{"id":3448,"date":"2025-11-02T20:18:18","date_gmt":"2025-11-02T19:18:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/johan-callewaert.eu\/?p=3448"},"modified":"2025-11-04T20:30:20","modified_gmt":"2025-11-04T19:30:20","slug":"populism-on-trial-the-european-courts-response-to-a-common-challenge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/johan-callewaert.eu\/de\/populism-on-trial-the-european-courts-response-to-a-common-challenge\/","title":{"rendered":"Populism on Trial: The European Courts\u2019 Response to a Common Challenge"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

How do the two European Courts courts address the challenges posed by populism<\/strong> in today\u2019s Europe? What strategies <\/strong>do they share, and where do they differ?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These were the central questions I explored in a presentation entitled \u201cPopulism: A Common Challenge for the European Courts<\/strong>\u201d<\/em>, delivered on 20 October at a conference organized by the Pompeu Fabra University of Barcelona on \u201cEurope\u2019s Constitutional Stress Test: Judicial Resilience in an Age of Populism\u201d<\/em> (see the programme below).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The presentation began from the premise that populist movements focus their attacks on both democratic values<\/strong> \u2013 such as the rule of law, human dignity, freedom of expression, the protection of minorities, and the prohibition of hate and violence \u2013 and democratic institutions<\/strong>, including national courts and parliaments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Accordingly, the analysis compared the case law of the European Court of Human Rights <\/strong>and the Court of Justice of the European Union <\/strong>with respect to each of these \u201ctargets,\u201d supported by numerous illustrative excerpts from relevant judgments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The findings revealed that the two European Courts pursue similar<\/strong> strategies<\/strong>. When democratic values<\/strong> are challenged, their common approach is to reaffirm these values by emphasizing their essential role in preserving the democratic character of European societies<\/strong>. When national courts and parliaments<\/strong> come under attack, the Courts\u2019 focus shifts to safeguarding their proper functioning<\/strong> as a means of fostering citizens\u2019 trust<\/strong> in democratic institutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The main conclusions of the presentation can be summarized as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n