La CRC e la Convenzione europea dei diritti dell'uomo

The European Court of Human Rights has repeatedly reiterated that the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) cannot be considered “in a vacuum”, but must be interpreted in harmony with other relevant international standards. Having been ratified by all the States parties to the ECHR, the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) plays a prominent role in this context. In its case-law, the Strasbourg Court makes often reference to the principle of the best interests of the child, enshrined in Article 3 of the CRC. The relevance that the Court assigns to the principle seems to go even beyond what is prescribed by art. 3 CRC, which qualifies the best interests of the child as "a primary consideration", but not necessarily the preponderant consideration. There are, however, several other provisions of the CRC that may affect the interpretation of the rules of the ECHR. The two treaties interact in at least three different ways: a) there are provisions in the CRC that protect rights that are also enshrined in the ECHR (eg freedom of expression) or in its Protocols (eg the right to education). To the extent that their formulation is more precise than that of the corresponding ECHR norms, these provisions provide a significant interpretative tool to the European Court, allowing it to adapt the provisions of the ECHR to the specific needs of children and adolescents; b) the CRC enshrines further rights, which are not expressly taken into consideration by the ECHR (eg the right to a name). While being aware that the systematic interpretation of the ECHR in the light of the other relevant international instruments cannot lead to the recognition of new rights, the European Court does not hesitate to bring the rights protected under the CRC under the umbrella of existing provisions of the ECHR (eg article 8, protecting the right to private and family life); c) - the CRC places upon States Parties a number of obligations of conduct, the respect of which is functional to guaranteeing the full enjoyment of children’s rights. Respect for these obligations of conduct can also serve as a parameter for assessing the fulfillment by States of their due diligence obligations stemming from the ECHR (eg the obligation to prevent human rights violations).