Debt crisis hitting human rights, EU told Europe's economic crisis and delays in implementing key legal reforms are undermining suspects" rights in criminal justice systems across the EU, according to legal campaigners. Violations of suspects" rights "in police stations, court rooms and prisons" across the bloc have increased substantially over the past five years, according to research by Fair Trials International, a London-based charity. FTI analysis of court data - based on violations reported by the European Court of Human Rights and interviews with lawyers - found a 250 per cent increase in the number of cases in which suspects" pre-trial right to liberty was violated, from 16 cases in 2007 to 56 in 2011. For the right to a fair trial in criminal cases, violations more than doubled, from 37 cases in 2007 to 75 in 2011. Among the worst performing countries were many of the member states most afflicted by the sovereign debt crisis that has engulfed the eurozone economy. Italy and Greece have repeatedly violated Article 5 of the European Convention of Human rights, which protects the right to liberty. The report also criticised Spain for using extraordinary antiterrorism measures to detain suspects for up to four years without access to lawyers or information about the case. Nils Muiznieks, the EU's top human rights official, said that the respect of human rights in the region had been hit by the economic crisis and austerity measures taken by the debt-burdened governments. "The crisis affects human rights across the board, not only social and economic rights but also many civil and political rights," Mr Muiznieks, the Council of Europe commissioner for human rights, told the Financial Times. It affects the most vulnerable disproportionately. You see this in a number of countries. Mr Muiznieks said the crisis had particularly affected prisons, where government cuts had led to a drop in prison staff as prisoner numbers rose. Prisons in several countries are overcrowded, FTI says, notably in Italy, Bulgaria and Spain. Brussels agreed to a "procedural rights road map" in 2009, which promised a series of laws aimed at giving individuals greater EU-wide rights to a fair trial. However, member states have stalled on implementing the proposal. Catherine Heard, head of policy at FTI, said the findings revealed the need for reform across the EU. "Our report provides overwhelming evidence that suspects" rights are being violated in police stations, court rooms and prisons across Europe," she said. "The EU has a crucial role to play in raising standards of justice in Europe, but if it fails to act now, citizens" faith in EU laws like the European arrest warrant will be undermined."