ABSTRACT
The lack of coherence and consistency in the European Union's (EU) human rights discourse and policy has been repeatedly noted as a problem in the academic literature on the subject. This chapter aims at expanding the inquiry into coherence into the EU's human rights discourse and action by looking at it critically rather than analytically. Coherence as a trait of sound policy-making has been a long-standing concern for the EU. Yet it has gained increasing prominence since the Treaty of Lisbon. Concern over coherence in EU's human rights action has grown lately, triggered by human rights crises such as the refugee and migration crisis and criticism of the EU's position in a number of issues with human rights impact. The criticism of incoherence or inconsistency in the EU's commitment to human rights is generally understood along the internal/external divide: internal/ internal incoherence, internal/external incoherence and external/external incoherence.
