On 21 April 2011 the ECtHR published its judgment in the case Nechiporuk and Yonkalo v. Ukraine. The Court found violations of Article 3 (material and procedural aspects), Article 5 §§ 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, Article 6 §§ 1 and 3 (c) of the Convention.

The European Parliament and the Council of the European Union adopted on 20 October 2010 the Directive on the right to interpretation and translation in criminal proceedings.

The excessive and arbitrary use of pretrial detention critically undermines socioeconomic development - and is especially harmful to the poor.

Torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment are not aberrations. Of the nearly ten million people in detention (including both pretrial and post-conviction detainees) around the world, those held in pretrial detention are most at risk of torture.

Around the world millions of people are locked up in pretrial detention because of corruption. Despite the prohibition of corruption under international law - as enshrined in the UN Convention against Corruption and other treaties and laws - criminal justice systems are often warped by bribery and other forms of corruption.

The excessive use of pretrial detention leads to overcrowded, unhygienic, chaotic, and violent environments where pretrial detainees - who have not been convicted - are at risk of contracting disease. The global overuse of pretrial detention is not just a human rights problem, but also a looming public health crisis.

The Open Society Justice Initiative launched a Global Campaign for Pretrial Justice to promote alternatives to pretrial detention, expand access to legal aid services, and deploy paralegals to intervene earlier in the criminal justice process.

This proposal for a Council Framework Decision aims to set common minimum standards as regards certain procedural rights applying in criminal proceedings throughout the European Union.