The Council of Europe’s human rights commissioner, Michael O’Flaherty, has warned that reducing the human rights of a particular group of people would set a frightening precedent and called for a look at European history, writes Politico.
Speaking to Politico on the 23rd of February, O’Flaherty said that changing the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) to limit the flow of migration is not the right way to go. He stressed that to reduce migration, we need to look elsewhere.
The human rights commissioner’s comments come after the 27 Council of Europe member states agreed in December to changes to the way the ECHR is applied in courts. At the time, there were also calls for a stronger treaty to crack down on people smugglers, strengthen borders and facilitate the deportation of violators. The political declaration is scheduled to be adopted in May in the Moldovan capital, Chisinau.
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is responsible for enforcing the ECHR in the council’s member states and is facing increasing pressure from governments. In May 2025, nine EU member states signed a letter calling for the 1953 convention to be revised to make it easier for countries to expel migrants who commit crimes.
The Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Alain Berset, opposed it, saying that the courts should not be used as political weapons.
O’Flaherty warned on the 23rd of February that
restricting the human rights of migrants who commit crimes was very risky
and said he was against it. The commissioner stressed that it was a very slippery slope: today it would be immigrants who committed crimes, but in the future it could be anyone – Roma communities, transgender people or Jews. He called for a look at European history – as soon as a group of people is deprived of some of their human rights, a dangerous precedent is set.
The EU has begun to introduce stricter migration policies in recent years, in response to the rise of far-right parties across the continent. For example, new rules were adopted last December that allow member states to expel those who do not meet the conditions for asylum, as well as to set up application processing centers and relocation points outside their borders.
However, O’Flaherty was skeptical that a tough stance on migration would serve as a firewall against the far-right. He said he did not consider most strategies for managing migration to be particularly effective in defeating right-wing extremists. The commissioner added that principles, values and rights are under threat, but the most effective strategy for action would be to defend them even more strongly.
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