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Due to the extraordinary circumstances caused by the covid-19 virus, numerous states adopted different measures in order to mitigate the consequences of the epidemic, and many of them represented a restriction of human rights and freedoms. This paper is devoted to the analysis of (legal) consequences caused by epidemic measures in the Republika Srpska adopted during the state of emergency. In particular, the legal and sub-legal provisions regulating the actions of authorities in extraordinary circumstances are analyzed, as well as the practice of the Constitutional Court of the Republika Srpska. The aim of the paper is to show that the by-laws, enacted during the state of emergency, were largely in conflict with constitutional and statutory provisions, and it is particularly striking that numerous measures were enacted by non-competent authorities. Although it is an unquestionable obligation of the state to react in a state of emergency, that reaction must be in accordance with the principles of constitutionality and legality, since extraordinary circumstances cannot be an excuse for violating the fundamental values of the legal order. From that point of view, the decisions of the authorities of the Republika Srpska during the state of emergency caused by the covid-19 virus are paradigmatic, but as an anti-model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The legal regime of the state of emergency is regulated very poorly in Republika Srpska and Bosnia and Herzegovina in general. It is necessary to carry out a detailed positive legal and comparative legal analysis of this legal regime, to formulate proposals for amending the Constitution and laws of Republika Srpska. Their goal would be greater legal certainty and more detailed and meaningful legal regulation, which would reduce opportunities for abuses of state power and endangering human rights. The author first analyzes the constitutional provisions on the declaration of a state of emergency, the functioning of state institutions and the restriction of human rights during its duration. The author concludes that the constitutional provisions are so lapidary, that the state institutions, especially the executive, have wide possibilities for regulation of the state of emergency and the exercise of state power during its duration, even relatively wide possibilities of limiting human rights. The author believes that this is an extremely inappropriate legal solution. Therefore, he made a series of proposals for amendments to the Constitution of Republika Srpska, so that the legal regime of the state of emergency would be as fully regulated as possible, which would significantly reduce the possibilities of abuse of state power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The point of the article is to determine and consider the Niccolo Machiavelli’s ideas about the human nature. N. Machiavelli believed that historical patterns repeat cyclically over the time. Therefore, the key to consideration hypotheses about the negative human nature, which is especially manifested in politics, was historical method. As the foundation of Machiavelli’s theory is seen through a pessimistic view based on human nature, the genesis of this idea’s development is revealed through chronology. The research focuses on several segments. First is presented the basic idea and assumption of human political nature in antiquity. The ideas of ancient thinkers are presented as an introduction to the thought of N. Machiavelli. A detailed account of the consideration of social life through the philosophical thought of Aristotle, shows the first ideas and explanation of the negative nature of people in politics. As the detailed historical method was the way of understanding N. Machiavelli’s concretization of ancient ideas shows more clearly the way of thinking of anthropological pessimism. The Principe, as the key work N. Machiavelli’s is considered through a comparative analysis with the rest of the written legacy. After determining the thought of N. Machicavelli the entire idea of anthropological pessimism is linked to human rights and the chronology that follows the development of mechanisms for the protection of this set of rights. New facts and understanding of anthropological pessimism are presented as an opportunity for better acquaintance, but also for better normalization of relations within the framework of functioning of the social community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the positive innovations in the field of labour law is the introduction of the “due diligence” standard. Altough this principle has long been known and applied in other areas of law, it is new in labour law. The global application of due diligence standard, found in UN, ILO, OECD documents, and soon in the EU directive, as well as in many national laws, should lead to better and more comprehensive protection of the human rights of employees, as well as of all other persons regarding that work. This paper discusses more about the meaning, development and application of due diligence standards in the context of employee rights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, the right to abortion has inevitably become not only a legal, but also a political and religious issue, which has been the subject of numerous discussions for years, both in terms of its moral character and legal treatment. Unfortunately, the fact is that no consensus has yet been reached on the right to abortion, which is also emphasized by the advocates of the "pro-life" and "pro-choice" movements. Analyzing international documents as well as court practice, the author expresses her concern about the current situation in certain countries, which, due to the restrictive interpretation of the right to abortion, leave women without adequate and complete legal protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the legal framework for the protection of human rights in situations of extreme crisis in the European legal area, in order to achieve a coherent understanding of legal standards that will lead to their more uniform application. Through an in-depth analysis of the meaning and scope of the provisions of Article 15 of the European Convention, as well as the corresponding practice of the European Court of Human Rights, the authors determine under what conditions the suspension of certain rights and freedoms is legally permissible, and which state measures adopted in extraordinary circumstances represent the protection of the public interest, and which go beyond the scope of the most necessary measure required by the given situation and represent a violation of the rights and freedoms of the individual. This work is based on the idea that specific limitations for the enjoyment of human rights are necessary and justified. It is a well-known that only a limited number of human rights are absolute and as such are immune to any restrictions regardless of the circumstances and justifications. However, this does not reduce the need for the measures that the state resorts to in times of crisis to be strictly controlled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The right to privacy is one of the fundamental human rights, as it encompasses a wide range of relationships related to the private life of the individual. Starting with the right to family life and the right to private life, many institutions that seem very important nowadays, such as data protection, find their place and are part of the right to privacy. Nevertheless, the right to privacy is one of the relative rights protected by the European Convention, which means that it can be derogated in specific cases and under certain conditions. The purpose of this article is to examine the conditions set out in the European Convention for the derogation of right to privacy and to analyse the practice of the European Court of Human Rights. This Court has, in its jurisprudence, restrictively derogated the right to privacy, with fulfilling three conditions: prescription by law, necessary in a democratic society and achieving certain legitimate aim. One of the examples of the possibility of its restriction is the epidemic of the Covid-19 virus. Considering that numerous countries around the world have restricted the right to privacy, the question is whether and to what extent the restriction was in accordance with prescribed conditions for derogation of this right. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The process of political shaping of the right to a healthy environment, started with the adoption of the Stockholm Declaration in 1972, basically ended only fifty years later, when the United Nations Assembly adopted the Resolution declaring access to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment as a universal human right. At the beginning of the long journey, the responsibilities for implementing the decisions expressed in the Stockholm Declaration were divided between the member states, on the one hand, and the international community, on the other.The dominant position was given to state authorities. It was agreed that they must be entrusted with the task of planning, managing and controlling ecological resources, in order to improve the quality of the environment, and that states have the right to sovereignly exploit their own resources in accordance with their environmental protection policy. On the other hand, the belief was expressed that the international community will find a source of strength for later concrete action in the Stockholm Declaration. Since then, very modest progress has been made at international level. Official UN statements noted that the 2022 Resolution is not legally binding for 193 member states, but that its proponents hope it will encourage countries to enshrine the right to a healthy environment in national constitutions and regional treaties and encourage them to implement laws that relate to that right, and that it will help people fight for their right to a safe climate, their right to breathe clean air and their rights to access clean and safe water, adequate food, healthy ecosystems and a non-toxic environment. In the global context, the right to a healthy environment is still aspirational (imperfect, unfinished), something that still needs to be fought for at the national level. It will remain so until the consumer society model is replaced by a new form of social organization, which will be based on a different value system. Such a conclusion is also indicated by the reasonable, well-balanced judgement of the Court of Justice of the European Union at the end of 2022, in the case of JP v. Ministre de la Transition écologique (C-61/21). It stated that the provisions of the directives related to air quality must be interpreted in the sense that they do not aim to give individuals the right to seek compensation from the member state for loss and damage caused by the state’s violation of EU law, but that it does not excludes the possibility of an individual claiming compensation from the state on the basis of national law. During the past half century, about 150 countries around the world have constitutionalized the right to a healthy environment. It thus, at the national level, gained a significantly different physiognomy and more effective protection not only before the courts of general jurisdiction, but also before the constitutional courts, in proceedings regarding constitutional appeals. However, some new problems arise here. Among them, the competition (conflict) of property rights and certain sectoral rights included (integrated) within universal human right to a healthy environment, such as the right to water, which is discussed in this paper, is particularly significant. In conditions where it is not possible to satisfy the interests of everyone, states will be forced to prioritize their own citizens, and that means civil (private) rights, over universal human rights for the sake of social stability and the preservation of internal order. The process of constitutionalization will be slowed down, and it is possible that in some countries a kind of deconstitutionalization will be carried out, by amending the constitution or informally, through a more restrictive application of universal human rights and more restrictive decision-making regarding constitutional appeals. In the final part of the paper, it was stated that the boundaries between traditional subjects and objects of law are gradually being erased and that the environment must eventually be understood as a community of all living beings, which has a specific legal subjectivity and the right to be healthy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recognition of per sons with disabilities as deserving of the same rights, i.e. equality before the law is clearly highlighted in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities from 2006. In addition to this Convention, the European Court of Human Rights has stated in its decisions that even a more serious mental deficiency can not be the only reason for the deprivation of le gal capacity. In some countries, this understanding has been approved and accepted for a long time, and significant steps have been taken, primarily in the sense of abolishing a complete deprivation of legal capacity and moving to a system of providing support in decision-making instead of providing substitute decisionmakers. In the Republic of Serbia, laws passed more than two de ca des ago are still in force and still unchanged regarding questions of legal capacity, which in practice leads to complete de privation of legal capacity as a dominant way of decision-making. Although the Preliminary Draft of the Law on Amendments and Supplements to the Family Law has been drawn up, according to which complete deprivation of legal capacity is replaced by “restriction of le gal capacity”, it seems that this change may not bring substantial changes. It is necessary to work on changing the political narrative and understanding first in or der for the real changes to actually occur. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marriage and familiy are institutions which are continually evolving. Social reality points to the fact that the traditional concept of marriage does not have the capacity to recognize the full complexity of interpersonal relationships. Hence the aspiration for marriage to be equalized with common law marriages, including long term unions between individuals of the same sex. The European Court of Human Rights has greatly contributed to the improvement of the legal position of same-sex partners. To date, the European Court has not equalized same-sex unions with marriage, however it has foreseen that same-sex couples have to be legally recognized so that their relationship would be protected. Member states are not obliged to recognize same-sex marriages, however they have an obligation to institutionalize same-sex unions, for the purpose of protecting the rights and interests of those individuals who are part of them. The intent is to legally regulate personal and the property rights of same-sex couples, in accordance with the obligations of the Republic of Serbia which emanate from the application of the European Convention on Human Rights. However, the overall impression is that the Draft Law on Same-Sex Unions does not contain consistent and well thought out solutions. Analyzed from the aspect of family law, there are significant criticisms with respect to the currently proposed draft law, particularly with regards to the exercising of parental rights. Although the Draft Law does not foresee the possibility of adopting children, the question is raised as to the basis on which a partner of the child’s parent obtains authorities vested by way of parental rights. A belief remains that due to the far-reaching consequences, the process of legally regulating same-sex unions must evolve with great care, especially as this remains an extremely controversial topic in Serbian society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this contribution is to examine the scope of the freedom of expression of private persons in their encounters with public servants while the latter is on duty. Such situations are bound to happen quite often, sometimes accompanied with intemperance and strong language, so the relevance of the application of human rights to these encounters could potentially be significant. Discussion will be presented against the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights in order to assess whether and to what extent freedom of expression protects against public servants. Given the tendency of the Court to set different scrutiny tests for different categories of expression, and to contextualize expressions and limitations imposed, the ambition of this contribution is to establish whether the Court has distilled a special set of rules for the use of strong language against civil servants while performing public duties. While a regular balancing exercise can include a variety of legitimate interests that potentially can limit freedom of expression, one particular interest will be singled out, that is the right to privacy of public servants and how the balancing of the right to the reputation of public servants with the freedom of expression of private persons can play out. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The gender identity of every person represents an integral part of their personality and belong to one of the basic aspects of self-definition, dignity and freedom. A certain number of people do not identify themselves with the sex allotted to them at birth, a problem arising regarding their inner comprehension of gender (self-defining), which does not correlate to the sex. Those people are called trans people. In this paper, the author examines the position of trans people is individuals of different gender identity through the prism of the realization and protection in the field of labour rights and the rights arising from employment Trans people belong to one of the most vulnerable (most discriminated groups within society - discrimination is most evident in case of seeking a work placement and during employment, while the key performers are the state and its institutions. It could be said that conditioning and interdependence between the legal procedure of adjustment of gender identity and medical interventions, leave the legal and life status of a transgender person in vacuum", which leads to the situation of gender identity being the grounds for further transphobia and discrimination of transgender people in all the aspects of human rights realizarion. However, in the procedure of further adjustment of gender identity, a transgender person can be registered in the birth certificate register, they can change their personal documents only based on the certificate of a health institution that they have been through a therapy prescribed by an endocrinological check-up and a year-long hormone hold" In practice, such regulations put „on the personal status of a transgender person, which leads to the discrimination of transgender people based on gender identity, especially in the phase of transition, when the changes are visible but non-compliant with the sex verified in personal documents. Therefore, u is crucial that, Instead of partial amendments to certain laws, an umbrella law (lex specialis) be adopted - Law on Gender Identiny. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Тhe protection of human rights is one of primary goals of police work in democratic societies. However, no society is immune to the various forms of illegal police work. Some of them, like police torture, are the hardest forms of illegal police activity and the inhuman treatment of citizens as well. The paper focuses on the aspects that appear to be essential, so the paper considers the most important aspects of the phenomenon of "police torture" - the basic meanings, causes, ways and consequences of its manifestation. Our goal is to remove certain doubts in the interpretation of this phenomenon, but also to increase the interest in investigating the appearance of torture in the police. Such a scientific study has not been conducted so far, so there is a need for further comprehensive investigations of the "police torture" phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to point out the possibilities and potential restrictions of religious education in terms of tolerance as one of the core values in the contemporary world. The nature of the society and the changes it carries are reflected in the field of education, which often leads to distancing school from its primary task-educating virtue in humans. From the second half of the 20th century, the work on the development of human rights and the promotion of respect among people, regardless of existing differences, is intensified. Educational institutions have an important role in this process and they strive to fulfill it in various ways. One of the strategies is the incorporation of subjects whose primary objective is the development of the moral side of one’s personality, thorough learning about the beauty and the value of one’s own religion, as well as to that of others. In this way, the full development of personality is encouraged and the traits essential for today’s society are formed, which all would not be fully achieved without such subjects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Internet as a means of communication, whatever the ripe of information light be used for. file within the exercise of the right to freedom of expression, as guaranteed by Article 10 of the European Convention for the Protection of human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. As established in the European Court K case law, freedom of expression constitutes one of the essentials of a democratic society therefore limitations on that freedom foreseen in article 10 of the Convention are to be interpreted strictly In order to enter effective protection of one's freedom of expression on the Ferret, States bear a pontine obligation to create an appropriate regulatory framework, balancing the right to freedom of expression on one and the limitations a prescribed in Article 1&2. on the other hand Special attention in doing so is to be paid to the risk of harm posed by content and communications on the Internet to the exercise and enjoyment of other human rights and freedoms guaranteed by the European Convention particular the right to respect for private e While it as the fact that the electronic network serving billions of users world- will never be subject to the same regulations and control, because of the national authorities margin of appreciation, the European Court established Commonly applicable general principles regarding the Intersect at a media of merci right to freedom of expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

this paper at tempts to answer the question as to whether the right to "life and death" of a wo man (ius vitae ac necis) at the hands of male family members or partners is in deed a timeless category. Is it possible that in Serbia of the 21st century there is still a struggle to promote the "right to life" of wo men to the level of "basic hu man rights"? What contributed to the fact that the concept of innate human dignity based on "human rights", which dates back from the feudal social order, has not as yet fully come to life in Serbia as far as women are concerned. What social circumstances contributed to the Romanius vitae acnecis to outlive centuries and take root especially in Serbia, only under a different name - that of femicide? This notion has been defined as "gender based murder of women, girls, and babies of female sex by persons of the male sex". The murderers in cases of femicide include partners (ex/current, spouses or extramarital), family members or relatives: father, father-in-law, son, son-in-law, etc. Both expert and general public wan der whether enforcing more stringent norms by authorities or acting towards changing the consciousness of the abusers or both at the same time, can con tribute to eradicating this devastating phenome non in the 21st century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Right to self-determination has in the last hundred years been developed through a string ofinternational legal acts and a string of different contexts of international relations. This fact has influenced its contemporaryr normative content which is not stripped of political dimension. The author identifies in the articlefour criteria which are the key to full enjoyment of contemporary right of self-determination. These are: permanent and heavy> breaches of rights of the people who requests self-determination from the state authorities, weak central government in the territory> where this people lives, creation ofpeople’s own authorities who can effectively' control this territory', support ofgreat powders. Author analyzes the case of self-determination ofpeoples in Vojvodina to incorporate themselves into Kingdom of Serbia through the prism of these criteria and concludes that from the point of view of contemporary' international law this incorporation would be perfectly• legal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the issue of activities of international committees for the protection of human rights, which are created by universal treaties for the protection of human rights, such as International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Convention Against Torture, Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and other. The committees have jurisdiction to consider reports of the States Parties on the implementation of a releVant international treaty by which they were created. Also, the procedures of inter-state and individual communications are significant. Certain conditions of the admissibility of a communication, which are almost identical for every committee, should be fulfilled. Before initiating an international procedure State Party has the opportunity to remedy all the negative consequences that were caused by the violation of human rights and for that reason all available national legal remedies should be used. Also, the communications have to be compatible with the relevant convention, which means that individual has to address the right envisaged by the convention. In the procedures before a committee, the facts are investigated and the committee gives a decision or the opinion whether certain human rights had been violated. During the procedure interim measures could be ordered to prevent irreparable harm for the applicant. Decisions of the committees are not binding; however they influence a state to respect human rights of individuals in its jurisdiction. If the decisions were binding that would significantly contribute to the efficiency of the human rights protection before the committees. For that to happen, there should be explicit consent of the State Parties and the treaties, by which the committees are created, should be modified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyzes certain important aspects of the procedural position of persons with mental disabilities in the procedures for deprivation of legal capacity. Regardless of the normative framework, both international and national, particularly the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which largely protects the rights of this sensitive group of people, a significant number of cases before the European Court of Human Rights and decisions in which Contracting States are declared responsible indicate that there is a problem of their procedural position. They are principally conditioned by applying (or not applying) the procedural safeguards provided by Article 6 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, or the right to a fair trial. Namely, the special features of persons with mental disabilities also cause the particularities in the application of the right to a fair trial in the court procedures in which these persons are involved. Therefore, we could talk about formulated specific standards that essentially elaborate one of the key concepts of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities - "reasonable adaptation", as well as a direct link to the need for a specific application of the already mentioned Article 6 of the European Convention. The standards that follow from the application of Article 6 are numerous and the analysis of all from the aspect of protecting the rights of persons with mental disabilities is not possible in the paper of this volume, and therefore, special attention was given to the right of these persons to initiate and conduct the procedures for deprivation of legal capacity, personal participation and representation in that procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the troubling data that points to population imbalance, more precisely, increased number of born males in many countries, the issue of sex selection for non-medical reasons was not addressed adequately from the human rights protection perspective. Sex selection is also complex ethical issue. One of the most common arguments used in favor of non-medical sex selection, is that the ban of sex selection will simply limit reproductive freedom. Many supporters of non-medical sex selection defend the practice by relying pn the reason of [family balancing'. However, this reason does not seem to be eligible to justify selection. Problem of reproductive tourism is also present, due to the different approaches of the countries in regulating non-medical sex selection. More precisely, people are traveling to countries where respect for individual autonomy plays dominant role. In addition, there is a simple option to send samples for analysis to companies that advertise genetic testing over internet. In the context of human rights protection, only the Convention on Human Rights and Biomedi-cine has ban on sex selection for non-medical purposes, however, this ban applies only to specific, less practiced technique of selection. When it comes to other techniques of selection, Article 5 (a) of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women might be helpful to some extent. The issue of non-medical sex selection was in the focus of interest of the United Nations, Council of Europe and European Union to some extent, however insufficiently. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Ombudsman Institution, originally founded in Sweden in 1809, during the time received a planetary character. At the same time, its competencies increased: from a classical controller of public administration, the Ombudsman grew into a national institution of human rights protection. The Constitution of Serbia (2006) recognized the Protector of Citizens as an independent state body that should protect citizens' rights and monitor the work of public administration bodies. The activity of the Protector of Citizens in the sphere of human rights-protection was viewed from the general perspective. The role of the Protector of Citizens has been recognized in creating the appropriate legislative environment, then as an NHRI and as a national mechanism for the prevention of torture. Thus, the Protector of Citizens is positioned as a significant institution for the protection of human rights, but the scope of its work is largely determined by the personal capacity of its holder and the willingness of the Assembly and the Government to act following its recommendations and initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Right to personal data protection is guaranteed by the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia. This human right covers the protection of all kind of personal data, including information relating to patient` s medical condition. The paper deals with the issue of the permissible restrictions of this right, with particular reference to the protection of the health of others, as a permissible reason of restrictions. In a boarder sense, the paper deals with the relationship between two basic human rights: right to personal data protection and right to health protection (of others). The normative framework is consisted of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia, ratified international human rights treaties (especially the European Convention on the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms) as well as laws relating to the field of health care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inter alia, personal integrity is protected with right to privacy. In that context we can observe employee’ s right to privacy as an integral part of occupational safety and health. Personal integrity protection provide adequate health and working ability which is indispensable for productive work. Productive work is vital for employment relationship and represents compatibility of employer’ and employee’ intrests in employment relationship. But in employment relation employerhas supervisory prerogatives to provide profit. Employer’ s supervisory prerogatives may lead to violation of employee’ s right to privacy at work. About that, essential questions are - on which conditions and on which proportion employermay restrict employee’ s right to privacy at work? Authors of this paper tried to answer to these questions relying on legal standards in international law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the prevailing view to the contrary, the Police Act of 2016 cannot be said to be a completely new law in the material sense. The manner in which it regulates the major concepts and institutions suggests that it is an amended and supplemented version of the Police Act of 2005. The actual reasons for the enactment of the ‘new' law concern the legal employment status of employees of the Ministry of Interior, as well as the reduction of the internal affairs staff. The greatest expectations from the Act are in the part relating to the police staff management, monitoring of employees' career development, through performance assessment, professional development and other trainings. Although with nomotechnic and editorial shortages, the Police Act, basically, represents an effective legal framework for the performance of, primarily, policing and other related duties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The work is an attempt of the author to, in a relatively systematic way, presents the norms of Economic and Social Rights in the Constitution of Serbia from 2006. Before that, in the introduction the author refers to the commonplace with regard to human rights and their institutionalization, constitutionalization and internationalization. The process of institutionalization of human rights was started in England by adoption of the Great Charter of Freedoms (Magna Carta Libertatum) in 1215. Constitutionalization of human rights begins with the adoption of the first ten amendments to the US Constitution in 1791. French writers of the Constitution unlike the American in Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen proclaimed certain new rights such as freedom of movement, freedom of assembly, the right to free expression of thought, right to petition or freedom of culture. At first human rights were an asset to limit state power, but with new theories by which the state can not be seen only as a political organization, but as a community that has a socio-economic content, the state must guarantee to the citizens a certain corpus of economic and social rights by Constitution. Economic, social and cultural rights are classified as second generation of rights. Economic and social rights are directed to the fact that individuals are brought to the position that they can enjoy their civil and political rights. These rights, known as social welfare, are rights based on the principles of equality and solidarity, and their purpose is, inter alia, to help to the socially vulnerable members of the community. Constitutional act, which is important for the world - the constitutional recognition of these rights is the Weimar Constitution from 1919. which predicted legislative measures to implement these rights.For the internationalization of these rights very important is Universal Declaration of Human Rights from 1948 and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights from 1966. The Constitution of the Republic of Serbia from 2006 regulates economic rights as human rights that contribute to the economic stability of man in society. Serbian Constitution provides: The right of ownership; right to inheritance; right to work; the right to strike and freedom of entrepreneurship as economic rights. The Constitution of Serbia predicts the following social rights (such as rights whose purpose is to provide social security in society and economic life worthy of man): the right to health care; the right to social protection; the right to a healthy environment; special protection of family, mother as a single parent and child. It also provides an overview of a Constitutional Court decision which is the subject of protection of the right to health insurance. Finally the author concludes that there is no possibility of achieving the full realization of civil and political rights, if the majority of members of a society do not have the basic existential conditions for the development of their physical and mental potential. An individual who leads the battle for bare physical survival, cares little for the rights such as the right to freedom of thought or electoral law. The state can not ,of course , sacrifice political rights to economic and social, but physical existence and personal development are precondition for the enjoyment of political rights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The war between Yugoslavia and NATO, which lasted since 24. March until 10. June 1999, completed with Serbian forces withdrawal from Kosovo-Metohija. With the arrival of peacekeeping forces of KFOR and the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) new resurrection of Serbian community in Kosovo-Metohija has begun. Thousands crimes have been committed against the members the community. Responsible for the crimes mostly remains unidentified and unpunished. KFOR, UNMIK, EULEX along with institutions of Kosovo deny and violate human rights of the Serbian community since 1999 until nowadays. Case of Bogdan Djokic shows denial and violation of right to life, tenure right, right for fair trial and legal remedy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

this work deals with the right to life from the specific ecological view. Actually, it is analysing the relationship between two human rights defined by the Constitution: the right to life and the right to healthy environment. Their relationship is very close and, specifically said, it is: obvious, conditional, permanent and growing. This could not bet concluded if the time of occurrence (Constitutional regulation) of these rights is considered. The right to life is the oldest human right while the right to healthy environment belongs to new generation of human rights. However, if the contents of the right to life and the right to healthy environment are compared, it becomes clear that those two human rights are interwoven with each other. Development of states and change of life conditions of citizens will also change the content of right to life, by following ecological standards. This means that the interdependence of those two rights will be larger and more complex. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corporate crime became a serious criminal phenomenon on a national, regional, and global level. The fact that a large number of states have decided to start punishing corporations with criminal sanctions is the result of an objective examination of social reality, which has unequivocally shown that serious crimes are continually committed on behalf of and for the benefit of legal persons, and that those acts inflict serious damage to states, society, and individual rights. This paper explains the concept and the main characteristics of corporate crime and presents its similarities with and differences from related forms of criminal conduct. The violation of human rights by legal persons is classified according to the object of criminal-law protection, i.e. according to the nature and importance of the right that has been violated. Review and analysis of paradigmatic examples of threats and violations of human rights include criminal activities of legal entities in the fields of protection of life, liberty and security, political rights, environmental and human health, and the right to safe and healthy work. The paper then presents prominent cases of corporate violations of human rights and analyzes the concept of corporate criminal liability as an adequate response to the challenges of corporate crime. Finally, the paper provides an overview of Serbian criminal legislation in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human rights represent an open legal and political concept with a very wide value variable. Academic discussions on human rights nature have mostly commenced after the World War II during the trend of human rights internationalization, reaching their climax after the Cold war. This paper examines actual theories on human rights, from those accepting them as universal, up to those marking another pole, favoring idea of absolute relativity of human rights. The author asserts that the most acceptable should be a middle solution, standing of moderate relativism or position of relative universalism of human rights. He claims that only a very limited circle of basic, "substantial" human rights, having been accepted through an intercultural consensus, may pretend to be treated as universal. Out of that narrow sphere, there are many other human rights whose meaning and interpretation depend strongly upon concrete cultural context. The author points that in those cases it is important to respect a relativistic discourse and that the only solution should be explored within an intercultural and inter-civilizational dialogue, where non-western values should be equally treated as the western ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the issue of jurisdiction of international courts and tribunals for resolving disputes in the field of environmental protection. In the last few decades there was intense activity of states in the regulation of this field and in achieving this goal numerous international treaties have been concluded. In the cases of their violations there should be an international forum which would resolve this kind of disputes. In this moment there are some courts, tribunals and arbitrations which could resolve environmental disputes. However, these are not specialized courts but under their general competencies they can deal with these disputes. The problem is that States have to accept their jurisdiction, which means that jurisdiction is not compulsory. Also, the private entities do not have the right to access these instances. Courts and committees for the protection of human rights have their role in environmental protection. The Court of Justice of the EU has made a significant progress in enforcing environmental rules, due to its specific position and competencies given to it by the founding treaties of the European Union. The shortcomings of the existing mechanisms for dispute resolution could be avoided by creating a specialized International Court for Environment, but the procedure for its creation is still in progress and it is uncertain whether it will be established or not. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper discusses three important events for a future possible international instrument on surrogacy with cross-border effects. The Hague Conference document "The desirability and feasibility of further work on the Parentage /Surrogacy Project", the first two judgments of the European Court of Human Rights on the effects of cross-border surrogate motherhood and two judgments of the Court of the European Union on the right of intended mothers to maternity leave suggest that international regulation of the issues is desirable, but large differences between internal laws of states require further study on the possibility of reaching a consensus to draw up and accept a binding or not-binding multilateral instrument on the subject matter. The Mennesson v France ECHR judgment is particularly important, because it establishes violation of the right to respect private life of children who were given birth by a surrogate mother, and creates by this a contradiction between the margin of appreciation of a respective State and the principle of best interests of the child. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change, caused by anthropogenic factor, is one of the biggest global challenges. Universal interest for slowing climate change by adequate reduction of global emission of greenhouse gases and universal interest that all nations become capable to overcome effects of global change is beyond dispute. Global and local allocation of expenses of realization of the mentioned interests is a matter of global and local disputes. The Conference of Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change is searching for new formula of equitable distribution of the expenses that would be acceptable for all. The formula should reconcile efficient reduction of global emissions and securing sustainable development for all. International protection of human rights offers a possibility to turn attention to interests of individuals in the context of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

constitutional judiciary is the youngest branch of authority in the horizontal level of state power. Constitutional judiciary has, during its existence -- during two centuries as an ordinary court and during one century as a special authority, changed its position, role and importance. Those characteristics of constitutional judiciary had an increasing way - the position became better, in political and law sense, its role has expanded and the importance has increased. Today, constitutional judiciary is an inevitable subject of constitutional regimes in huge number of states (between them are almost all federations) but, in the same time, constitutional judiciary is an authority which is at least limited by the constitution. The constitution is "soft" to the constitutional judiciary because the judiciary interpreted the constitution in accordance to its political and law attitudes, hidden by the guise of protection. Different separation of power, a rise of executive power, requests for better protections of fundamental human rights, a changed role of state and executive power, altogether, have influenced to change of position of constitutional judiciary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The right to privacy is a fundamental human right and an essential component of the protection of human autonomy and freedom. The development of science and information systems creates various opportunities for interferences with physical and moral integrity of a person. Therefore, it is necessary to determine the precise content of the right to privacy. The European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms guarantees this right under Article 8. The European Court of Human Rights did not precisely define the content of the right to privacy and thereby the applicants could bring different aspects of life into the scope of respect for private life. According to the Court, the concept of privacy and private life includes the following areas of human life: the right to establish and maintain relationships with other human beings, protection of the physical and moral integrity of persons, protection of personal data, change of personal name, various issues related to sexual orientation and transgender. The subject of this paper is referring to previously mentioned spheres of human life in the light of interpretation of Article 8 of the Convention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Even though security services have the same function as before, today they have different tasks and significantly more work than before. Modern security problems of the late 20th and early 21st century require states to reorganize their security services, adapting them to the new changes. The reorganization involves, among other things, giving wider powers of the security services, in order to effectively counter the growing and sophisticated security threats, which may also lead to violations of human rights and freedoms. It is therefore necessary to define the right competence, organization, authority and control of these services. In democratic countries, there are several institutions with different levels of control of security services. Parliament is certainly one of the most important institutions in that control, both in the world and in our country. Powers, finance, the use of special measures and the nature and scope of work of the Security Information Agency are certainly object of the control of the National Assembly. What seems to be the problem is achieving a balance between the need for control of security services and security services to have effective methods for combating modern security problems. This paper presents the legal framework related to the National Assembly control of the Security Intelligence Agency, as well as the practical problems associated with this type of control. We analyzed the role of security culture as one of the factors of that control. In this regard, it provides guidance for the practical work of the members of parliament who control the Security Intelligence Agency, noting in particular the importance of and the need for continuous improvement of security culture representatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper tries to present the historical path that some European countries have crossed in the area of same-sex partners, but also to present the way in which the attitude of the European Court of Human Rights has moved on this issue, as a possible models which may be placed before the Serbia as requirements in the future. Also, it is given the review of the legislation of certain countries of the European Union and posed a question whether the proposed solutions are acceptable and whether it can lead to harmful consequences about which proponents of same-sex marriages are not thinking now. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to present the regulation of sustainable development on international level. The sustainable development was defined in the middle of 1980s and from that moment it incites discussions among lawyers about its relevance in international law. Some authors state that it is not a fully formed principle but that it is in the process of creation. The exception from this opinion is the position of the Judge Weeramantry in the Case Gabčíkovo- Nagymaros before the International Court of Justice. Since it is a principle, it does not contain clearly defined rights and duties but it is formulated generally and even vague regarding its legal effects. However, it is a legal principle which, contrary to moral or political principles, has binding legal effects and cannot be neglected. It is contained in several international treaties and it is also a part of the European Union Law. The principle of sustainable development is connected with the precautionary principle, environmental impact assessment and other principles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes what happened to the rule according to which it was not possible to register property and related rights into the registry on real estates without a prior fulfillment of tax duties related to the transfer of property rights, as well as tax duties in relation to inheritance and donations. Inadequacy of this rule and its incompatibility with our legal system has been assessed through its inconsistency with the Constitutional guarantee on the peaceful enjoyment of property, but also with the property law. Along the same lines the article follows the reasons given by the Constitutional Court in its decision on the inconsistency of the given rule with the Constitution in which the Constitutional Court opined that the rule that was struck down was also contrary to certain principles of the cadastre on real estates, such as the principle of the entry into cadastre. Regardless of the fact that the old rule significantly facilitated tax collection, this still cannot justify its existence and should not serve as the ground for a possible (third) re-introduction of this rule into the system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author review almost inflationary and vague use of the concept human dignity. It is more regulatory principle, than general notion with standardized meaning. Its philosophical, theological, legal and bioethical dimensions are emphasized. The principle of human dignity is constitutive not only for the moral but also for modern society, the foundation of both natural and positive law, as well as the center of the bioethical debate. Versus its earlier aristocratic use, in this article are analyzed his philosophical meanings as humanity, especially the human, reasonable, free self-determination of man (Cicero, Aquinas, Mirandola, Kant ) and democratic foundational meanings in many international documents and constitutions of some countries in which are occasionally in their very beginning. There are investigated its internal and outer dimensions (natural and social conditions). Legal guarantees for the human rights are essential for the realization of human dignity, but the constraint inherent to the law may jeopardize it as a legal value. The right to a sentence can be seen as a restoration of human dignity. There are a natural dignity, equal for all people, and social dignity, in which are still visible differences and inequalities. In the ecological and bioethical debates, appear critiques of the concept of human dignity as an anthropocentric value. Some authors began to speak about the dignity of all Created, the dignity of nature and law of nature. As a new paradigm, the dignity structures to qualitative different way our view of the world -- state and law, all society, but also of man and nature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human security has become a part of national security strategies despite its lack of unique definitions and approaches. There is no question about the connection between human security and human rights because both concepts put human beings into focus. This paper attempts to analyze the relationship between human security and human rights by answering whether security itself can be considered a human right. Human rights can be seen as a conceptual framework or normative basis of human rights, which delineate and concretize human security. On the other hand, as a part of national security strategies, human security can create a stronger obligation for national security systems regarding human rights. Human rights are a key reference object for human security, but also the analytic frame for the assessment of risks, threats, and other security challenges. Human security based on human rights has a stronger chance to be adopted and disseminated, and human rights, as a part of human security, are more likely to be observed and respected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human rights and civil liberties are the achievements of human civilization and development of the society, which are accepted by all progressive and democratic states as an integral part of the international legal order. In countries with a parliamentary tradition, with the separation of powers and control mechanisms, human rights and civil liberties are a category of primary importance. In accordance with contemporary requirements, a process of social transformation and reform of the police and security services was initiated in Serbia at the end of the twentieth century. The main objectives of the reform of the security sector are depoliticization, debureaucratisation, decriminalization and professionalization. In terms of operational organization and models of the Serbian Ministry of Interior, a universal model of "Community Policing" was accepted, which centers on a safe community. Police Act and by-laws are largely harmonized with the EU and international standards. The regulations and the rules everyday conduct of the police emphasize the principle of legality in the work, the protection of human rights and civil liberties, and the affirmation of the rule of law principle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although civil rights and liberties have traditionally been viewed through a relationship between the state and the individual (i.e. the obligation of the state to refrain from interfering with individual rights and liberties), important aspects in exercising these rights and liberties are associated with the employer-employee relationship. This is due to the fact that, by entering into employment, an employee agrees to limit his/her autonomy at work to the extent necessary to perform under the power of an employer. Therefore, one of the focal issues of labour law is how to protect employees from the abuse of managerial, normative, and disciplinary prerogatives by the employer, which includes creating the conditions to effectively exercise the freedom of expression, the right to a private life, as well as other rights and liberties in the workplace. Any idea related to this issue will be incomprehensible unless it is built into a broader context that includes the links between the history of the human rights law and the sphere of employment relations. Hence, this paper first examines the issue of employees as holders of human rights and liberties. Subsequently, the paper examines the most important requirements and obstacles for enjoyment of civil rights and liberties in the workplace. A special section of this paper is dedicated to analyzing the strict requirements for exceptional limitation of liberties and rights of employees, while the conclusion deals with various theoretical interpretations of the recent "ascent" of civil rights and liberties within the field of labour law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since their emergence in ancient times - although in rudimentary form - human rights have continually evolved and have undergone multiple transformations. The initial stage in the development of human rights is characterised by their extremely modest and restrictive practice, as well as by the emergence of the first ideas of natural law that did not tend to change the unjust social reality. The stage of institutionalisation, which began in the Middle Ages, is characterised by the struggle to reduce the monarch's absolute power. This process has enabled a gradual recognition of human rights, primarily the guarantees of personal liberty and security. The process of constitutionalization of human rights, which began with glorious revolutions in the USA and France, was inspired by medieval ideas of natural law. At the time, the natural law theories were actualised for the first time in their history. The next stage in the development of human rights occurred after World War II, with the beginning of the process of their internationalisation and the emergence of human rights protection mechanisms at the international level. Nevertheless, in the recent decades of their development, through conversion into an ideology, human rights have increasingly become a means for manipulation. With their relativization and the growing trend of removing the line between rights and morality, there appeared interpretations that could justify (or condemn) very different life situations and thus present the basis for the application of double standards. Accordingly, human rights must be redefined and freed from association with natural law features; otherwise, they will remain a means for manipulation and pursuit of ethically (non)controversial political goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ombudsman authority disposes of an action before the Constitutional Court to review the constitutionality and legality of laws and other regulations. This competence is in the function of supplementing the general system of protection of the human rights. The exercise of this competence involves a systematic approach to the interpretation of the whole legal system, particularly the proper interpretation of constitutional norms and values that they protect (including human rights as an essential value). Thus, in effect, the Ombudsman achieves a major share in the overall system of protection of the rights of citizens and raising awareness of their importance in modern society. This, in effect, defines the real measure of the impact of this institution in the general system of protection of human rights in our country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Legal status of the Mount Athos is characterized by many special features that make it internationally unique legal regime. The author analyzes peculiarities of Mount Athos territorial status, legal position of residents and visitors, as well as organization of Mount Athos authorities. The author concludes that the Mount Athos is characterized by a kind of para-sovereignty. Its autonomy involves not only the internal organization, autonomous governance and religious autonomy, but it also includes many elements of secular life of their visitors. Mount Athos has its own, separate legislative, administrative and judicial powers, while the Statute of the Mount Athos has greater legal force than all the other laws of the Greek state, because the state can not unilaterally change its provisions. Having in mind that the wide self-government is vested in church authorities and that the monks have very specific way of living, the author takes a position that the Mount Athos represent `monastic state`, but without statehood. The author also states that the Mount Athos will be faced with many challenges in the context of spreading of an assimilating, universal conception of human rights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Western Balkans in the period from 1992 to 2000 and later was the site of serious armed conflicts in which there was a significant threat to human life and other human rights of the civilian population. The deployment of international humanitarian organizations in this area was significant and with somewhat different role than the example of the African continent or elsewhere. Period of the ten war years as many post-war years of their engagement was quite enough for methodologically correct examenation of their role, problems and attitudes of the "beneficiaries" of these organizations on the activities of these organizations and their synchronization with the government. Numerous problems were noted from the practice of humanitarian organizations that are potencially usefull for improvements in the future. In this paper we present only some parts of the expert group from Serbia extensive research who exactly talking about these problems. Particularly interesting are the data on the abuse of humanitarian aid as well as data that are different from those presented by some official international organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Provisions of our Civil Procedure Code (CPC) relating to facts being subject matter of declaratory action deviate from comparative law. The model is unique. It deviates not only from solutions adopted in comparative law but also from traditional provisions of our previous civil procedure codes. Truth be told, the new CPC speaks of a possibility to determine facts by declaratory action when it is so provided for by the CPC itself of other regulations. The possibility to request the court to determine the authenticity of a certain document is present in all the legislation analyzed in this paper. By filing an action with such subject matter, the plaintiff, in essence, seeks final and binding assurance of the probative power of documentary evidence. A real life significance of this exception is minimal, since the court must take a position regarding the authenticity of the document if the opposing party questions it. The paper tries to identify substantive and procedural rules of law that provide for facts to be subject matter of declaratory actions. Case law analyzed in this paper does not indicate the courts being to favorable in determining facts based on a declaratory action. In fact, there have been cases, after the new CPC came into force, where the Supreme Court of Cassation dismissed a claim to determine the existence of certain facts by stating that in the case at hand the claim to determine the facts goes beyond legally permissible instances when facts may be determined by a declaratory action. We also dealt with an issue of determining the facts presented in the declaratory action. The facts are the basis for the declaratory action. Determining the facts without relying on any legal issue based on which the determination of facts is sought does not seem to be an acceptable solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unlike the traditional law of war, which recognized only interstate wars, the threshold of applicability of International humanitarian law (IHL) is linked to armed conflicts whereas its substantive domain excludes the situations related to internal disturbances and tensions. The concept of armed conflict, introduced by the Geneva Conventions, reaffirmed by the Additional Protocols, and further reiterated in other international treaties and the jurisprudence of international courts, is broader and much more comprehensive than the traditional concept of war. It is a generic or "umbrella" term, which encompasses not only the international armed conflicts between states resorting to armed force but also the non-international conflicts resulting in armed violence either between the government authorities and organized armed groups or among such armed groups within the territory of a single state. During the last decade of the 20th and the beginning of the 21st century, the concept of armed conflict underwent a legal evolution progressing in two directions. The first one involves precise definition of the threshold of its application by setting the lowest limits of an armed conflict; thus, the threshold has become much clearer and more definable due to vigorous interpretation by the international judicial bodies. The second line of development rendered the internal structure of an armed conflict more complex by means of clarifying the concepts of an internationalized armed conflict and a mixed armed conflict. This has apparently strengthened the ability of IHL to identify and regulate situations typical of contemporary armed conflicts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper the author considers the basic rights of taxpayers in the procedure of exchange of information. This is a very important issue because tax administrations increasingly rely on mutual assistance in tax matters. In the procedure of exchange of information, certain rights must be respected, primarily right to privacy and confidentiality of obtained data. Only a small number of countries notify taxpayers about the fact that a request for information has been made and give them right to consultation and right to intervention. Finally, the author tends to show the possible ways of harmonization of conflicting interests of tax administrations and taxpayers, because guaranteeing these rights may undermine efficiency and the goal which should be achieved by exchange of information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The adoption of the Law on Obligations in 1978 can certainly be considered as an event of watershed importance in respect to the analysis of various theoretical points of view on the notion of cause (consideration) of contract in the Serbian literature. The fact that it had not been explicitly regulated in Serbian positive law until the adoption of Law had a profound impact on the evolution of doctrine in this period. The range of differing theoretical points of view was very wide, covering essentially all the relevant streams in the doctrine of cause, from the ones accepting it (so-called causalistic theories), through the ones explaining it solely by the notion of exchange of assets (so-called economic theories), to the ones denying its legal significance in any sense (socalled anticausalistic theories). The most distinguished authorities in Serbian literature of contract law, who studied the notion of cause of contract in the period until the promulgation of the Law, were Dragoljub Aranđelović, Živojin Perić, Lazar Marković, Andrija Gams, Stevan JakšIć, Vladimir Kapor and Mihailo Konstantinović The Law on Obligations explicitly regulates the notion of cause of contract as one of the preconditions of validity and effect of a contract, which had a substantial impact on the evolution of doctrine. On the one hand, being an institution of positive law, there is hardly an author who had not devoted some attention to the notion of cause of contract. In this paper the author analyzes the points of view of Stojan Cigoj, Ljubiša Milošević, Živomir Đorđević, Boris Vizner, Martin Vedriš, Želimir Šmalcelj, Jakov RadišIć, Slobodan Perović, Jožef Salma and Oliver Antić. On the other hand, the scope of various, often conflicting, theories on cause of contract in Serbian literature shrank. One can recognize a tendency of abandonment of points of view disavowing any legal relevance of cause of contract and the majority of contemporary authorities argue that the cause of contract is a necessary legal institution, although they differ in the conceptual determination of this notion. However, Boris Vizner and Martin Vedriš may in this respect be deemed an exception. The former is of the opinion that the relevant sections of the Law on Obligations do not regulate the notion of cause of contract, but different titles of acquiring rights (titulus), while the latter claims that they mean the notion of basis of juridical act (Geschäftsgrundlage) from the German doctrine of civil law. All other authorities maintain that the sections of the Law on Obligations on the basis of obligation refer to the French notion of cause of contract and define it mainly within the premises of the neoclassical theory of cause of contract. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]