Strasbourg Observers

View posts from: Article 15

  • Tobias Mortier

Preventing disorder or silencing political opposition? On (the lack of) legitimate aims in Dareskizb Ltd v. Armenia

October 29, 2021

By Tobias Mortier A little political tension in an electoral context is not uncommon. However, the Armenian presidential elections in 2008 were nothing short of riotous. The Court has already dealt with numerous cases in which the events surrounding these elections were contested. For instance, in the case of Mushegh Saghatelyan v. Armenia, the Court […]

  • Strasbourg Observers

Announcement: Webinar on Human Rights in the Time of Coronavirus (7 April)

April 03, 2020

Dear readers, This week, an interesting debate took place on our blog regarding the necessity and/or desirability of derogation under Article 15 in the context of the Covid-19 crisis. The poll we launched yesterday on this question is still quite tight, indicating that many people continue to disagree on the path to take. At Strasbourg […]

  • Strasbourg Observers

To derogate or not to derogate? Poll on emergency Covid-19 measures

April 02, 2020

These are exceptional times. Covid-19 represents a threat to public health in Europe of an extent that is unprecedented in modern times. At the same time, the restrictions on normal life imposed by Council of Europe Member States in response to the outbreak are a test case for the ECHR regime. While the Strasbourg Court […]

  • Guest Blogger

States should declare a State of Emergency using Article 15 ECHR to confront the Coronavirus Pandemic

April 01, 2020

By Alan Greene Carl Schmitt is, without a doubt, the pre-eminent scholar on states of exception. However, his famous maxim of ‘Sovereign is he who decides on the exception’ has tainted the debate on emergency powers, emphasising their antagonistic relation to the legal order they are supposed to protect and downplaying their protective potential. In […]

  • Guest Blogger

COVID-19 and the European Convention on Human Rights

March 27, 2020

By Prof Kanstantsin Dzehtsiarou (University of Liverpool) Our life has changed. The main if not the only topic that everyone is interested in is the ongoing pandemic. The World Health Organisation is one of the most popular international organisations at the moment. This crisis will undoubtably have a significant impact on how we live, travel […]