Article 11 Eval Flashcards
It is a qualified right
Can be restricted
However it is a right that protects collective groups of people meaning no balancing of rights and this means has to be necessary prop and legit aim. Margin of appreciation can be taken into account as well
However issues arise with clashing counter-demonstrators at protests. This is referring to UK police usually keeping clashing protestors away from one another - can be seen as breach of a.5 but is protecting a.11
Balancing rights of different groups
Protecting article 11 rights can be difficult as often may different groups are involved and want to have a say#
This can be very difficult for the police to manage, as well as for the courts to consider when balancing proportionality
However, where there are counter-demonstrators, police have a positive obligation to take reasonable steps to ensure peaceful protestors are protected
The margin of appreciation allows different levels of protection in different states
This may allow for a fair balance between the rights of individuals vs rights of the community in each state, as the ECtHR will usually recognise there will be difference in what is seen as acceptable in each different state and will allow limitations if the state have taken reasonable steps.
However this means there is a lack of consistency in human rights protections depending on which country someone lives in and some measure taken can be very damaging for democracy.
It is heavily linked to article 10
Both articles are described as being essential foundations in a democracy
Moldova said - “one of the foundations of such a society” about a.11
Handyside - “essential foundations of a democratic society” about a.10
Therefore any restriction on one of these rights will be a restriction on the other. This potentially makes it harder for police to stop a protest, as they could argue that they were breaching article 10 along with article 11.
