COVID-19, emergency measures taken do not require activation of derogation from ECHR

Faced with the COVID-19 pandemic, Latvia, Romania, Moldova, Armenia, and Estonia have activated Article 15 of the European Convention on Human Rights, according to the Council of Europe spokesperson contacted by EUROPE on Friday 20 March.

In the event of “war or public emergency threatening the life of the Nation”, this article allows a signatory country to derogate, “to the extent strictly required by the exigencies of the situation”, from its obligation to guarantee certain rights...