Přehled

Text rozhodnutí
Datum rozhodnutí
30.3.2023
Rozhodovací formace
Významnost
3
Číslo stížnosti / sp. zn.

Rozsudek

SECOND SECTION

CASE OF DIDENKO AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA

(Applications nos. 54032/17 and 26 others –

see appended list)

JUDGMENT

STRASBOURG

30 March 2023

This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision.


In the case of Didenko and Others v. Russia,

The European Court of Human Rights (Second Section), sitting as a Committee composed of:

Lorraine Schembri Orland, President,
Frédéric Krenc,
Davor Derenčinović, judges,

and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,

Having deliberated in private on 9 March 2023,

Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date:

PROCEDURE

1. The case originated in applications against Russia lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on the various dates indicated in the appended table.

2. The Russian Government (“the Government”) were given notice of the applications.

THE FACTS

3. The list of applicants and the relevant details of the applications are set out in the appended table.

4. The applicants complained of the disproportionate measures taken against them as participants and organisers of public assemblies. Some applicants also raised other complaints under the provisions of the Convention.

THE LAW

  1. JOINDER OF THE APPLICATIONS

5. Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single judgment.

  1. ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 11 OF THE CONVENTION

6. The applicants complained principally of disproportionate measures taken against them as participants and organisers of public assemblies, namely their arrest in relation to the dispersal of these assemblies and their conviction for administrative offences. They relied, expressly or in substance, on Article 11 of the Convention.

7. The Court refers to the principles established in its case-law regarding freedom of assembly (see Kudrevičius and Others v. Lithuania [GC], no. 37553/05, ECHR 2015, with further references) and proportionality of interference with it (see Oya Ataman v. Turkey, no. 74552/01, ECHR 2006XIV, and Hyde Park and Others v. Moldova, no. 33482/06, 31 March 2009).

8. In the leading cases of Frumkin v. Russia, no. 74568/12, ECHR 2016 (extracts), Navalnyy and Yashin v. Russia, no. 76204/11, 4 December 2014 and Kasparov and Others v. Russia, no. 21613/07, 3 October 2013, the Court already found a violation in respect of issues similar to those in the present case.

9. Having examined all the material submitted to it, the Court has not found any fact or argument capable of persuading it to reach a different conclusion as to the admissibility and merits of these complaints. Having regard to its case-law on the subject, the Court considers that in the instant case the interferences with the applicants’ freedom of assembly were not “necessary in a democratic society”.

10. These complaints are therefore admissible and disclose a breach of Article 11 of the Convention.

  1. OTHER ALLEGED VIOLATIONS UNDER WELL-ESTABLISHED CASE-LAW

11. Some applicants submitted other complaints which also raised issues under the Convention, given the relevant well-established case-law of the Court (see appended table). These complaints are not manifestly ill-founded within the meaning of Article 35 § 3 (a) of the Convention, nor are they inadmissible on any other ground. Accordingly, they must be declared admissible. Having examined all the material before it, the Court concludes that they also disclose violations of the Convention in the light of its findings in Butkevich v. Russia, no. 5865/07, §§ 63-64, 13 February 2018; Tsvetkova and Others v. Russia, nos. 54381/08 and 5 others, §§ 115-31, 10 April 2018, and Korneyeva v. Russia, no. 72051/17, §§ 34-36, 8 October 2019, as to administrative escorting to and/or detention in a police station beyond three hours for non-custodial offences, without substantiating the impossibility to compile an offence report at the rally venue or any exceptional circumstances or another valid ground under the Code of Administrative Offences (CAO) or continued detention after the offence report was compiled; Karelin v. Russia, no. 926/08, §§ 58-85, 20 September 2016, concerning the lack of a prosecuting party in criminal proceedings under the CAO; and Martynyuk v. Russia, no. 13764/15, §§ 37-43, 8 October 2019, related to the lack of a suspensive effect on an appeal against the sentence of detention.

  1. REMAINING COMPLAINTS

12. In view of the findings in paragraphs 10 and 11 above, there is no need to examine remaining complaints raised by some applicants under Articles 5 and 6 of the Convention.

13. Furthermore, some applicants also raised other complaints under various Articles of the Convention.

14. The Court has examined the applications listed in the appended table and considers that, in the light of all the material in its possession and in so far as the matters complained of are within its competence, these complaints either do not meet the admissibility criteria set out in Articles 34 and 35 of the Convention or do not disclose any appearance of a violation of the rights and freedoms enshrined in the Convention or the Protocols thereto. It follows that this part of the applications must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 § 4 of the Convention.

  1. APPLICATION OF ARTICLE 41 OF THE CONVENTION

15. Article 41 of the Convention provides:

“If the Court finds that there has been a violation of the Convention or the Protocols thereto, and if the internal law of the High Contracting Party concerned allows only partial reparation to be made, the Court shall, if necessary, afford just satisfaction to the injured party.”

16. Regard being had to the documents in its possession and to its caselaw (see, in particular, Navalnyy and Others v. Russia [Committee], nos. 25809/17 and 14 others, § 22, 4 October 2022), the Court finds it reasonable to award the sums indicated in the appended table.

FOR THESE REASONS, THE COURT, UNANIMOUSLY,

  1. Decides to join the applications;
  2. Declares the complaints under Article 11 of the Convention and the other complaints under the well-established case-law of the Court, as set out in the appended table, admissible, decides that it is not necessary to examine the remaining complaints raised by some applicants under Articles 5 and 6 of the Convention, and declares the remainder of the applications inadmissible;
  3. Holds that these complaints disclose a breach of Article 11 of the Convention;
  4. Holds that there has been a violation of the Convention and the Protocols thereto as regards the other complaints raised under well-established caselaw of the Court (see appended table);
  5. Holds

(a) that the respondent State is to pay the applicants, within three months, the amounts indicated in the appended table, to be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable at the date of settlement;

(b) that from the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the above amounts at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points.

Done in English, and notified in writing on 30 March 2023, pursuant to Rule 77 §§ 2 and 3 of the Rules of Court.

Viktoriya Maradudina Lorraine Schembri Orland

Acting Deputy Registrar President


APPENDIX

List of applications raising complaints under Article 11 of the Convention

(disproportionate measures against organisers and participants of public assemblies)

No.

Application no.

Date of introduction

Applicant’s name

Year of birth

Representative’s name and location

Name of the public event

Location

Date

Administrative charges

Penalty

Final domestic decision

Court Name

Date

Other complaints under well-established case-law

Amount awarded for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage and costs and expenses per applicant

(in euros)[1]

54032/17

17/07/2017

Irina Viktorovna DIDENKO

1994

Terekhov Konstantin Ilyich

Moscow

Anticorruption rally

Volgograd

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Volgograd Regional Court

19/04/2017

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to and detention in a police station on 26/03/2017 for the sole purpose of compiling an offence report

4,000

54050/17

17/07/2017

Aleksandr Vladimirovich NOVGORODOV

1980

Terekhov Konstantin Ilyich

Moscow

Anticorruption rally

Moscow

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 15,000

Moscow City Court

25/05/2017

Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings

3,500

54076/17

17/07/2017

Mikhail Sergeyevich DIDENKO

1988

Navalnyy Aleksey Anatolyevich

Melekhovo

Anticorruption rally

Volgograd

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Volgograd Regional Court

02/05/2017

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to and detention in a police station on 26/03/2017 for the sole purpose of compiling an offence report

4,000

55068/17

17/07/2017

Georgiy Vasilevich DZIMISTARISHVILI

1989

Navalnyy Aleksey Anatolyevich

Melekhovo

Anticorruption rally

Rostov-on-Don

26/03/2017

Article 19.3 § 1 of CAO

1 day of detention

Rostov Regional Court

25/04/2017

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention –

on 26-27/03/2017 the applicant was brought to a police station and then kept in detention after the offence report was compiled;

Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings.

4,000

60932/17

16/08/2017

Irina Tomasovna YERMOLAYEVA

1967

Khrunova Irina Vladimirovna

Kazan

Anticorruption rally

Kazan

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Supreme Court of the Tatarstan Republic

24/05/2017

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention – detention on 29/03/2017 for more than 3 hours for compiling an offence report relating to the rally on 26/03/2017.

4,000

60939/17

16/08/2017

Ayrat Ilshatovich GARIPOV

1998

Khrunova Irina Vladimirovna

Kazan

Anticorruption rally

Kazan

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Supreme Court of the Tatarstan Republic

24/05/2017

3,500

60978/17

16/08/2017

Denis Olegovich KAYUMOV

1998

Khrunova Irina Vladimirovna

Kazan

Anticorruption rally

Kazan

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Supreme Court of the Tatarstan Republic

24/05/2017

3,500

60987/17

16/08/2017

Ivan Mikhaylovich KUZMIN

1992

Khrunova Irina Vladimirovna

Kazan

Anticorruption rally

Kazan

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Supreme Court of the Tatarstan Republic

24/05/2017

3,500

60993/17

16/08/2017

Aleksandr Vasilyevich NEBAYKIN

1987

Khrunova Irina Vladimirovna

Kazan

Anticorruption rally

Kazan

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Supreme Court of the Tatarstan Republic

24/05/2017

3,500

60998/17

16/08/2017

Vladimir Aleksandrovich SOLOVTSOV

1967

Khrunova Irina Vladimirovna

Kazan

Anticorruption rally

Kazan

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Supreme Court of the Tatarstan Republic

24/05/2017

3,500

69627/17

19/09/2017

Nadezhda Pavlovna KHALIKOVA

1997

Khrunova Irina Vladimirovna

Kazan

Anticorruption rally

St Petersburg

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

St Petersburg City Court

29/06/2017

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to a police station on 26/03/2017 for the sole purpose of compiling an offence report.

4,000

69652/17

19/09/2017

Andrey Vitalyevich MARTIROSOV

1995

Khrunova Irina Vladimirovna

Kazan

Anticorruption rally

St Petersburg

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

St Petersburg City Court

13/07/2017

3,500

69798/17

20/09/2017

Yuliya Damirovna SHALGALIYEVA

1990

Khrunova Irina Vladimirovna

Kazan

Anticorruption rally

St Petersburg

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

St Petersburg City Court

06/07/2017

3,500

69942/17

07/09/2017

Mariya Sergeyevna NIZHIVENKO

1997

Terekhov Konstantin Ilyich

Moscow

Anticorruption rally

Tambov

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Tambov Regional Court

15/05/2017

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to a police station on 26/03/2017 for the sole purpose of compiling an offence report;

Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings.

4,000

69947/17

07/09/2017

Marat Masgodovich LATYPOV

1972

Terekhov Konstantin Ilyich

Moscow

Anticorruption rally

Naberezhnye Chelny

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Supreme Court of the Tatarstan Republic

28/06/2017

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to a police station and detention there on 26/03/2017 for the sole purpose of compiling an offence report;

Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings.

4,000

69953/17

07/09/2017

Pavel Sergeyevich IVANOV

1995

Terekhov Konstantin Ilyich

Moscow

Anticorruption rally

Kurgan

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 5,000

Kurgan Regional Court

10/05/2017

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to a police station and detention there on 26/03/2017 for the sole purpose of compiling an offence report;

Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings.

4,000

69964/17

07/09/2017

Irina Yegorovna IVANOVA

1969

Terekhov Konstantin Ilyich

Moscow

Anticorruption rally

Kurgan

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 5,000

Kurgan Regional Court

10/05/2017

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to a police station and detention there on 26/03/2017 for the sole purpose of compiling an offence report;

Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings.

4,000

70011/17

07/09/2017

Svetlana Vladimirovna ABOLONINA

1985

Terekhov Konstantin Ilyich

Moscow

Anticorruption rally

Volgograd

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Volgograd Regional Court

24/05/2017

3,500

70017/17

07/09/2017

Aleksandr Vasilyevich ABOLONIN

1983

Terekhov Konstantin Ilyich

Moscow

Anticorruption rally

Volgograd

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Volgograd Regional Court

31/05/2017

3,500

70193/17

07/09/2017

Aleksandr Sergeyevich GOLYSHEV

1964

Terekhov Konstantin Ilyich

Moscow

Anticorruption rally

Naberezhnye Chelny

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Supreme Court of the Tatarstan Republic

21/06/2017

Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings;

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to a police station and detention there on 26/03/2017 for the sole purpose of compiling an offence report.

4,000

70381/17

07/09/2017

Roman Aleksandrovich ZOLOTOVITSKIY

1960

Navalnyy Aleksey Anatolyevich

Melekhovo

Anticorruption rally

Moscow

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 15,000

Moscow City Court

30/06/2017

Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings.

3,500

70460/17

07/09/2017

Vladislav Aleksandrovich ZAKAMOV

1993

Terekhov Konstantin Ilyich

Moscow

Anticorruption rally

Khabarovsk

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Khabarovsk Regional Court

14/06/2017

Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings.

3,500

70518/17

07/09/2017

Sergey Sergeyevich IVANOV

1995

Terekhov Konstantin Ilyich

Moscow

Anticorruption rally

Moscow

26/03/2017

Article 19.3 § 1 of CAO

12 days of detention

Moscow City Court

31/03/2017

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful pre-trial detention - on 26-28/03/2017 the applicant was brought to the police station to draw up an offence record; was kept in detention after the offence report was compiled;

Prot. 7 Art. 2 - delayed review of conviction by a higher tribunal - lack of suspensive effect on an appeal against the sentence of detention – the applicant started serving the sentence of administrative detention immediately after the conviction by the first-instance court; the lodging of appeal or appeal proceedings do not offer suspensive effect;

Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings.

5,000

71026/17

07/09/2017

Grigoriy Aleksandrovich PRONKOV

1989

Terekhov Konstantin Ilyich

Moscow

Anticorruption rally

Moscow

26/03/2017

Article

20.2 § 6.1 and

Article 19.3 § 1 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000 and

7 days of detention

Moscow City Court

17/05/2017

Moscow City Court

29/03/2017

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - on

26-27/03/2017 the applicant, after having been brought to a police station to compile an administrative offence record, remained in detention even after the offence record had been compiled;

Prot. 7 Art. 2 - delayed review of conviction by a higher tribunal: lack of a suspensive effect of an appeal against sentence of detention - the applicant started serving the sentence of administrative detention immediately after the conviction by the first-instance court; the lodging of appeal or appeal proceedings do not offer suspensive effect;

Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in both sets of the administrative-offence proceedings.

5,000

71112/17

18/09/2017

Angelina Olegovna GORBACHENKO

1997

Popkov Aleksandr Vasilyevich

Sochi

Anticorruption rally

Krasnodar

26/03/2017

Article 19.3 § 1 of CAO

fine of

RUB 1,000

Krasnodar Regional Court

06/04/2017

2,000

72015/17

25/09/2017

Sergey Mikhaylovich MAKARCHUK

1988

Katsko Vitaliy Nikolayevich

Krasnodar

Anticorruption rally

Krasnodar

26/03/2017

Article 19.3 § 1 of CAO

15 days of detention

Krasnodar Regional Court

06/04/2017

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to a police station on 26/03/2017 and detention there for the sole purpose of compiling an offence report.

5,000

79263/17

09/11/2017

Aleksandr Vladimirovich BANNIKOV

1991

Terekhov Konstantin Ilyich

Moscow

Anticorruption rally

Rostov-on-Don

26/03/2017

Article 20.2 § 1 of CAO

fine of

RUB 15,000

Rostov Regional Court

11/05/2017

Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings.

3,500


[1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants.