Closed petition Keep the army bound by the European Convention on Human Rights during conflict.

Closed on 19 April 2017

In her conference speech, Theresa May declared that the army would have an opt-out of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) during conflict. This means, in effect, that the army would have a free hand to violate basic human rights such as freedom from torture and the right to a fair trial.

The ECHR is an international treaty, drafted in 1950 and championed by British governments ever since. It sets out a series of fundamental rights that governments are bound to respect. This Convention was signed and ratified by the British government in the aftermath of the WWII to ensure that the human rights violations during this conflict would not happen again. For more information on the rights that the ECHR protects, visit: www.echr.coe.int/Documents/Convention_ENG.pdf