Kind of true, in the worst possible way. The ECHR for example regularly imposes limits on what states can do. Tiny issue when it comes to the EU: their judgements aren't enforced against states, and states just flat out refuse to enforce them.

It, for example, ruled that Belgium can't keep imprisoning Freddy Horion, a murderer (who murdered when he was 24, he's now 75). He is still in prison, 10 years after the conviction of the Belgian state, who seem to be keeping him in prison mostly because he refuses to confess (and testify against a suspected accomplice), apparently for over 21 years now that is the reason he's in prison (and he hasn't received one cent of the money the Belgian state was convicted to pay him, since it was a penalty per day doubtless it is millions of euros now). Plus he's 75 ... Additionally he's been denied medical care at least twice.

There's another Belgian prisoner, Farid Bamouhammad, who has been tortured in prison (hung up with cuffs by his throat to the heating system and left like that for more than 24 hours). The story has a horrific ending: he was denied medical care for 3 years. He ... has since died from the cancer (treatable at the beginning of those 3 years he was denied medical care by the justice system) he turned out to have. He was not paid damages either. There's more horror in this case.

AND there's a general conviction of the Belgian justice system, on 2 separate aspects. Nothing has changed. Damages have not been paid. For the general convictions the damages, a small per-day per-prisoner amount, ignored by the state for a decade, are now absolutely ridiculous amounts that will never be paid.

To give another example, ECHR ruled that the Danish MUST NOT allow child services to act in situations where parents cannot provide appropriate housing for children. Instead, it must use other institutions to provide housing to those families. Inappropriate housing is the number one reason children are placed out of their home, before ... and after the ruling. Obviously, once again, a few specific parents and children were to receive damages, they haven't received a cent.

(this is especially ironic, since it'scourts going EXPLICITLY against a superior court, the ECHR, just because the executive requests them too. This is against the separation of powers and violates the very concept of a judicial system ... and the violators ... are judges)

A Dutch general was convicted of war crimes during the Yugoslav war, and a bunch of people were promised payment for his crimes. He has not been punished, not even fined, and has since received the medal of Honor from the Dutch Royals. The money the Dutch state was convicted to pay has not been paid. Not a cent.

Germany was convicted to be in the wrong to arrest 2 people who had crossed into Germany at the request of the Dutch state (they were -alleged- shoplifters, and they are innocent, in the sense that they were never convicted), and hand them over to the Dutch police. This failed to respect a long list of legal rights EU citizens supposedly have.

Switzerland has been convicted of wrongfully convicting ...

France has been convicted of holding prisoners in inhumane conditions (and we don't mean "a few", but 60% of all judicial prisoners) ...

Now don't take this the wrong way. When ECHR convicts INDIVIDUALS (or companies) there is more enforcement. But against states ... states just ignore, nothing happens. Yes, there are cases of states actually paying, but looking up which ones they are (e.g. Turkey. One might remark ... Turkey ISN'T in the EU) makes this even worse.

At least, everybody just sort of shuts up about these, as opposed to Hamas complaining Israel "is convicted of genocide by ICC" (which is a double lie: Israel isn't convicted, yet they, Palestine, ARE convicted, and ARE persisting in the crimes they are convicted of, no this isn't about the hostages, it's about earlier stuff). And they're screaming this everywhere. Now, I understand why they do it, but it remains utterly distasteful to lie like that.