two hours in a room with a double bed, not monitored by the penitentiary police,…
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