View source for Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union

{{short description|Group of rights of the European Union}}
{{distinguish|European Convention on Human Rights}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2022}}
{{Infobox document
|document_name = Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union
|image         = 01CFREU-Preamble-crop.jpg
|image_caption = The preamble of the Charter
|date_created  = 2 October 2000
|date_ratified = 7 December 2000
|orig_lang_code =
|location_of_document =
|writer  = [[European Convention (1999–2000)|European Convention]]
|signers = Institutions and member states of the European Union
|purpose = Consolidate and enshrine the broad array of rights afforded to citizens of the European Union
|wikisource = Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union
|official_website={{URL|www.europarl.europa.eu/charter/default_en.htm}}}}
The '''Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union''' ('''CFR''') enshrines certain [[civil and political rights|political]], [[economic, social and cultural rights|social, and economic rights]] for [[European Union]] (EU) [[Citizenship of the European Union|citizens]] and residents into [[EU law]]. It was drafted by the [[European Convention (1999–2000)|European Convention]] and solemnly proclaimed on 7 December 2000 by the [[European Parliament]], the [[Council of the European Union|Council of Ministers]] and the [[European Commission]]. However, its then legal status was uncertain and it did not have full legal effect<ref name="Craig 4th ed Chapter 11">{{cite book|last=Craig|first=Paul|author2=Grainne De Burca |author3=P. P. Craig |title=EU Law: Text, Cases and Materials|url=https://archive.org/details/eulawtextcasesma00paul|url-access=limited|edition=4th|chapter=Chapter 11 Human rights in the EU|year=2007|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Oxford|isbn=978-0-19-927389-8|page=[https://archive.org/details/eulawtextcasesma00paul/page/n160 15]}}</ref> until the entry into force of the [[Treaty of Lisbon]] on 1 December 2009.
The Charter forms part of the [[area of freedom, security and justice]] (AFSJ) policy domain of the EU. It applies to all the [[bodies of the European Union and Euratom]] which must act and legislate in accordance with its provisions, as the [[Court of Justice of the European Union|EU's courts]] will invalidate any EU legislation or ruling assessed as non-compliant with the Charter.
The [[EU member states]] are also bound by the Charter when engaged in implementation of the European Union law. However, Poland has been granted a partial opt-out from enforcement of the CFR in spite of participating in the AFSJ; in contrast, Denmark and Ireland have fully adopted the Charter, in spite of having been granted opt-outs from the AFSJ (a general and a partial one, respectively).
==Background==
{{Politics of the European Union}}
The [[Treaty establishing the European Economic Community|Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (Treaty of Rome)]] did not include any reference to fundamental or human rights. The EEC Treaty was written a few years after the failure of the [[European Defence Community Treaty]] and the [[European Political Community Treaty]]. The latter treaty had included rights provisions and Craig and [[Gráinne de Búrca|de Búrca]] argue that, in light of that failure, the drafters of the EEC Treaty wished to eschew any implicitly political elements.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Craig |first1=Paul |first2=Gráinne |last2=de Búrca |title=EU Law, Text, Cases and Materials |url=https://archive.org/details/eulaw00paul |url-access=registration |edition=3rd |year=2003 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |location=Oxford |page=[https://archive.org/details/eulaw00paul/page/318 318]}}</ref> However, the idea that the purely economic end of the new EEC Treaty would be unlikely to have any implications for fundamental rights was soon to be tested.
===Court cases===
Soon after the entry into force of the EEC Treaty, the Community established itself as a major political entity with policy ramifications beyond its economic aims. In 1964, the [[European Court of Justice]] handed down its decision in ''[[Costa v ENEL]]'', in which the Court decided that Union law should take precedence over conflicting national law. This meant that national governments could not escape what they had agreed to at a European level by enacting conflicting domestic measures, but it also potentially meant that the EEC legislator could legislate unhindered by the restrictions imposed by fundamental rights provisions enshrined in the constitutions of member states. This issue came to a head in 1970 in the [[Internationale Handelsgesellschaft mbH v Einfuhr- und Vorratsstelle für Getreide und Futtermittel|Internationale Handelsgesellschaft]] case when a German court ruled that a piece of EEC legislation infringed the [[German Basic Law]]. On a reference from the German court, the ECJ ruled that whilst the application of Union law could not depend on its consistency with national constitutions, fundamental rights did form an "integral part of the general principles of [European Community] law" and that inconsistency with fundamental rights could form the basis of a successful challenge to a European law.<ref>Case 228/69, ''Internationale Handelsgesellschaft mbH v. Einfuhr und Vorratsstelle für Getreide und Futtermittel'' [1970] ECR 1125; [1972] CMLR 255.</ref>
In ruling as it did in ''Internationale Handelsgesellschaft'' the ECJ had in effect created a doctrine of unwritten rights which bound the Community institutions. While the court's fundamental rights jurisprudence was approved by the institutions in 1977<ref>{{CELEX|31977Y0427(01)|text=Joint Declaration by the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission Concerning the Protection of Fundamental Rights and the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms}}</ref> and a statement to that effect was inserted into the [[Maastricht Treaty]].<ref>Article F of the {{CELEX|11992M|text=Treaty on European Union}}</ref> It was only in 1999 that the [[European Council]] formally went about the initiating the process of drafting a codified catalogue of fundamental rights for the EU.
===Proclamation===
In 1999 the [[European Council]] proposed that a "body composed of representatives of the Heads of State and Government and of the President of the Commission as well as of members of the European Parliament and national parliaments" should be formed to draft a fundamental rights charter.<ref>{{citation |title=Presidency Conclusions: Cologne European Council 3 And 4 June 1999 |url=http://www.consilium.europa.eu/ueDocs/cms_Data/docs/pressData/en/ec/kolnen.htm |publisher=Council of the European Union |access-date=23 December 2009}}</ref> On being constituted in December of that year the "body" entitled itself the [[European Convention (1999–2000)|European Convention]].<ref>{{citation |title=The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union |date=21 February 2001 |publisher=European Parliament |access-date=23 December 2009 |url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/charter/default_en.htm}}</ref>
The Convention adopted the draft on 2 October 2000 and it was solemnly proclaimed by the European Parliament, the Council of Ministers and the European Commission on 7 December 2000. It was at the same time, however, decided to defer making a decision on the Charter's legal status.<ref>{{citation |title=European Council – Nice 7–10 December 2000: Conclusions of the Presidency |publisher=European Parliament |date=11 December 2000 |url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/summits/nice1_en.htm |access-date=23 December 2009}}</ref> However, it did come with the political weight of having been approved by three powerful institutions and as such was regularly cited by the ECJ as a source of fundamental rights.
===Legal force===
A modified Charter formed part of the defunct [[Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe|European Constitution]] (2004). After that treaty's failure, its replacement, the [[Lisbon Treaty]] (2007), also gave force to the Charter albeit by referencing it as an independent document rather than by incorporating it into the treaty itself. However, both the version included in the Constitution and the one referenced in the Lisbon Treaty were amended versions of the Charter.
On the coming into force of the Lisbon Treaty on 1 December 2009, Justice Commissioner [[Viviane Reding]] proposed that Commissioners should swear to uphold all EU treaties and the Charter. On 3 May 2010, the European Commission swore a solemn declaration at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, pledging to respect the EU Treaties and to be completely independent in carrying out their duties during their mandate. For the first time, the Commissioners also explicitly pledged to respect the new Charter of Fundamental Rights.<ref>{{cite web |title=European Commission swears oath to respect the EU Treaties |url=http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/10/487 |access-date=21 November 2010}}</ref>
Several states insisted upon an opt-out from national application of the charter (see below for details).
==Legal status==<!-- remember to change the relative link below before renaming -->
[[File:04CFREU-Article2-Crop.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Article 2 of the Charter affirms the prohibition on capital punishment in the EU.]]
Following the entry into force of the [[Treaty of Lisbon|Lisbon Treaty]] in 2009 the fundamental rights charter has the same legal value as the European Union treaties. The Charter referred to in the Treaty is an amended version of the 2000 document which was solemnly declared by the same three institutions a day before the signing of the Lisbon Treaty itself.
Article 51(1) of the Charter addresses the Charter to the EU's institutions, bodies established under EU law and, when implementing EU laws, the EU's member states. In addition both Article 6 of the amended Treaty of European Union and Article 51(2) of the Charter itself restrict the Charter from extending the competences of the EU. A consequence of this is that the EU will not be able to legislate to vindicate a right set out in the Charter unless the power to do such is set out in the Treaties proper. Furthermore, individuals will not be able to take a member state to court for failing to uphold the rights in the Charter unless the member state in question was implementing EU law. It is this last point that has been subject to the most debate.
The Charter is not the first attempt to place human rights principles at the core of European Union law. All EU member states are, and candidate states are required to be{{citation needed|date=January 2023}}, signatories to the [[Council of Europe]]'s [[European Convention on Human Rights]], so that many principles from the convention, such as the right to a fair trial, were taken as the baseline for European Court of Justice jurisprudence even before their formal reiteration in Charter. In interpreting the human rights protections provided by the [[General principles of European Union law|general principles of EU law]] (described in the [[#Court cases|Court cases]] section above), the ECJ had already dealt with the issue of whether the rights protected by those general principles applied to member states. Having ruled in ''[[Johnston v Chief Constable of the Royal Ulster Constabulary|Johnston v Royal Ulster Constabulary]]''<ref>Case 222/84 [1986] ECR 1651, [1986] 3 CMLR 240.</ref> that a right to fair procedures was one of the general principles of EU law, in ''Kremzow v Austria''<ref>C-299/95 [1997] ECR I-2629, [1997] 3 CMLR 1289.</ref> the ECJ had to decide whether or not a member state was obliged to apply that principle in relation to a wrongful conviction for murder. Kremzow's lawyers argued that his case came within the scope of EU law on the grounds that his wrongful conviction and sentence had breached his right to free movement within the EU. The ECJ responded by saying that since the laws under which Kremzow had been convicted were not enacted to secure compliance with EU law, his predicament fell outside the scope of EU law.
The wording in ''Kremzow v Austria'', referring to the "field of application of EU law", differs from the wording in the Charter which refers to the implementation of EU law.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Craig |first1=Paul |first2=Gráinne |last2=de Búrca |title=EU Law, Text, Cases and Materials |edition=4th |year=2007 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |location=Oxford |page=402}}</ref> However, the amended explanatory memorandum issued alongside the Charter in 2007 describes the wording used in the Charter as reflecting ECJ precedent.
In 2019, the German [[Federal Constitutional Court]] established in ''Recht auf Vergessen II'' that it applies the Charter as the standard of review for matters regarding EU law and its national implementation, under the premise that the Charter offers sufficiently effective protection of relevant fundamental rights when compared to the [[Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=First Senate |date=2019-11-06|title= Decisions - The Federal Constitutional Court reviews the domestic application of legislation that is fully harmonised under EU law on the basis of EU fundamental rights***When reviewing claims for injunctive relief against search engine operators, courts must take into account the freedom of expression afforded publishers of online contents|url=https://www.bundesverfassungsgericht.de/SharedDocs/Entscheidungen/EN/2019/11/rs20191106_1bvr027617en.html|access-date=2020-12-31|website=Bundesverfassungsgericht |language=en}}</ref>
===The British and Polish protocol===
[[File:EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.svg|thumb|{{legend|#0088cc|States parties}}{{legend|#ff6666|States with an opt-out}}]]
{{further|Opt-outs in the European Union}}
In the negotiations leading up to the signing to the [[Lisbon Treaty]], [[Poland]] and the [[United Kingdom]] secured a protocol to the treaty relating to the application of the Charter of the Fundamental Rights in their respective countries.
The [[:wikisource:Consolidated protocols, annexes and declarations attached to the treaties of the European Union/Protocols#PROTOCOL (No 30) ON THE APPLICATION OF THE CHARTER OF FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION TO POLAND AND TO THE UNITED KINGDOM|protocol]], in article 1(1) states that the "Charter does not extend the ability of the Court of Justice of the European Union, or any court or tribunal of Poland or of the United Kingdom, to find that the laws, regulations or administrative provisions, practices or actions of Poland or of the United Kingdom are inconsistent with the fundamental rights, freedoms and principles that it reaffirms." Article 1(2) then says that the Title IV of the Charter, which contains economic and social rights, does not create justiciable rights, unless Poland and the UK have provided for such rights in their national laws.
Poland and the United Kingdom wanted the protocol for different reasons. The United Kingdom originally opposed a legally binding charter over concerns that it would result in a stream of British citizens going to the [[European Court of Justice]] in attempts to enforce their Charter rights in the United Kingdom,<ref>{{cite news |title=New sticking points for Blair in draft text|author=Ian Black |newspaper=The Guardian |date=28 May 2003 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/may/28/politics.eu |access-date=26 January 2010 | location=London}}</ref> and in increased costs for business.<ref>{{cite news |title=Vaz blames press for dislike of EU |author=Nicholas Watt |newspaper=The Guardian |date=1 September 2000 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2000/sep/01/theeuro.emu |access-date=26 January 2010 | location=London}}</ref> While the British accepted a legally binding rights charter during the negotiations of the failed [[Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe|European Constitution]], they negotiated a protocol during the Lisbon negotiations which, according to the then British Minister for Europe, would ensure that the Charter would not extend the powers of the European Court of Justice over United Kingdom law.<ref>{{cite news |title=EU Reform Treaty Abandons Constitutional Approach |publisher=Foreign Office |date=22 August 2007 }}</ref> Poland, on the other hand, disliked what it perceived as the Charter's liberal stance on social issues, and so in September 2007 the Polish government indicated that they wished to be included in the British protocol.<ref>{{cite news |title=Poland to join UK in EU rights charter opt-out |author=Mark Beunderman |date=7 September 2007 |newspaper=Euobserver.com |url=http://euobserver.com/9/24723 |access-date=26 January 2010}}</ref>
There is considerable debate concerning the legal effect of the protocol. One view, shared by Jan Jirásek,<ref>{{cite web|title=Application of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU in the United Kingdom and Poland According to the Lisbon Treaty |first=Jan |last=Jirásek |url=http://www.law.muni.cz/edicni/sborniky/cofola2008/files/pdf/evropa/jirasek_jan.pdf |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160518074121/http://www.law.muni.cz/edicni/sborniky/cofola2008/files/pdf/evropa/jirasek_jan.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 May 2016 |access-date=23 January 2010 }}</ref> is that the protocol is an opt-out that excludes the application of the Charter to Poland and the United Kingdom. Another, shared by Ingolf Pernice, is that the protocol is only an interpretive one which will either have limited or no legal consequence.<ref>{{citation |first=Ingolf |last=Pernice |title=The Treaty of Lisbon and Fundamental Rights |work=The Lisbon Treaty: EU Constitutionalism without a Constitutional Treaty? |editor1-first=Stefan |editor1-last=Griller |editor2-first=Jaques |editor2-last=Ziller |publisher=Springer |place=Wien New York |year=2008| url=http://www.judicialstudies.unr.edu/JS_Summer09/JSP_Week_1/Pernice%20Fundamental%20Rights.pdf |access-date=23 January 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100620010339/http://www.judicialstudies.unr.edu/JS_Summer09/JSP_Week_1/Pernice%20Fundamental%20Rights.pdf |archive-date=20 June 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Craig and de Burcá argue that the protocol is merely declaratory. It says that the "Charter does not extend the ability" of the ECJ or other court to overturn British or Polish law, but the ECJ already had the power to do this in any case. Accordingly, the Protocol is "unlikely that it will have any significant effect in practice."<ref>{{cite book |first1=Paul |last1=Craig |first2=Grainne |last2=de Burcá |title=EU Law: Text, Cases and Materials |date=18 August 2011 |edition=5th |isbn=978-0-19-957699-9 |page=395}}</ref>
In ''[[NS v Home Secretary]]'', the ECJ ruled that Article 1(1) of the protocol "explains Article 51 of the Charter with regard to the scope thereof and does not intend to exempt the Republic of Poland or the United Kingdom from the obligation to comply with the provisions of the Charter or to prevent a court of one of those Member States from ensuring compliance with those provisions."<ref>Joined Cases C-411/10 and C-493/10, ''N.S. v Home Secretary'' and ''M.E. v. Refugee Applications Commissioner'' [2011] [http://www.bailii.org/eu/cases/EUECJ/2011/C41110.html EUECJ C-411/10 (21 December 2011).] Quoted from para. 120.</ref>
Under section 5(4) of the [[European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018]], the Charter of Fundamental Rights was not retained in British law after its [[Brexit|exit from the EU]].<ref>UK Legislation, [http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2018/16/section/5 European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, section 5], accessed 28 July 2023</ref>
===Proposed Czech protocol===
During the [[ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon]], [[President of the Czech Republic|Czech President]] [[Václav Klaus]] expressed concern that the Charter would allow families of Germans who were expelled from territory in modern-day Czech Republic after the [[Second World War]] to challenge the expulsion before the EU's courts,<ref name="notsign">{{cite news |title=I will not sign Lisbon Treaty, says Czech President |author=David Charter |newspaper=[[The Times]] |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article6871365.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100106010054/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article6871365.ece |url-status=dead |archive-date=6 January 2010 |access-date=28 January 2010 | location=London | date=13 October 2009}}</ref> though legal experts have suggested that the laws under which the Germans were expelled, the [[Beneš decrees]], did not fall under the jurisdiction of EU law.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Lisbon Treaty: ratification by the Czech Republic |date=9 November 2009 |author=Vaughne Miller |publisher=The House of Commons Library |page=10 |url=http://www.parliament.uk/briefingpapers/commons/lib/research/briefings/SNIA-05214.pdf |access-date=28 January 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101109005824/http://www.parliament.uk/briefingpapers/commons/lib/research/briefings/SNIA-05214.pdf |archive-date=9 November 2010 |url-status=dead }} <br> {{cite web |title=The Beneš Decrees and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights |author=Steve Peers |publisher=Statewatch |date=12 October 2009 |page=9 |url=http://www.statewatch.org/news/2009/oct/lisbon-benes-decree.pdf |access-date=28 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091128050734/http://www.statewatch.org/news/2009/oct/lisbon-benes-decree.pdf |archive-date=28 November 2009 |url-status=live }}</ref> After Klaus refused to finalize the Czech Republic's ratification of the [[Treaty of Lisbon]] unless the country was excluded from the Charter, as Poland and the United Kingdom had been,<ref name="notsign"/> EU leaders agreed in October 2009 to amend the protocol to include the Czech Republic at the time of the next accession treaty<ref name="czech-klaus">{{citation |title=Brussels European Council 29/30 October 2009: Presidency Conclusions |author=Council of the European Union |url=http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/ec/110889.pdf |id=15265/1/09 REV 1 |date=1 December 2009 |access-date=23 January 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091105041710/http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/ec/110889.pdf |archive-date=5 November 2009 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="EO CZ">Mahony, Honor (30 October 2009) [http://euobserver.com/9/28913 EU treaty closer to ratification after Czech deal agreed], EU Observer</ref><ref name="EV CZ">Gardner, Andrew (29 October 2009) [http://www.europeanvoice.com/article/2009/10/klaus-gets-opt-out/66305.aspx Klaus gets opt-out], European Voice</ref> in a measure designed to persuade Klaus to sign the treaty<ref>{{cite news |title=Klaus gets opt-out |author=Andrew Gardner |newspaper=European Voice |date=29 October 2009  |url=http://www.europeanvoice.com/article/2009/10/klaus-gets-opt-out/66305.aspx |access-date=28 January 2010}}</ref> which he subsequently signed.
In September 2011, the Czech government formally submitted a request to the Council that the promised treaty revisions be made to extend the protocol to the Czech Republic,<ref name="Text adopted against the amendment"/> and a draft amendment to this effect was proposed by the [[European Council]].<ref name="Protocol amendment in European Parliament">{{cite web|url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/ficheprocedure.do?lang=en&procnum=NLE/2011/0817|title=Application of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union to the Czech Republic. Protocol (amend.)|work=[[European Parliament]]|access-date=3 March 2012}}</ref> However, the [[Czech Senate]] passed a resolution in October 2011 opposing their accession to the protocol.<ref name="EP committee draft report">{{cite web|url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-%2f%2fEP%2f%2fNONSGML%2bCOMPARL%2bPE-474.039%2b04%2bDOC%2bPDF%2bV0%2f%2fEN|title=SECOND DRAFT REPORT on the draft protocol on the application of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union to the Czech Republic (Article 48(3) of the Treaty on European Union)|work=[[European Parliament]] Committee on Constitutional Affairs|access-date=7 July 2012|date=4 April 2012}}</ref> When Croatia's [[Treaty of Accession 2011]] was signed in late 2011, the Czech protocol amendment was not included. During the Czech Republic's parliamentary ratification of the accession treaty in the spring of 2012, the government attempted to combine the approval of the Charter opt-out with the ratification bill. However, with the Senate controlled by the opposition parties, their objections to the opt-out could have led to the accession treaty being rejected. As a result, the government decided to separate the proposed opt-out from the accession treaty bill.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://praguemonitor.com/2012/04/26/senate-unanimously-nods-croatias-eu-accession |title=Senate unanimously nods to Croatia's EU accession |date=26 April 2012 |access-date=3 February 2013 |publisher=[[Prague Daily Monitor]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131219180606/http://praguemonitor.com/2012/04/26/senate-unanimously-nods-croatias-eu-accession |archive-date=19 December 2013 }}</ref>
A vote on a draft report by the European Parliament Constitutional Affairs Committee in January 2012 recommending against granting the Czech Republic's request to be added to Protocol 30 resulted in a tie.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.uk/briefing-papers/rp12-64.pdf|title=European Union (Croatian Accession and Irish Protocol) Bill|publisher=[[House of Commons Library]]|access-date=31 January 2013|date=1 November 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121127003324/http://www.parliament.uk/Templates/BriefingPapers/Pages/BPPdfDownload.aspx?bp-id=RP12-64|archive-date=27 November 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> The report argued that Protocol 30 was not functioning as a general opt-out from the Charter, but only allowed the countries to limit the application of subsequent EU laws based solely on the charter. Thus, the Czech Republic would still be bound by the Charter even if they were added to the Protocol. In October 2012, the committee approved the report,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.alde.eu/press/press-and-release-news/press-release/article/duff-welcomes-vote-against-czech-attack-on-charter-39860/|title=Duff welcomes vote against Czech attack on Charter|date=9 October 2012|access-date=31 January 2013|publisher=[[Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130103153611/http://www.alde.eu/press/press-and-release-news/press-release/article/duff-welcomes-vote-against-czech-attack-on-charter-39860/|archive-date=3 January 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> and a third draft of the report was published on 11 December 2012.<ref name="Committee report submitted to the European Parliament">{{cite web|url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+COMPARL+PE-474.039+06+DOC+PDF+V0//EN&language=EN|title=Third draft report – on the draft protocol on the application of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union to the Czech Republic (2011/0817 NLE)|work=European Parliament|date=11 December 2012|access-date=19 December 2012}}</ref> The report was tabled in Parliament during its session on 22 May 2013,<ref name="Protocol amendment in European Parliament" /> and the Parliament voted in favour of calling on the European Council "not to examine the proposed amendment of the Treaties".<ref name="Text adopted against the amendment">{{cite web|url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=TA&reference=P7-TA-2013-0209&language=EN&ring=A7-2013-0174|title=European Parliament resolution of 22 May 2013 on the draft protocol on the application of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union to the Czech Republic (Article 48(3) of the Treaty on European Union) (00091/2011 – C7-0385/2011 – 2011/0817(NLE))|date=22 May 2013}}</ref><ref name="Protocol amendment in European Parliament" /><ref name="alde on rejection">{{cite press release |url=http://www.alde.eu/press/press-and-release-news/press-release/article/european-parliament-rejects-czech-opt-out-on-charter-of-fundamental-rights-41493/ |title=European Parliament rejects Czech 'opt-out' on charter of fundamental rights |publisher=Alde.eu |date=22 May 2013 |access-date=20 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131109224150/http://www.alde.eu/press/press-and-release-news/press-release/article/european-parliament-rejects-czech-opt-out-on-charter-of-fundamental-rights-41493/ |archive-date=9 November 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The Parliament did, however, give its consent in advance that a treaty revision to add the Czech Republic to Protocol 30 would not require a new convention.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=TA&reference=P7-TA-2013-0208&language=EN&ring=A7-2012-0282|title=European Parliament decision of 22 May 2013 on the European Council's proposal not to convene a Convention for the addition of a Protocol on the application of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union to the Czech Republic, to the Treaty on European Union and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (00091/2011 – C7-0386/2011 – 2011/0818(NLE))|date=22 May 2013}}</ref>
In January 2014, after [[Czech presidential election, 2013|presidential]] and [[Czech legislative election, 2013|parliamentary]] elections the previous year had resulted in new leadership in the country, new Czech Human Rights Minister [[Jiří Dienstbier Jr.|Jiří Dienstbier]] said that he would attempt to have his country's request for an opt-out withdrawn.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://praguemonitor.com/2014/01/27/dienstbier-minister-wants-scrapping-eu-pacts-czech-opt-out|title=Dienstbier as minister wants scrapping of EU pact's Czech opt-out|date=27 January 2014|access-date=9 February 2014|newspaper=[[Prague Daily Monitor]]|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140325192108/http://praguemonitor.com/2014/01/27/dienstbier-minister-wants-scrapping-eu-pacts-czech-opt-out|archive-date=25 March 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rozhlas.cz/zpravy/politika/_zprava/jiri-dienstbier-chce-aby-cesko-pozadalo-o-zruseni-vyjimky-v-lisabonske-smlouve--1309447|title=Jiří Dienstbier chce, aby Česko požádalo o zrušení výjimky v Lisabonské smlouvě|date=29 January 2014|access-date=9 February 2014}}</ref> This was confirmed on 20 February 2014 by the new Prime Minister [[Bohuslav Sobotka]], who withdrew the request for an opt-out during a meeting with [[President of the European Commission]] [[José Manuel Barroso]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://euobserver.com/news/123211|title=Czech government to give up EU Charter opt-out|date=20 February 2014|access-date=21 February 2014|last=Fox|first=Benjamin}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vlada.cz/cz/media-centrum/aktualne/premier-sobotka-se-v-bruselu-setkal-s-predsedou-evropske-komise-barrosem-i-predsedou-evropskeho-parlamentu-schulzem-116128/|title=Premiér Sobotka se v Bruselu setkal s předsedou Evropské komise Barrosem i předsedou Evropského parlamentu Schulzem|date=20 February 2014|access-date=21 February 2014|publisher=Government of the Czech Republic}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.euroskop.cz/46/23620/clanek/barroso-cr-resetovala-vztahy-s-eu-na-mnoha-frontach/|title=Barroso: ČR "resetovala" vztahy s EU|date=20 February 2014|access-date=21 February 2014|last=Bydžovská|first=Maria|archive-date=8 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308152151/https://www.euroskop.cz/46/23620/clanek/barroso-cr-resetovala-vztahy-s-eu-na-mnoha-frontach/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.radio.cz/en/section/news/news-2014-02-20|title=Czech prime minister in Brussels|date=20 February 2014|access-date=21 February 2014|publisher=[[Radio Prague]]|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140221234026/http://www.radio.cz/en/section/news/news-2014-02-20|archive-date=21 February 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> shortly after his newly elected government won the confidence of Parliament.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-czech-eu-idUSBREA1I1A520140219|title=Czechs give up EU rights charter opt-out, plan joining fiscal pact|date=19 February 2014|access-date=21 February 2014|work=[[Reuters]]|archive-date=24 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924193700/http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-czech-eu-idUSBREA1I1A520140219|url-status=live}}</ref> In May 2014, the Council of the European Union formally withdrew their recommendation to hold an [[Intergovernmental Conference]] of member states to consider the proposed amendments to the treaties.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/EN/genaff/142581.pdf|title=Press release - 3313th Council meeting|date=2014-05-13|access-date=2014-05-17|publisher=[[Council of the European Union]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140517152908/http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/EN/genaff/142581.pdf|archive-date=2014-05-17|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://register.consilium.europa.eu/doc/srv?l=EN&f=ST%209693%202014%20INIT|title=List of "A" items|date=2014-05-12|access-date=2014-05-17|publisher=[[Council of the European Union]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.parlament.gv.at/PAKT/EU/XXV/EU/02/08/EU_20839/imfname_10457081.pdf|title="I/A" item note|date=2014-04-08|access-date=2014-05-17|publisher=[[Council of the European Union]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140517152332/http://www.parlament.gv.at/PAKT/EU/XXV/EU/02/08/EU_20839/imfname_10457081.pdf|archive-date=2014-05-17|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/ficheprocedure.do?reference=2011/0817%28NLE%29|title= Procedure file - 2011/0817(NLE)|access-date=2014-05-17|publisher=[[European Parliament]]}}</ref>
==Content==
The Charter contains some 54 articles divided into seven titles. The first six titles deal with substantive rights under the headings: dignity, freedoms, equality, solidarity, citizens' rights and justice, while the last title deals with the interpretation and application of the Charter. Much of Charter is based on the [[European Convention on Human Rights]] (ECHR), [[European Social Charter]], the case-law of the [[European Court of Justice]] and pre-existing provisions of [[European Union law]].
* The first title ('''Dignity''') guarantees the [[right to life]] and [[personal integrity]] and prohibits [[torture]], [[slavery]], the [[death penalty]], [[eugenics|eugenic practices]] and [[Human cloning|reproductive human cloning]]. Its provisions are mostly based on the ECHR, although Article 1 closely reflects Article 1 of the [[German Basic Law]].
* The second title ('''Freedoms''') covers liberty, [[privacy]], protection of [[personal data]], marriage, [[freedom of thought|thought]], [[freedom of religion|religion]], [[freedom of expression|expression]], [[freedom of assembly|assembly]], [[right to education|education]], [[labour rights|work]], property and [[right of asylum|asylum]].
* The fourth title ('''Solidarity''') covers social and [[workers' rights]] including the [[decent work|right to fair working conditions]], protection against unjustified [[termination of employment|dismissal]], and [[universal health care|access to health care]], [[social assistance|social]] and [[housing assistance]], [[environmental protection]] and [[consumer protection]].
* The fifth title ('''Citizen's Rights''') covers the rights of the EU citizens such as the [[right to vote]] and [[Nomination rules|right to candidacy]] in elections to the [[European Parliament]] and municipal elections and the right to move freely within the EU. It also includes several administrative rights such as a right to good administration, to access documents and to petition the European Parliament.
* The sixth title ('''Justice''') covers justice issues such as the [[right to an effective remedy]], a fair trial, to the [[presumption of innocence]], the [[Principle of legality in criminal law|principle of legality]], [[Ex post facto law|non-retrospectivity]] and [[double jeopardy]].
* The seventh title ('''General Provisions''') concerns the interpretation and application of the Charter. These issues are dealt with [[#Legal status|above]].
==Raising the Charter's profile==
The EU has attempted to raise the profile of the Charter so that citizens are more aware of their rights. For example, the EU [[Fundamental Rights Agency]] (FRA) has produced apps for iOS<ref>{{cite web|url=https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/eu-charter/id581136169?mt=8 |title=EU Charter on the App Store on iTunes |publisher=iTunes Store |date=10 December 2012 |access-date=20 February 2014}}</ref> and Android<ref>{{cite web|url=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=eu.europa.fra.charter |title=EU Charter |access-date=20 February 2014}}</ref> with the text of the Charter in all EU languages and related information. It has also published mini-versions of the Charter in all EU languages.
In 2010, the FRA put out a tender for poets to turn the Charter into an 80-minute-long epic poem, with music, dance and multimedia elements. This was also to raise awareness and to simplify the legal text into more understandable language.<ref>[http://euobserver.com/9/29798 Charter of Fundamental Rights to be re-written as 80-minute-long epic poem] EUobserver, 1 April 2010</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra_uploads/730-FRA-Negotiated-Procedure-02032010.pdf |title=Charter in Poems |publisher=European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights |access-date=20 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140226105839/http://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra_uploads/730-FRA-Negotiated-Procedure-02032010.pdf |archive-date=26 February 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref> However, [[Viviane Reding]], the [[European Commissioner for Justice, Freedom & Security]], wrote to the director of the FRA slamming the idea on cost and dignity grounds and instructing him to cancel the project.<ref>Phillips, Leigh (29 April 2010) [http://euobserver.com/9/29972 EU commissioner kills off 'undignified' rights charter poem], EU Observer</ref>
== See also ==
*[[Capital punishment in Europe]]
*[[Citizenship of the European Union]]
*[[Fundamental Rights Agency]]
*[[European Single Market]]
*[[European Social Charter]]
*[[Fundamental rights]]
*[[Three generations of human rights]]
==References==
{{Reflist}}
==Further reading==
* {{cite book |title=The EU Charter and of Fundamental Rights: politics, law and polity |editor1-first=Steve |editor1-last=Peers |editor2-first=Angela |editor2-last=Ward |location=Oxford |publisher=Hart Publishing |year=2004}}
* {{cite journal|first=Anastasios |last=Antoniou |title=Increasing Rights' Protection in the EU: The Charter of Fundamental Rights in Trajectory of Enforcement |journal=Hellenic Review of European Law |year=2009 |issue=4 |page=97 |url=http://www.cieel.gr/en/eeed/index.jsp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091225085442/http://www.cieel.gr/en/eeed/index.jsp |archive-date=25 December 2009 }}
== External links ==
{{wikisource}}
{{Commons category|Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union}}
* {{CELEX|32000X1218(01)|text=Charter (2000), original version as proclaimed by the institutions}}, repealed by {{CELEX|12007P/TXT}}
* [https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=OJ:C:2007:303:TOC Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union] (2007), version incorporated in the [[Treaty of Lisbon]] and explanation relating to it
* {{CELEX|12007P/TXT|text=The Charter in the latest (2012) consolidated version of the Lisbon Treaty}}
* [https://www.europarl.europa.eu/charter/default_en.htm European Parliament's explanation of the Charter]
* [https://ec.europa.eu/info/aid-development-cooperation-fundamental-rights/your-rights-eu/eu-charter-fundamental-rights_en The Charter on the European Commission's website]
{{EU treaties and declarations}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Fundamental rights]]
[[Category:European Union law]]
[[Category:Declarations of the European Union]]
[[Category:Human rights instruments]]
[[Category:2000 in law]]
[[Category:2000 in the European Union]]
[[Category:Political charters]]
[[Category:2000 documents]]
[[Category:Human rights in Europe]]