What Is Article 5 ECHR? Right to Liberty

Article 5 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) protects the right to liberty and security. It means that a person must not be arbitrarily arrested or detained. Any deprivation of liberty must be lawful, follow a procedure prescribed by law, and fall within one of the permitted situations in Article 5(1).

When detention is permitted

Article 5 allows detention in limited circumstances, including:

• after conviction by a competent court;
• to ensure compliance with a court order or a legal obligation;
• on reasonable suspicion of having committed an offence, or where detention is reasonably necessary to prevent an offence or escape;
• for certain immigration, extradition or deportation purposes; and
• in specific cases involving children, people of unsound mind, alcohol or drug dependence, or the spread of infectious diseases.

These exceptions must be interpreted narrowly. The government cannot rely on a general public-interest argument to detain someone without meeting the requirements of Article 5.

Procedural safeguards

A person who is arrested must be told promptly, in a language they understand, why they have been arrested and what offence they are suspected of committing. They must also be brought promptly before a judge or other judicial officer. This allows the legality of the detention to be reviewed independently.

A detained person has the right to challenge the lawfulness of their detention through a court. If the detention breaches Article 5, the person may be entitled to compensation under Article 5(5).

Common exam mistake

Do not treat Article 5 as an absolute right. The right to liberty is qualified because detention can be lawful in the specific circumstances listed in Article 5(1). However, detention must still be lawful, non-arbitrary and supported by the required safeguards. Article 5 concerns physical liberty; it is different from Article 6, which protects the right to a fair trial.