At EU level, Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) makes the rule of law one of the fundamental values of the Union, alongside human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality and respect for human rights. Compliance with rule of law standards is assessed in the context of the political criteria for EU membership (Copenhagen criteria) and the rule of law must also be respected as an EU Member State. In order to counter threats to EU values, Article 7 TEU states that “the Council […] may find that there is a clear risk of a serious breach by a Member State of the values referred to in Article 2` or `may find that a Member State has committed a serious and persistent breach of the values referred to in Article 2` and shall take preventive measures or sanctions accordingly. In addition, the growing recognition of the threat posed by what has been described as the “regression” of the rule of law has led to a “rapid development of the EU`s rule of law toolbox” and an exponential growth in measures to address these threats since 2012. Footnote 56 The importance of measuring the rule of law becomes evident when considering that all these instruments, including the mechanisms provided for in Article 7 TEU, are based on a preliminary assessment of serious violations of the rule of law or the risks of such violations. This also explains the relevance and references to Council of Europe definitions and measurement tools in EU measurement mechanisms and efforts. Footnote 57 The 30. The 2020 Rule of Law Report, published in September 2020, contains a very clear definition of the rule of law on the first page, based on the Venice Commission`s Rule of Law Criteria List 2011 and the Commission`s 2014 definition. Footnote 81 A selection of four specific themes (judiciary, anti-corruption, pluralism and media freedom, and separation of powers) allows for comparability across Member States and provides an overview of Europe`s rule of law situation.
However, it was noted that one of the main weaknesses of the report is that “in the case of systemic violations, the report does not provide the necessary context and does not connect the dots. See also the special edition and editorial by J. Botero, R. Nelson and C. Pratt, « Indices and indicators of justice, governance and the rule of law: an overview », Hague Journal on the Rule of Law 2011, Vol 3 No 2, 153-169 ; und T. Ginsburg, « Pitfalls of measuring the rule of law », Hague Journal on the Rule of Law 2011, Vol 3 No 2, 269–280. Im Rahmen von Ziel 16 sind mehrere Ziele aus Sicht der Rechtsstaatlichkeit relevant, insbesondere Ziel 16.3 (Förderung der Rechtsstaatlichkeit auf nationaler und internationaler Ebene und Gewährleistung eines gleichberechtigten Zugangs zur Justiz für alle). Other rule of law goals of goal 16 include goal 16.6 (building effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels); Objective 16.7 (Ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels); Objective 16.10 (Ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms in accordance with national legislation and international agreements); and goal 16.B (promote and implement non-discriminatory laws and strategies for sustainable development). There are also links to the rule of law in many other goals such as SDG 5 (achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls); SDG 8 (promote sustainable, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all); and SDG 10 (Reduce inequalities within and between countries). Department of Peacekeeping Operations and OHCHR, “The UN Rule of Law Indicators: Implementation Guide and Project Tools”, 2011, available at www.un.org/en/events/peacekeepersday/2011/publications/un_rule_of_law_indicators.pdf.