ECHR Reform is Here!: Reflections on the Chişinǎu Declaration and UK’s role in the process 

This is an in-person event. A livestream option is also available for remote attendees (see end of page).

On 15 May, member states of the Council of Europe will gather in Moldova to agree an interpretive declaration to the European Convention on Human Rights. This declaration will serve as a guide to Strasbourg judges in matters of migration. The declaration proposes a new reading of the prohibition of inhuman and degrading treatment and the right to private and family life. 

UK played one of the key part in the process of the negotiation of the declaration, especially in relation to Article 3. How will the Declaration change the ECHR case law? Will it really lead to the reform of its migration case law and will it fix the migration problem? What are the criticisms of the Declaration? 

Hear from those who were in the room when the declaration was negotiated, as well as those who provided advice and expressed concerns behind the scenes. 

Guests:

Chair: George Letsas - Professor of Law and Co-Director of the UCL Institute of Human Rights

Rob Linham OBE is Deputy Director for Rights and Public Law in the Ministry of Justice. His responsibilities include the Human Rights Act 1998, and the UK’s performance of its international obligations. A human rights specialist for over 20 years, he was previously Deputy Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe, and also represented the UK at the United Nations and European Union. He jointly led negotiations on the Brighton Declaration on the European Court of Human Rights and chaired the drafting of Protocols 15 and 16 to the European Convention on Human Rights, for which he was appointed OBE in 2014. He represented the UK in the process of the negotiation of the Chisinau Declaration.

Mikael Rask Madsen is Professor of Human Rights at the University of Copenhagen and Director of ICourts Centre of Excellence. He is an expert in the European Convention on Human Rights and various reforms. He played an important role in the negotiation of the Copenhagen Declaration in 2018 and provided input to both Danish and UK governments in the process of the negotiation of the new declaration.

Natasa Mavronicola is Professor of Human Rights Law at the University of Birmingham. She is an expert in the European Convention on Human Rights, especially in relation to Article 3 ECHR. She has served as Special Advisor to the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture in the drafting of thematic reports submitted to the UN General Assembly and Human Rights Council. She has raised concerns about creating two-tier protections within the Convention and has warned of some of the problems inherent in the current draft of the declaration with respect to Article 3 ECHR.

Veronika Fikfak is Professor of Human Rights and International Law at University College London. She is an expert in the European Court of Human Rights and has written extensively on compliance with ECHR judgments. In the context of current reform attempts, she raised concerns about a danger of contagion across the Council of Europe and the limits of what a reinterpretation of the Convention can achieve at domestic level. 

Venue: Bentham House, Faculty of Laws, LG11 
Time: 6:15pm to 8:00pm.

Followed by a Reception. 

Livestream Access

This event will also be livestreamed via Zoom for remote attendees.

Joining Link: https://ucl.zoom.us/j/95762093584pwd=NhGeZoAtOOIZD1BllbBi5QGExOVayu.1

Meeting ID: 957 6209 3584

Password: 560836

Please note that attendees must be signed into a Zoom account to access the livestream.