Right called out after ECHR wins prestigious award, but where was the media coverage?
“We should all be very cautious of politicians who try to take away the very rights that hold politicians themselves to account.”
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has won a prestigious international award recognising its defence of judicial independence.
Announced on October 18, the International Prize for Independence was presented to the court by the International Association of Judges, which represents 93 national associations and groups across five continents.
Yet the news attracted little attention in the British press, despite the award’s significance amid growing political attacks on judicial independence and human rights protections.
Campaign group Leeds for Europe highlighted the apparent disconnect on social media, writing: “This is why the right and far right hate the ECHR…it is independent and applies the law independently. They cannot influence it and therefore they want to be free of its scrutiny and justice.”
The award recognises individuals and organisations that defend judges’ ability to make decisions based on law and evidence, free from pressure by governments, politicians and other interests.
ECHR was established in the aftermath of the Second World War, when tens of millions of people were killed across Europe, to safeguard fundamental rights and help prevent abuses of state power. It is a Council of Europe institution, separate from the European Union.
International Association of Judges president Walter Barone described the court as a cornerstone of freedom and democratic values in Europe.
Court president Mattias Guyomar welcomed the recognition, saying the court had served as a beacon for the rule of law and judicial independence for more than seven decades. He stressed the importance of standing alongside judges at a time when they face mounting attacks and political pressure.
The award was collected at a ceremony in Lisbon by Ana Maria Guerra Martins, a Portuguese judge at the court.
The recognition comes as the British right steps up its campaign against the ECHR.
In 2025, Kemi Badenoch announced that her party would withdraw the UK from the European ECHR, if it won the next general election, arguing that leaving was necessary to protect Britain’s borders, veterans and citizens.
Nigel Farage’s Reform UK has also pledged to leave the convention, arguing that it prevents the government from exercising full sovereignty and tackling irregular immigration.
Critics argue these proposals risk weakening protections designed to hold governments accountable. Amnesty International UK’s chief executive, Sacha Deshmukh, warned that removing the convention would leave people more vulnerable to politicians seeking to undermine their rights.
“We should all be very cautious of politicians who try to take away the very rights that hold politicians themselves to account,” he said.
The convention protects fundamental rights regardless of an individual’s popularity or political standing. Its purpose is to ensure that governments cannot simply do as they please, with independent judges providing a check on the exercise of state power.
The relative lack of press coverage of its award raises a further question: why has recognition of an institution defending judicial independence attracted so little attention, while political attacks on it routinely command headlines?
As Leeds for Europe suggests, the court’s refusal to bend to political pressure may be precisely what makes it such a target. And its award is a reminder of what is at stake when politicians seek to escape independent scrutiny.
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