Abstract
The protection of human rights in the Czech Republic as a Member State of the European Union is based on various sources arising from three different legal orders: (1) Czech law, namely the Constitution, (2) international treaties on human rights and (3) EU law, in particular the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. Of course, interrelations of such three legal orders may cause a number of problems or at least misunderstandings.
After 1990, the Czech Republic (at that time Czechoslovakia) put the protection of human rights as a matter of priority. Within one decade, not only a new constitutional Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms has been adopted, but also international treaties, first on human rights, later also other ratified treaties have been incorporated into Czech legal order with a priority of application. The prominent role of those treaties and fundamental rights in general are guaranteed by the strong Constitutional Court.
Moreover, after the entry into the European Union, the Czech Republic is bound by the fundamental rights recognized in the EU law. Yet, the position of the Czech Republic with respect to the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights may not appear as clear, because the country decided to join the Protocol on Poland and the UK. Since this Protocol is not the real opt-out but rather an interpretative instrument, the Czech Republic is also bound by the EU Charter.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
See the Constitutional Act No. 1/1993 Coll., of 16 December 1992, the Constitution of the Czech Republic.
- 2.
See the Declaration of the Presidency of the Czech National Council on the promulgation of the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms as a part of the constitutional order of the Czech Republic, No. 2/1993 Coll.
- 3.
Published under No. 120/1976 Coll.
- 4.
The ECHR was ratified in 1992 and published under No. 209/1992 Coll.
- 5.
However, Article 43 provides, quite surprisingly, for asylum which may be granted to aliens persecuted for realization of political rights and freedoms.
- 6.
This Act also implements the obligations of the Czech Republic arising from the 1995 Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, published under No. 96/1998 Coll.
- 7.
- 8.
Act No. 82/1993 Coll., on the Constitutional Court.
- 9.
See the Constitutional Act No. 395/2001 Coll.
- 10.
Cf. Filip (2001, 4).
- 11.
See the Constitutional Act No. 23/1991 Coll.
- 12.
Cf. Malenovský (2000, 68–72).
- 13.
Constitutional Act No. 395/2001 Coll.
- 14.
Czech Constitutional Court, Judgment No. Pl. US 36/01, published under No. 403/2002 Coll.
- 15.
See doc. OJ 2000/C 364/01.
- 16.
Syllová et al. (2010).
- 17.
The “Convention” was a consultative body consisting of experts from all member states, nominated by Governments, national parliaments, the European Parliament and the Commission, which drafted (between December 1999 and October 2000) the text of the Charter of Fundamental Rights. Cf. Charte des droits fondamentaux de l’Union européenne. Explications relatives au texte complet de la charte (2001, 5–6). The second so-called European Convention was set up in order to draft the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe; its Working Group II (2002–2003) agreed on the incorporation of the Charter and on certain adaptation being made to its general provisions. Cf. Alston and De Schutter (2005, 3–4), Syllová et al. (2010, 1150–1152).
- 18.
See doc. SN 2260/1/03 REV 1 (www.euroskop.cz).
- 19.
The Select Committee on the European Union, The Treaty of Lisbon: an impact assessment (2008), at http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200708/ldselect/ldeucom/62/6202.html
- 20.
Cf. Nowak (2003, 48–50).
References
Bibliography
Alston, Ph., and O. De Schutter. 2005. Monitoring fundamental rights in the EU. The contribution of the fundamental rights agency. Oxford/Portland: Hart Publishing.
Filip, J. 1997. Některé otázky vztahu a konkretizace a omezení základních práv a svobod v ČR [Some issues of the relation and concretization and limitation of fundamental rights and freedoms in CR], Časopis pro právní vědu a praxi 5(4): 576–588.
Filip, J. 2001. Český parlament schválil návrh Euronovely Ústavy ČR [The Czech Parliament approved the draft Euro-amendment to the Constitution of CR], Pravni zpravodaj, No. 11.
Malenovský, J. 2000. Poměr mezinárodního a vnitrostátního práva, obecně a v českém právu zvláště [Relationship between international and internal law in general and in the Czech law in particular]. Brno: Masaryk University Press.
Nowak, M. 2003. Introduction to the international human rights regime. Leiden: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers.
Pavlíček, V., J. Hřebejk, V. Knapp, J. Kostečka, and Z. Sovák. 1995. Ústava a ústavní řád České republiky. 2. díl. Práva a svobody [The constitution and constitutional order of the Czech Republic. Part 2. Rights and freedoms]. Praha: Linde.
Sládeček, V., V. Mikule, and J. Syllová. 2007. Ústava České republiky. Komentář [The constitution of the Czech Republic. Commentary]. Praha: C.H. Beck.
Syllová, J., L. Pítrová, H. Paldusová, et al. 2010. Lisabonská smlouva. Komentář [The Lisbon Treaty. Commentary]. Praha: C.H. Beck.
Documents
Act No. 273/2001, on rights of persons belonging to national minorities.
Act No. 82/1993 Coll., on the Constitutional Court.
Charte des droits fondamentaux de l’Union européenne. Explications relatives au texte complet de la charte, (2001) Luxembourg: CE.
The Select Committee on the European Union, The Treaty of Lisbon: An impact assessment (2008), at http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200708/ldselect/ldeucom/62/6202.html.
Legislative Acts
Constitutional Act No. 1/1993 Coll., of 16 December 1992, the Constitution of the Czech Republic.
Constitutional Act No. 395/2001 Coll., of 13 October 2001, amendment to the Constitution of the Czech Republic.
(Czechoslovak) Constitutional Act No. 23/1991 Coll., introducing the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms.
Declaration of the Presidency of the Czech National Council on the promulgation of the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms as a part of the constitutional order of the Czech Republic, No. 2/1993 Coll.
Case Law
Czech Constitutional Court, Judgment No. Pl. US 36/01, published under No. 403/2002 Coll.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Šturma, P. (2013). Human Rights Protection in a New EU Member State: The Czech Example. In: Arnold, R. (eds) The Universalism of Human Rights. Ius Gentium: Comparative Perspectives on Law and Justice, vol 16. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4510-0_21
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4510-0_21
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-007-4509-4
Online ISBN: 978-94-007-4510-0
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and LawLaw and Criminology (R0)