Publication

The EU seeks to promote and transmit human rights and democracy by including them as clauses in trade and association agreements of its common external trade policy. This working paper offers an assessment of the motives for non-compliance and sketches out how the EU could engender compliance. The author argues that there is a pivotal role to be played by education, civil society, business, and political parties in the nexus between economic growth, democracy, and the respect for human rights. The EU must target these factors directly and should coordinate its human rights strategy with global, regional, and local actors.