The Positive Obligations of the State under the European Convention of Human Rights

The system of the European Convention of Human Rights imposes positive obligations on the state to guarantee human rights in circumstances where state agents dot not directly interfere. In addition to the traditional/liberal negative obligation of non-interference, the state must actively protect the human rights of individuals residing within its jurisdiction. The liability of the state in terms of positive obligations induces a freestanding imperative of human rights that changes fundamentally the perception of the role of the state and the participatory ability of the individual, who can now assert their human rights in all circumstances in which they are relevant. In that regard, positive obligations herald the most advanced review of the state’s business ever attempted in international law. The book undertakes a comprehensive study of positive obligations: from establishing the legitimacy of positive obligations within the system of the Convention to their practical implementation at the national level. This study of the Convention explains and critically analyses the state’s positive obligations, as imposed by the European Court of Human Rights, and sets out original proposals for their future development.

Dimitris Xenos is a Research Fellow at the European Public Law Organisation, Athens. He also acts as a legal consultant on issues of human rights law.