About the Programme_
The 47 member States of the Council of Europe enjoy the protection of the European Court of Human Rights. Although this is one of the most effective regional mechanisms for the protection of human rights, in many areas the jurisprudence of the Court is relatively undeveloped, notably as regards equality issues. At the same time, new state practices, particularly in the area of counter-terrorism, are posing serious challenges to existing human rights standards. INTERIGHTS has sought to strengthen the jurisprudence of the Court through litigation either in partnership with local lawyers or independently through third party interventions.
The absence of specialist skills and experience on the European Convention on Human Rights in some of the Council of Europe’s new member States can significantly limit the effectiveness of the protection provided by the European Court of Human Rights. For this reason, INTERIGHTS has for many years provided specialist and highly practical training for lawyers focusing on Convention rights, enabling them to approach the Court more effectively.
Since January 2006 INTERIGHTS has delivered an intensive programme of work in the South Caucasus region on a joint project aiming to improve national legal practice and strengthen the rule of law through strategic human rights litigation in Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia.
Announcements_
A missed opportunity to address the lack of access to justice and social exclusion faced by people with disabilitiesIn September 2010, the European Court of Human Rights dismissed as inadmissible Farcas v Romania, a case brought by Alois Farcas, a man with disabilities who complained about the lack of access to essential public amenities, including court buildings and lawyers’ offices, in his Romanian hometown of Piatra Neamt.
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The human rights of people living with HIV/AIDSOn 22 September 2010, INTERIGHTS submitted a third party intervention to the European Court of Human Rights in the case of Kiyutin v Russia which concerns the discriminatory treatment of HIV-positive foreign nationals in the context of immigration procedures.
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Litigation_
INTERIGHTS is involved in three cases before the Court regarding abuses committed against people with disabilities, Câmpeanu v Romania, DD v Lithuania, and Malacu and others v Romania (the Poiana Mare Hospital case).
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INTERIGHTS was advisor to counsel in the case of Garayev v Azerbaijan in which the European Court of Human Rights held that there was a real risk that if extradited, Garayev would be subjected to treatment contrary to Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
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On 17 December 2009, the European Court of Human Rights found Azerbaijan responsible for violating the right to life of a woman who committed suicide, by failing to conduct an effective investigation in to state responsibility for her death.
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For the second time in five years, the European Committee of Social Rights has condemned Greece for continued serious and widespread discrimination against Roma in respect of housing rights.
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INTERIGHTS submitted a third party application to the European Court of Human Rights in March 2009 in the case of Orsus v Croatia which is aimed at assisting the Court in clarifying the extent to which State Parties are entitled to segregate or exclude children of ethnic and/or linguistic minorities from mainstream education on the basis of linguistic or other cultural differences.
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The European Court of Human Rights ruling that the Czech government engaged in indirect discrimination against Roma children is a major step forward in implementing the European Convention on Human Rights, Human Rights Watch and INTERIGHTS said.
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INTERIGHTS provided written details to the European Court of Human Rights of their complaint against Russia regarding the circumstances surrounding the death of former Chechen leader Aslan Maskhadov.
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Capacity Building and Standard Setting_
As well as litigating before the European Court of Human Rights, INTERIGHTS undertakes work on proposals to reforming the Court’s processes and practices.
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To assist INTERIGHTS' work in delivering ECHR training programmes, we have designed legal manuals for use by the national trainers and lawyers participating. These manuals are now available online.
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INTERIGHTS has a project to provide expert support to lawyers and NGOs in the region working on women’s human rights cases before the European Court of Human Rights. The focus of litigation work will be on violence against women, including domestic violence, sexual violence and sexual harassment.
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The first session of INTERIGHTS’ training for Croatian lawyers on the European Convention of Human Rights took place in Tuheljsko Toplice, Croatia, from 6-10 February 2008.
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