The human rights conventions to which Norway has acceded, constitute legally binding obligations for Norway under international law. In addition, many human rights are directly embedded in the Norwegian Constitution and in national legislation.
Norway has a dualist legal system, which means that Norwegian law and the international agreements to which Norway is a party are two separate legal systems. Therefore, in the event of a conflict between rules, Norwegian law will generally take precedence over international legal rules. However, according to the so-called presumption principle, Norwegian law should, as far as possible, be interpreted in accordance with the conventions. Here, we will review the most important human rights instruments in Norway and the levels at which they are implemented in Norwegian law.
The Constitution
Firstly, a range of human rights are included in the Norwegian Constitution. Already when the Constitution was adopted, in 1814, it encompassed fundamental human rights such as freedom of expression, freedom of religion, prohibition of torture, and protection of property rights. In 2014, additional human rights were incorporated into the Constitution, and these were organized under a new chapter, Chapter E. The Constitution is the highest legal authority in Norwegian law and takes precedence over all other legislation in cases of conflict. Article 92 of the Constitution states that it is the duty of the state authorities to ensure the protection of human rights. However, this provision should not be interpreted as incorporating international human rights directly into the Constitution. Instead, it obligates the authorities to enforce human rights conventions at the level they are implemented in Norwegian law.
The Human Rights Act
Secondly, the authorities have strengthened the status of human rights in Norwegian law by incorporating several conventions into the Human Rights Act, with precedence. Section 2 of the Human Rights Act stipulates that five conventions shall apply as Norwegian law. These are:
- The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) with five additional protocols
- The UN International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR)
- The UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) with two additional protocols
- The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) with two additional protocols
- The UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) with an additional protocol.
Section 3 of the Act states that these conventions and protocols shall take precedence over other legislative provisions in cases of conflict. This is referred to as the rule of precedence. Whether such a conflict exists will depend on the interpretation of both the national legal provision and the relevant convention provision, which must be interpreted in accordance with the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, as explained in sections 2.6.2 and 2.6.3.
Incorporation in Other Laws
Thirdly, Norway has also incorporated human rights conventions into other parts of Norwegian legislation, which thereby apply as Norwegian law in their entirety but without taking precedence in case of conflict. These include: The UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD), as referenced in Section 5 of the Equality and Anti-Discrimination Act, ILO Convention 169 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples, as referenced in Section 2 of the Finnmark Act, incorporated with precedence in Finnmark.
Human Rights Conventions
Fourthly, Norway has ratified several human rights conventions that have not been directly incorporated into Norwegian law. Global and regional human rights conventions that Norway has ratified are legally binding under international law. According to the presumption principle, Norwegian law should be interpreted, as far as possible, in alignment with these conventions. Such conventions are typically implemented in Norwegian law either through transformation (where existing legislation is amended to meet the requirements of the convention) or passive transformation (where it is determined that there is no need to amend Norwegian legislation to fulfil the obligations of the convention).
Regional Human Rights Conventions
The regional human rights framework relevant to Norway has primarily been developed through the Council of Europe. In addition to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), which holds particular significance due to its incorporation into the Human Rights Act, the Council of Europe has adopted over 200 conventions, several of which address human rights. Norway has ratified many of these, including:
- The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages
- The Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities
- The Revised European Social Charter
- The Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence (Istanbul Convention)
- The Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings
- The Convention on the Protection of Children Against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse (Lanzarote Convention)
These conventions have been implemented into Norwegian law through transformation or passive transformation.
Global Human Rights Conventions
The global human rights framework has been primarily developed through the United Nations (UN). Of the nine core UN human rights conventions, five have been incorporated into Norwegian law, while Norway is also a party to three additional conventions:
- The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)
- The UN Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT)
- The UN Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (CED)
These conventions have also been implemented into Norwegian law through transformation or passive transformation. For example, CRPD was ratified following amendments to laws such as the Guardianship Act. However, there is debate about whether the convention is adequately reflected in Norwegian domestic law.
The only one of the nine core UN conventions that Norway is not a party to is the UN Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (CMW). The Nine Core UN Human Rights Conventions are:
- CERD – International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (1965)
- ICESCR – International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966)
- ICCPR – International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966)
- CEDAW – Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1979)
- CAT – Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1984)
- CRC – Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989)
- CMW – Convention on Migrant Workers (not applicable to Norway) (1990)
- CRPD – Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006)
- CED – Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (2006)
In addition to the UN core conventions, other conventions are also significant for the protection of human rights. Examples include the UN Refugee Convention and various conventions developed through the International Labour Organization (ILO).
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs maintains a treaty register containing a database of all bilateral and multilateral agreements to which Norway is a party. For more information, see the Ministry’s treaty database: https://lovdata.no/register/traktater