STUDY DEMOCRACY AND HUMAN RIGHTS This report investigates fundamental rights during the Covid19 pandemic. It finds that the pandemic was used to legitimise executive/ administrative excesses and locates gaps in democratic and legal accountability. THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC AND FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS IN CYPRUS Corina Demetriou and Nicos Trimikliniotis July 2022 The closure of the checkpoints generated mistrust against the government, which subsequently escalated into a generalized opposition to measures. As the various waves of the pandemic unfolded, so did undue processes of exclusion, racialization, marginalisation and expulsion of those deemed‘deviant’. The police were granted unprecedented powers and discretion and there was a generalised ban on protests. Also, the welfare rights of vulnerable persons were inadequately protected during the lockdown and persons with disabilities were exposed to risks. Finally, the pandemic revealed the inadequacy of the institutional mechanisms for the protection of fundamental rights and the absence of effective complaints mechanisms.