Main legislation

One of the first pieces of post-communist Czechoslovak federal legislation, in 1993 the Charter was again decreed as a part of the constitutional order by the newly constituted Czech Republic.

The provisions of the Charter cover rights identical to those covered by the European Convention on Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

When the Czech Republic ratified the Treaty of Lisbon, a specific declaration was appended to its signature. This declaration relates to the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and it stresses the limits of its application in the Czech Republic. President of the Czech Republic during the follow up domestic ratification process undermined the domestic ratification of the Lisbon treaty by the possible accession of the Czech Republic to the Protocol on implementation of the EU Charter in Poland and United Kingdom. This Protocol, however, is not an opt-out from the application of the EU Charter, but it has rather interpretative character. It clarifies the effect of rights and principles vested in the EU Charter, where uncertainty might arise. In other words, the unilateral declaration of Czech Republic nor the accession to the Protocol (which can take place only in connection with future amendment of the Treaty) can change anything on the application of the Charter according to Art.51(1) of the EU Charter. The Charter binds not only   the EU authorities, institutions and other subjects, but also the Czech Republic as the Member State, when implementing EU law.

Comparative research of the text would show that the provisions of the Czech Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms are more detailed than those of the international instruments (such as the provisions of Chapter Five, covering the right to fair trial), and are more imprecisely formulated (such as Economic, Social and Cultural Rights).A general anti-discrimination clause in Article 3 of the Charter expressly prohibits discrimination with respect to basic rights and freedoms on the following grounds, given in an open-ended list: sex, race, colour, language, religion or belief, political or other conviction, national or social origin, membership of a national or ethnic minority, property, and birth or other status. It does not specifically protect against discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or disability.

The Criminal Code sets penalties for crimes relating to racial discrimination and discrimination on the grounds of religion or belief, covering only the most serious incidents. Additionally, there are variations in how crimes are dealt with if they are racially motivated or based on religious hatred or discrimination on the grounds of belief—such cases are accompanied by stricter sanctions.

The Czech Republic first implemented the EU anti-discrimination directives in its national law in 2009. Before that date, there were no definitions of forms of discrimination, except in the narrow area of access to employment. The Labour Code contains only general equality provisions, but also lacks definitions of discrimination and other measures of the anti-discrimination acquis. Anti-discrimination provisions were non-existent in laws governing access to health, housing, social security and social benefits, or self-employment activities, until the Anti-discrimination Law was passed on 17.06.2009 and came into force on 01.09.2009 (with provisions on the equality body coming into force on 01. 12.2009).