The 5th International Medical and Legal Forum “Legal Regulation of Health Care Activities: Corruption Challenges in a Pandemic” was held on December 9-10 in Kharkiv.
Among the main topics of discussion are the problems that arise in the field of health in the context of the pandemic, respect for human rights in the field of health and their implementation during the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring the efficiency of the judiciary and access to justice in a pandemic.
The forum brought together domestic scientists, lawyers, judges and representatives of the judiciary, national and international experts in the field of medicine and pharmaceuticals, representatives of higher education establishments.
Judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, Doctor of Law, Professor of History and Theory of State and Theory of Zaporizhzhia National University Viktor Horodovenko in his speech focused on the important role of constitutional jurisdiction in protecting fundamental rights and freedoms in a pandemic.
He noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has become a global challenge for the whole world, with a heavy burden on the health care, social and economic spheres in general.
The judge analysed some decisions of the constitutional courts of Europe related to the restriction of human rights and freedoms in a pandemic. The speaker informed that the constitutional courts had considered cases related to the restriction of human rights and freedoms regarding freedom of movement, as well as property rights, freedom of entrepreneurial activity, privacy, the right to vote and to be elected, etc.
Analysing the jurisprudence of foreign constitutional courts, he stressed that “the issue of restricting human rights and freedoms in a pandemic is related to the introduction of appropriate quarantine measures in states within the official state of emergency or without a declaration of emergency.”
In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the bodies of constitutional jurisdiction play a key role in ensuring the rule of law, democracy and the constitutional order in general, the judge concluded.
