UN Launches New Report on Human Rights Approach to Rule of Law in the EU

The UN Human Rights Regional Office for Europe (OHCHR) has published a report on “The case for a human rights approach to the rule of law in the European Union.”

Respect for the rule of law is declining worldwide. The independence of the judiciary, transparent and accountable governance, media freedom and the separation of powers are being eroded, a situation compounded by some executive measures taken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Against this background, the European Commission has set out to prepare its first annual assessment of the rule of law in EU member States. (Click here to read the NHC and NJCM’s contribution to the Rule of Law Report for the Netherlands)

Guided by the universal mandate of the UN High Commissioner of Human Rights, the UN Human Rights Regional Office for Europe proposes approaching the rule of law through the prism of the human rights principles of accountability, inclusion, participation and transparency. Drawing on the rich expertise, experience and lessons learned by the international human rights machinery over the past 75 years, suggestions are put forward to optimize the new initiative in terms of substance, methodology, process and outcome, and to strengthen existing EU rule of law tools.