Opinie: The EU’s Commitment to Human Rights. A Bridge over Troubled Water?

By prof. dr. Jan Wouters and dr. Nicolas Hachez

Over the years since its creation, the EU has developed a unique commitment to human rights, culminating with the Lisbon Treaty, which gave binding status to the Charter of Fundamental Rights and listed human rights among the Union’s foundational values. This commitment means that human rights must consistently be the Union’s compass for action. On the occasion of Human Rights Day 2016, it is no luxury to restate this, and to take stock of how this commitment is being implemented in troubled  times. For human rights are increasingly threatened, both within the EU and in the rest of the world.

Within  the  EU, a  number  of  governments  are  taking  an  authoritarian  turn,  cracking  down  on  media, undermining the independence of the judiciary, or discriminating against minorities. The refugee crisis has too often been used as an excuse for legitimizing racist narratives, and is being tackled largely at the expense of the human rights of refugees who, when they do not drown in the Mediterranean Sea and reach our coasts, are made to suffer human rights violations in the process of applying for asylum.

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