Europe Convention of Human Rights

Europe Convention for the Protection
of Human Rights
and Fundamental Freedoms


Convention for the Protection
of Human Rights and
Fundamental Freedoms

Rome, 4.XI.1950

The governments signatory hereto, being members of the Council of Europe,
Considering the Universal Declaration of Human Rights proclaimed by
the General Assembly of the United Nations on 10th December 1948;
Considering that this Declaration aims at securing the universal and
effective recognition and observance of the Rights therein declared;
Considering that the aim of the Council of Europe is the achievement of
greater unity between its members and that one of the methods by
which that aim is to be pursued is the maintenance and further
realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms;
Reaffirming their profound belief in those fundamental freedoms which
are the foundation of justice and peace in the world and are best
maintained on the one hand by an effective political democracy and on
the other by a common understanding and observance of the human
rights upon which they depend;
Being resolved, as the governments of European countries which are
like-minded and have a common heritage of political traditions, ideals,
freedom and the rule of law, to take the first steps for the collective
enforcement of certain of the rights stated in the Universal Declaration,
Have agreed as follows:

Article 1 Obligation to respect human rights
The High Contracting Parties shall secure to everyone within their
jurisdiction the rights and freedoms defined in Section I of this
Convention.

SECTION I RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS

Article 2 Right to life
1 Everyone's right to life shall be protected by law. No one shall be
deprived of his life intentionally save in the execution of a sentence of a
court following his conviction of a crime for which this penalty is provided
by law.
2 Deprivation of life shall not be regarded as inflicted in contravention of
this article when it results from the use of force which is no more than
absolutely necessary:
a in defence of any person from unlawful violence;
b in order to effect a lawful arrest or to prevent the escape of a person
lawfully detained;
c in action lawfully taken for the purpose of quelling a riot or
insurrection.

Article 3 Prohibition of torture
No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment.

Article 4 Prohibition of slavery and forced labour
1 No one shall be held in slavery or servitude.
2 No one shall be required to perform forced or compulsory labour.
3 For the purpose of this article the term ìforced or compulsory labourî
shall not include:
a any work required to be done in the ordinary course of detention
imposed according to the provisions of Article 5 of this Convention or
during conditional release from such detention;
b any service of a military character or, in case of conscientious
objectors in countries where they are recognised, service exacted
instead of compulsory military service;
c any service exacted in case of an emergency or calamity threatening
the life or well-being of the community;
d any work or service which forms part of normal civic obligations.

Article 5 Right to liberty and security
1 Everyone has the right to liberty and security of person. No one shall be
deprived of his liberty save in the following cases and in accordance
with a procedure prescribed by law:
a the lawful detention of a person after conviction by a competent
court;
b the lawful arrest or detention of a person for non-compliance with the
lawful order of a court or in order to secure the fulfilment of any
obligation prescribed by law;
c the lawful arrest or detention of a person effected for the purpose of
bringing him before the competent legal authority on reasonable
suspicion of having committed an offence or when it is reasonably
considered necessary to prevent his committing an offence or fleeing
after having done so;
d the detention of a minor by lawful order for the purpose of
educational supervision or his lawful detention for the purpose of
bringing him before the competent legal authority;
e the lawful detention of persons for the prevention of the spreading of
infectious diseases, of persons of unsound mind, alcoholics or drug
addicts or vagrants;
f the lawful arrest or detention of a person to prevent his effecting an
unauthorised entry into the country or of a person against whom
action is being taken with a view to deportation or extradition.
2 Everyone who is arrested shall be informed promptly, in a language
which he understands, of the reasons for his arrest and of any charge
against him.
3 Everyone arrested or detained in accordance with the provisions of
paragraph 1.c of this article shall be brought promptly before a judge or
other officer authorised by law to exercise judicial power and shall be
entitled to trial within a reasonable time or to release pending trial.
Release may be conditioned by guarantees to appear for trial.
4 Everyone who is deprived of his liberty by arrest or detention shall be
entitled to take proceedings by which the lawfulness of his detention
shall be decided speedily by a court and his release ordered if the
detention is not lawful.
5 Everyone who has been the victim of arrest or detention in contravention
of the provisions of this article shall have an enforceable right to
compensation.

Article 6 Right to a fair trial
1 In the determination of his civil rights and obligations or of any criminal
charge against him, everyone is entitled to a fair and public hearing
within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial tribunal
established by law. Judgment shall be pronounced publicly but the press
and public may be excluded from all or part of the trial in the interests of
morals, public order or national security in a democratic society, where
the interests of juveniles or the protection of the private life of the parties
so require, or to the extent strictly necessary in the opinion of the court
in special circumstances where publicity would prejudice the interests of
justice.
2 Everyone charged with a criminal offence shall be presumed innocent
until proved guilty according to law.
3 Everyone charged with a criminal offence has the following minimum
rights:
a to be informed promptly, in a language which he understands and in
detail, of the nature and cause of the accusation against him;
b to have adequate time and facilities for the preparation of his
defence;
c to defend himself in person or through legal assistance of his own
choosing or, if he has not sufficient means to pay for legal
assistance, to be given it free when the interests of justice so
require;
d to examine or have examined witnesses against him and to obtain
the attendance and examination of witnesses on his behalf under the
same conditions as witnesses against him;
e to have the free assistance of an interpreter if he cannot understand
or speak the language used in court.

Article 7 No punishment without law
1 No one shall be held guilty of any criminal offence on account of any act
or omission which did not constitute a criminal offence under national or
international law at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier
penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the
criminal offence was committed.
2 This article shall not prejudice the trial and punishment of any person for
any act or omission which, at the time when it was committed, was
criminal according to the general principles of law recognised by civilised
nations.

Article 8 Right to respect for private and family life
1 Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home
and his correspondence.
2 There shall be no interference by a public authority with the exercise of
this right except such as is in accordance with the law and is necessary
in a democratic society in the interests of national security, public safety
or the economic well-being of the country, for the prevention of disorder
or crime, for the protection of health or morals, or for the protection of
the rights and freedoms of others.

Article 9 Freedom of thought, conscience and religion
1 Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion;
this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief and freedom,
either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to
manifest his religion or belief, in worship, teaching, practice and
observance.
2 Freedom to manifest one's religion or beliefs shall be subject only to
such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a
democratic society in the interests of public safety, for the protection of
public order, health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and
freedoms of others.

Article 10 Freedom of expression
1 Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include
freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and
ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers.
This article shall not prevent States from requiring the licensing of
broadcasting, television or cinema enterprises.
2 The exercise of these freedoms, since it carries with it duties and
responsibilities, may be subject to such formalities, conditions,
restrictions or penalties as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a
democratic society, in the interests of national security, territorial
integrity or public safety, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for the
protection of health or morals, for the protection of the reputation or
rights of others, for preventing the disclosure of information received in
confidence, or for maintaining the authority and impartiality of the
judiciary.

Article 11 Freedom of assembly and association
1 Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and to freedom
of association with others, including the right to form and to join trade
unions for the protection of his interests.
2 No restrictions shall be placed on the exercise of these rights other than
such as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic
society in the interests of national security or public safety, for the
prevention of disorder or crime, for the protection of health or morals or
for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others. This article shall
not prevent the imposition of lawful restrictions on the exercise of these
rights by members of the armed forces, of the police or of the
administration of the State.

Article 12 Right to marry
Men and women of marriageable age have the right to marry and to
found a family, according to the national laws governing the exercise of
this right.

Article 13 Right to an effective remedy
Everyone whose rights and freedoms as set forth in this Convention are
violated shall have an effective remedy before a national authority
notwithstanding that the violation has been committed by persons acting
in an official capacity.

Article 14 Prohibition of discrimination
The enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in this Convention
shall be secured without discrimination on any ground such as sex,
race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or
social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth or other
status.

Article 15 Derogation in time of emergency
1 In time of war or other public emergency threatening the life of the
nation any High Contracting Party may take measures derogating from
its obligations under this Convention to the extent strictly required by the
exigencies of the situation, provided that such measures are not
inconsistent with its other obligations under international law.
2 No derogation from Article 2, except in respect of deaths resulting from
lawful acts of war, or from Articles 3, 4 (paragraph 1) and 7 shall be
made under this provision.
3 Any High Contracting Party availing itself of this right of derogation shall
keep the Secretary General of the Council of Europe fully informed of
the measures which it has taken and the reasons therefor. It shall also
inform the Secretary General of the Council of Europe when such
measures have ceased to operate and the provisions of the Convention
are again being fully executed.


Article 16 Restrictions on political activity of aliens
Nothing in Articles 10, 11 and 14 shall be regarded as preventing the
High Contracting Parties from imposing restrictions on the political
activity of aliens.

Article 17 Prohibition of abuse of rights
Nothing in this Convention may be interpreted as implying for any State,
group or person any right to engage in any activity or perform any act
aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth
herein or at their limitation to a greater extent than is provided for in the
Convention.

Article 18 Limitation on use of restrictions on rights
The restrictions permitted under this Convention to the said rights and
freedoms shall not be applied for any purpose other than those for which
they have been prescribed.

SECTION II EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS

Article 19 Establishment of the Court
To ensure the observance of the engagements undertaken by the High
Contracting Parties in the Convention and the Protocols thereto, there
shall be set up a European Court of Human Rights, hereinafter referred
to as ´the Courtª. It shall function on a permanent basis.

Article 20 Number of judges
The Court shall consist of a number of judges equal to that of the High
Contracting Parties.

Article 21 Criteria for office
1 The judges shall be of high moral character and must either possess the
qualifications required for appointment to high judicial office or be
jurisconsults of recognised competence.
2 The judges shall sit on the Court in their individual capacity.
3 During their term of office the judges shall not engage in any activity
which is incompatible with their independence, impartiality or with the
demands of a full-time office; all questions arising from the application of
this paragraph shall be decided by the Court.

Article 22 Election of judges
1 The judges shall be elected by the Parliamentary Assembly with respect
to each High Contracting Party by a majority of votes cast from a list of
three candidates nominated by the High Contracting Party.
2 The same procedure shall be followed to complete the Court in the
event of the accession of new High Contracting Parties and in filling
casual vacancies.

Article 23 Terms of office
1 The judges shall be elected for a period of six years. They may be re-
elected. However, the terms of office of one-half of the judges elected at
the first election shall expire at the end of three years.
2 The judges whose terms of office are to expire at the end of the initial
period of three years shall be chosen by lot by the Secretary General of
the Council of Europe immediately after their election.
3 In order to ensure that, as far as possible, the terms of office of one-half
of the judges are renewed every three years, the Parliamentary
Assembly may decide, before proceeding to any subsequent election,
that the term or terms of office of one or more judges to be elected shall
be for a period other than six years but not more than nine and not less
than three years.
4 In cases where more than one term of office is involved and where the
Parliamentary Assembly applies the preceding paragraph, the allocation
of the terms of office shall be effected by a drawing of lots by the
Secretary General of the Council of Europe immediately after the
election.
5 A judge elected to replace a judge whose term of office has not expired
shall hold office for the remainder of his predecessor's term.
6 The terms of office of judges shall expire when they reach the age of 70.
7 The judges shall hold office until replaced. They shall, however,
continue to deal with such cases as they already have under
consideration.

Article 24 Dismissal
No judge may be dismissed from his office unless the other judges
decide by a majority of two-thirds that he has ceased to fulfil the
required conditions.

Article 25 Registry and legal secretaries
The Court shall have a registry, the functions and organisation of which
shall be laid down in the rules of the Court. The Court shall be assisted
by legal secretaries.


Article 26 Plenary Court
The plenary Court shall
a elect its President and one or two Vice-Presidents for a period of
three years; they may be re-elected;
b set up Chambers, constituted for a fixed period of time;
c elect the Presidents of the Chambers of the Court; they may be
re-elected;
d adopt the rules of the Court, and
e elect the Registrar and one or more Deputy Registrars.

Article 27 Committees, Chambers and Grand Chamber
1 To consider cases brought before it, the Court shall sit in committees of
three judges, in Chambers of seven judges and in a Grand Chamber of
seventeen judges. The Court's Chambers shall set up committees for a
fixed period of time.
2 There shall sit as an ex officio member of the Chamber and the Grand
Chamber the judge elected in respect of the State Party concerned or, if
there is none or if he is unable to sit, a person of its choice who shall sit
in the capacity of judge.
3 The Grand Chamber shall also include the President of the Court, the
Vice-Presidents, the Presidents of the Chambers and other judges
chosen in accordance with the rules of the Court. When a case is
referred to the Grand Chamber under Article 43, no judge from the
Chamber which rendered the judgment shall sit in the Grand Chamber,
with the exception of the President of the Chamber and the judge who
sat in respect of the State Party concerned.

Article 28 Declarations of inadmissibility by committees
A committee may, by a unanimous vote, declare inadmissible or strike
out of its list of cases an application submitted under Article 34 where
such a decision can be taken without further examination. The decision
shall be final.


Article 29 Decisions by Chambers on admissibility and merits
1 If no decision is taken under Article 28, a Chamber shall decide on the
admissibility and merits of individual applications submitted under
Article 34.
2 A Chamber shall decide on the admissibility and merits of inter-State
applications submitted under Article 33.
3 The decision on admissibility shall be taken separately unless the Court,
in exceptional cases, decides otherwise.

Article 30 Relinquishment of jurisdiction to the Grand Chamber
Where a case pending before a Chamber raises a serious question
affecting the interpretation of the Convention or the protocols thereto, or
where the resolution of a question before the Chamber might have a
result inconsistent with a judgment previously delivered by the Court, the
Chamber may, at any time before it has rendered its judgment,
relinquish jurisdiction in favour of the Grand Chamber, unless one of the
parties to the case objects.

Article 31 Powers of the Grand Chamber
The Grand Chamber shall
a determine applications submitted either under Article 33 or Article 34
when a Chamber has relinquished jurisdiction under Article 30 or
when the case has been referred to it under Article 43; and
b consider requests for advisory opinions submitted under Article 47.

Article 32 Jurisdiction of the Court
1 The jurisdiction of the Court shall extend to all matters concerning the
interpretation and application of the Convention and the protocols
thereto which are referred to it as provided in Articles 33, 34 and 47.
2 In the event of dispute as to whether the Court has jurisdiction, the Court
shall decide.


Article 33 Inter-State cases
Any High Contracting Party may refer to the Court any alleged breach of
the provisions of the Convention and the protocols thereto by another
High Contracting Party.

Article 34 Individual applications
The Court may receive applications from any person, non-governmental
organisation or group of individuals claiming to be the victim of a
violation by one of the High Contracting Parties of the rights set forth in
the Convention or the protocols thereto. The High Contracting Parties
undertake not to hinder in any way the effective exercise of this right.

Article 35 Admissibility criteria
1 The Court may only deal with the matter after all domestic remedies
have been exhausted, according to the generally recognised rules of
international law, and within a period of six months from the date on
which the final decision was taken.
2 The Court shall not deal with any application submitted under Article 34
that
a is anonymous; or
b is substantially the same as a matter that has already been
examined by the Court or has already been submitted to another
procedure of international investigation or settlement and contains
no relevant new information.
3 The Court shall declare inadmissible any individual application
submitted under Article 34 which it considers incompatible with the
provisions of the Convention or the protocols thereto, manifestly ill-
founded, or an abuse of the right of application.
4 The Court shall reject any application which it considers inadmissible
under this Article. It may do so at any stage of the proceedings.

Article 36 Third party intervention
1 In all cases before a Chamber or the Grand Chamber, a High
Contracting Party one of whose nationals is an applicant shall have the
right to submit written comments and to take part in hearings.
2 The President of the Court may, in the interest of the proper
administration of justice, invite any High Contracting Party which is not a
party to the proceedings or any person concerned who is not the
applicant to submit written comments or take part in hearings.

Article 37 Striking out applications
1 The Court may at any stage of the proceedings decide to strike an
application out of its list of cases where the circumstances lead to the
conclusion that
a the applicant does not intend to pursue his application; or
b the matter has been resolved; or
c for any other reason established by the Court, it is no longer justified
to continue the examination of the application.
However, the Court shall continue the examination of the application if
respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and the protocols
thereto so requires.
2 The Court may decide to restore an application to its list of cases if it
considers that the circumstances justify such a course.

Article 38 Examination of the case and friendly settlement
proceedings
1 If the Court declares the application admissible, it shall
a pursue the examination of the case, together with the
representatives of the parties, and if need be, undertake an
investigation, for the effective conduct of which the States concerned
shall furnish all necessary facilities;
b place itself at the disposal of the parties concerned with a view to
securing a friendly settlement of the matter on the basis of respect
for human rights as defined in the Convention and the protocols
thereto.
2 Proceedings conducted under paragraph 1.b shall be confidential.

Article 39 Finding of a friendly settlement
If a friendly settlement is effected, the Court shall strike the case out of
its list by means of a decision which shall be confined to a brief
statement of the facts and of the solution reached.

Article 40 Public hearings and access to documents
1 Hearings shall be in public unless the Court in exceptional
circumstances decides otherwise.
2 Documents deposited with the Registrar shall be accessible to the public
unless the President of the Court decides otherwise.

Article 41 Just satisfaction
If the Court finds that there has been a violation of the Convention or the
protocols thereto, and if the internal law of the High Contracting Party
concerned allows only partial reparation to be made, the Court shall, if
necessary, afford just satisfaction to the injured party.

Article 42 Judgments of Chambers
Judgments of Chambers shall become final in accordance with the
provisions of Article 44, paragraph 2.

Article 43 Referral to the Grand Chamber
1 Within a period of three months from the date of the judgment of the
Chamber, any party to the case may, in exceptional cases, request that
the case be referred to the Grand Chamber.
2 A panel of five judges of the Grand Chamber shall accept the request if
the case raises a serious question affecting the interpretation or
application of the Convention or the protocols thereto, or a serious issue
of general importance.
3 If the panel accepts the request, the Grand Chamber shall decide the
case by means of a judgment.

Article 44 Final judgments
1 The judgment of the Grand Chamber shall be final.
2 The judgment of a Chamber shall become final
a when the parties declare that they will not request that the case be
referred to the Grand Chamber; or
b three months after the date of the judgment, if reference of the case
to the Grand Chamber has not been requested; or
c when the panel of the Grand Chamber rejects the request to refer
under Article 43.
3 The final judgment shall be published.

Article 45 Reasons for judgments and decisions
1 Reasons shall be given for judgments as well as for decisions declaring
applications admissible or inadmissible.
2 If a judgment does not represent, in whole or in part, the unanimous
opinion of the judges, any judge shall be entitled to deliver a separate
opinion.

Article 46 Binding force and execution of judgments
1 The High Contracting Parties undertake to abide by the final judgment of
the Court in any case to which they are parties.
2 The final judgment of the Court shall be transmitted to the Committee of
Ministers, which shall supervise its execution.

Article 47 Advisory opinions
1 The Court may, at the request of the Committee of Ministers, give
advisory opinions on legal questions concerning the interpretation of the
Convention and the protocols thereto.
2 Such opinions shall not deal with any question relating to the content or
scope of the rights or freedoms defined in Section I of the Convention
and the protocols thereto, or with any other question which the Court or
the Committee of Ministers might have to consider in consequence of
any such proceedings as could be instituted in accordance with the
Convention.
3 Decisions of the Committee of Ministers to request an advisory opinion
of the Court shall require a majority vote of the representatives entitled
to sit on the Committee.

Article 48 Advisory jurisdiction of the Court
The Court shall decide whether a request for an advisory opinion
submitted by the Committee of Ministers is within its competence as
defined in Article 47.

Article 49 Reasons for advisory opinions
1 Reasons shall be given for advisory opinions of the Court.
2 If the advisory opinion does not represent, in whole or in part, the
unanimous opinion of the judges, any judge shall be entitled to deliver a
separate opinion.
3 Advisory opinions of the Court shall be communicated to the Committee
of Ministers.

Article 50 Expenditure on the Court
The expenditure on the Court shall be borne by the Council of Europe.

Article 51 Privileges and immunities of judges
The judges shall be entitled, during the exercise of their functions, to the
privileges and immunities provided for in Article 40 of the Statute of the
Council of Europe and in the agreements made thereunder.

SECTION III MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Article 52 Inquiries by the Secretary General
On receipt of a request from the Secretary General of the Council of
Europe any High Contracting Party shall furnish an explanation of the
manner in which its internal law ensures the effective implementation of
any of the provisions of the Convention.

Article 53 Safeguard for existing human rights
Nothing in this Convention shall be construed as limiting or derogating
from any of the human rights and fundamental freedoms which may be
ensured under the laws of any High Contracting Party or under any
other agreement to which it is a Party.

Article 54 Powers of the Committee of Ministers
Nothing in this Convention shall prejudice the powers conferred on the
Committee of Ministers by the Statute of the Council of Europe.

Article 55 Exclusion of other means of dispute settlement
The High Contracting Parties agree that, except by special agreement,
they will not avail themselves of treaties, conventions or declarations in
force between them for the purpose of submitting, by way of petition, a
dispute arising out of the interpretation or application of this Convention
to a means of settlement other than those provided for in this
Convention.

Article 56 Territorial application
1 Any State may at the time of its ratification or at any time thereafter
declare by notification addressed to the Secretary General of the
Council of Europe that the present Convention shall, subject to
paragraph 4 of this Article, extend to all or any of the territories for
whose international relations it is responsible.
2 The Convention shall extend to the territory or territories named in the
notification as from the thirtieth day after the receipt of this notification by
the Secretary General of the Council of Europe.
3 The provisions of this Convention shall be applied in such territories with
due regard, however, to local requirements.
4 Any State which has made a declaration in accordance with paragraph 1
of this article may at any time thereafter declare on behalf of one or
more of the territories to which the declaration relates that it accepts the
competence of the Court to receive applications from individuals,
non-governmental organisations or groups of individuals as provided by
Article 34 of the Convention.

Article 57 Reservations
1 Any State may, when signing this Convention or when depositing its
instrument of ratification, make a reservation in respect of any particular
provision of the Convention to the extent that any law then in force in its
territory is not in conformity with the provision. Reservations of a general
character shall not be permitted under this article.
2 Any reservation made under this article shall contain a brief statement of
the law concerned.

Article 58 Denunciation
1 A High Contracting Party may denounce the present Convention only
after the expiry of five years from the date on which it became a party to
it and after six months' notice contained in a notification addressed to
the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, who shall inform the
other High Contracting Parties.
2 Such a denunciation shall not have the effect of releasing the High
Contracting Party concerned from its obligations under this Convention
in respect of any act which, being capable of constituting a violation of
such obligations, may have been performed by it before the date at
which the denunciation became effective.
3 Any High Contracting Party which shall cease to be a member of the
Council of Europe shall cease to be a Party to this Convention under the
same conditions.
4 The Convention may be denounced in accordance with the provisions of
the preceding paragraphs in respect of any territory to which it has been
declared to extend under the terms of Article 56.


Article 59 Signature and ratification

1 This Convention shall be open to the signature of the members of the
Council of Europe. It shall be ratified. Ratifications shall be deposited
with the Secretary General of the Council of Europe.
2 The present Convention shall come into force after the deposit of ten
instruments of ratification.
3 As regards any signatory ratifying subsequently, the Convention shall
come into force at the date of the deposit of its instrument of ratification.
4 The Secretary General of the Council of Europe shall notify all the
members of the Council of Europe of the entry into force of the
Convention, the names of the High Contracting Parties who have ratified
it, and the deposit of all instruments of ratification which may be effected
subsequently.
Done at Rome this 4th day of November 1950, in English and French,
both texts being equally authentic, in a single copy which shall remain
deposited in the archives of the Council of Europe. The Secretary
General shall transmit certified copies to each of the signatories.




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