The course introduces students with the European standards for the protection of human rights in the area of criminal procedural law and criminal justice in general, which have arisen out of the jurisprudence of the European Court for Human Rights in Strasbourg. In Europe, the system for the protection of human rights represents a multilevel structure which includes instruments originating from the framework of the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the European Union, and national constitutions. The European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms which was adopted in the framework of the Council of Europe, represents the most important instrument for the protection of individual human rights in Europe, which exerts significant impact on the national criminal justice systems. Its effects and strength arise out of the existence and functioning of its supervision mechanism which is established through the European Court for Human Rights the jurisprudence of which has supranational effect and which decides on the individual complaints filed against the Contracting States.
In the introductory part of the course an overview of the background, development and legal effects of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and the jurisprudence of the European Court for Human Rights is given. The major part of the course is dedicated to the deepening of students’ knowledge of human rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Convention which relate to the area of criminal justice, such as: right to life, prohibition of torture and other cruel and inhuman treatment and punishment, right to liberty and security, right to fair trial (in criminal procedure), right to respect for private and family life, home and correspondence, freedom of expression, and prohibition of discrimination. Special attention is dedicated to the Court’s rulings rendered in the proceedings against the Republic of Croatia.