DANKOVSKAYA AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA - 13238/21 (Article 11 - Freedom of assembly and association : Second Section Committee) [2024] ECHR 213 (14 March 2024)

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Cite as: [2024] ECHR 213

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SECOND SECTION

CASE OF DANKOVSKAYA AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA

(Applications nos. 13238/21 and 18 others -

see appended list)

 

 

 

 

 

JUDGMENT

 

STRASBOURG

14 March 2024

 

 

 

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

 


In the case of Dankovskaya 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 15 February 2024,

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 organisers or participants 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. Jurisdiction


6.  The Court observes that the facts giving rise to the alleged violations of the Convention occurred prior to 16 September 2022, the date on which the Russian Federation ceased to be a party to the Convention. The Court therefore decides that it has jurisdiction to examine the present applications (see Fedotova and Others v. Russia [GC], nos. 40792/10 and 2 others, §§ 68-73, 17 January 2023).

  1. ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 11 OF THE CONVENTION


7.  The applicants complained principally of disproportionate measures taken against them as organisers or participants of public assemblies, namely the dispersal of these assemblies, as well as their arrest followed by their conviction for administrative offence. They relied, expressly or in substance, on Article 11 of the Convention. Some applicants also invoked Article 10, however, this complaint falls to be examined under Article 11 of the Convention.


8.  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 2006-XIV, and Hyde Park and Others v. Moldova, no. 33482/06, 31 March 2009).


9.  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.


10.  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".


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

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


12.  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.


13.  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, §§ 63-65, 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 various aspects of unlawful deprivation of liberty of organisers or participants of public assemblies; and Karelin v. Russia, no. 926/08, §§ 58-85, 20 September 2016, concerning the absence of a prosecuting party in the proceedings under the Code of Administrative Offences (the CAO).

  1. REMAINING COMPLAINTS


14.  Some applicants raised additional complaints under Article 6 of the Convention concerning other aspects of fairness of the administrative offence proceedings. In view of the findings in paragraphs 11 and 13 above, the Court considers that there is no need to deal separately with these remaining complaints.

  1. APPLICATION OF ARTICLE 41 OF THE CONVENTION


15.  Regard being had to the documents in its possession and to its case-law (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. Holds that it has jurisdiction to deal with these applications as they relate to the facts that took place before 16 September 2022;
  3. 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, and decides that it is not necessary to examine the other aspects of the complaints raised by some applicants under Article 6 of the Convention;
  4. Holds that these applications disclose a breach of Article 11 of the Convention;
  5. Holds that there has been a violation of the Convention as regards the other complaints raised under the well-established case-law of the Court (see appended table);
  6. 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 14 March 2024, 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]

  1.    

13238/21

01/03/2021

Angela Nikolayevna DANKOVSKAYA

1973

Ushakov Timofey Borisovich

Kokoshkino

Opposition rally

 

Moscow

 

22/06/2020

article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 20,000

Moscow City Court

26/10/2020

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention- arrest, escorting to a police station, detention on 22/06/2020 for the sole purpose of drawing up a record of administrative offence (such record only drawn up on 06/07/2020);

 

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

4,000

  1.    

15097/21

24/02/2021

Damir Shamilevich DAVLETBAYEV

1992

Memorial Human Rights Centre

Moscow

Rally against the Constitutional amendments

 

Moscow

 

15/07/2020

article 20.2 § 6.1 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Moscow City Court

26/11/2020

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest, escorting to a police station, detention on 15/07/2020 for the sole purpose of drawing up a record of administrative offence;

 

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

4,000

  1.    

15104/21

25/02/2021

Grigoriy Aleksandrovich GRIBENKO

1989

Ivanets Vyacheslav Sergeyevich

Tbilisi, Georgia

Opposition rally

 

Irkutsk

 

01/08/2020

article 20.2 § 2 of CAO

fine of

RUB 20 000

Irkutsk Regional Court

27/10/2020

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.    

20155/21

23/03/2021

Sergey Alekseyevich PAVLOV

1998

Memorial Human Rights Centre

Moscow

Rally against the constitutional amendments

 

Moscow

 

15/07/2020

article 20.2 § 6.1 of CAO

fine of

RUB 15,000

Moscow City Court

26/10/2020

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest, escorting to a police station, detention on 15/07/2020 for the sole purpose of drawing a record of administrative offence

4,000

  1.    

20303/21

14/03/2021

Ivan Igorevich SHCHEPIN

1990

Vasin Vladimir Valeryevich

Krasnoyarsk

Rally in support of S. Furgal

 

Krasnoyarsk

 

08/08/2020

article 20.2 § 2 of CAO

fine of

RUB 20,000

Krasnoyarsk Regional Court

24/09/2020

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest, escorting to a police station, detention between 08/08/2020 and 10/08/2020 as administrative suspect, pending trial, after the offence record had been complied on 08/08/2020;

 

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

4,000

  1.    

20406/21

26/03/2021

Larisa Sergeyevna TOLMACHEVA

1962

Vasin Vladimir Valeryevich

Krasnoyarsk

Opposition rally

 

Krasnoyarsk

 

15/08/2020

article 20.2 § 2 of CAO

fine of

RUB 20,000

Krasnoyarsk Regional Court

01/10/2020

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest, escorting to a police station, detention on 15/08/2020, for the sole purpose of drawing up a record of an administrative offence (such record drawn up on 17/08/2020); failure to draw up records of administrative arrest and escorting;

 

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

 

 

 

4,000

  1.    

20652/21

20/03/2021

Darya Sergeyevna MERNENKO

2000

Peredruk Aleksandr Dmitriyevich

St Petersburg

Event against the increase of public transportation tariffs

 

St-Petersburg

 

19/11/2019

article 20.2 § 2 of CAO

fine of

RUB 20,000

Saint Petersburg City Court

06/10/2020

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.    

20669/21

25/03/2021

Shamil Azatovich ALIAKBEROV

2002

Memorial Human Rights Centre

Moscow

Rally against the constitutional amendments

 

Moscow

 

15/07/2020

article 20.2 § 6.1 of CAO

fine of

RUB 20,000

Moscow City Court

26/10/2020

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest, escorting to a police station, detention on 15/07/2020 for the sole purpose of drawing up a record of administrative offence (such record compiled only on 20/07/2020);

 

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

4,000

  1.    

20775/21

22/03/2021

Aleksandr Sergeyevich KHALAYEV

1979

Zubarev Dmitriy Vladimirovich

Vladivostok

Rally in support of S. Furgal

 

Vladivostok

 

19/07/2020

article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of RUB 5,000

Primorye Regional Court

13/10/2020

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest, escorting to a police station, detention on 19/07/2020 for the sole purpose of drawing up a record of administrative offence;

 

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

 

 

 

 

4,000

  1.  

20778/21

22/03/2021

Anastasiya Yuryevna KAPITONOVA

1998

Zubarev Dmitriy Vladimirovich

Vladivostok

Rally in support of

S. Furgal

 

Vladivostok

 

08/08/2020

article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Primorye Regional Court

03/11/2020

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest, escorting to a police station, detention on 08/08/2020 for the sole purpose of drawing up a record of administrative offence;

 

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

4,000

  1.  

21351/21

06/04/2021

Andrey Eduardovich MAKSIMKIN

1993

Pomazuyev Aleksandr Yevgenyevich

Vilnius

Rally in support of A. Navalnyy

 

Saransk

 

23/01/2021

article 20.2 § 6.1 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Supreme Court of the Mordovia Republic

10/03/2021

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest, escorting to a police station, detention on 23/01/2021 for the sole purpose of drawing up a record of administrative offence;

 

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

4,000

  1.  

21567/21

08/04/2021

Aleksey Vladimirovich LITVINENKO

1962

Pomazuyev Aleksandr Yevgenyevich

Vilnius

Rally for fair elections to Mosgorduma

 

Moscow

 

03/08/2019

article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Moscow City Court

20/01/2021

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest, escorting to a police station, detention on 03/08/2019, for the purpose of drawing up an offence record (such record only drawn up

on 06/08/2019)

4,000

  1.  

21988/21

07/04/2021

Aleksandr Sergeyevich SEMCHENKOV

1987

Memorial Human Rights Centre

Moscow

Rally in support of arrested

N. Platoshkin and S. Furgal

 

Moscow

 

25/07/2020

article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 20,000

Moscow City Court

18/01/2021

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest and escorting to a police station, detention on 25/07/2020 for the sole purpose of drawing up a record of administrative offence,

 

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

4,000

  1.  

22672/21

29/03/2021

Bilyal Pavlovich KOTKIN

1981

Memorial Human Rights Centre

Moscow

Rally for fair elections to Mosgorduma

 

Moscow

 

27/07/2019

article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Moscow City Court

02/10/2020

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest, escorting to a police station, detention on 27/07/2019 for the sole purpose of drawing up a record of administrative offence

4,000

  1.  

24176/21

16/04/2021

Mikhail Sergeyevich REVYAKIN

1994

Memorial Human Rights Centre

Moscow

Rally in support of S. Furgal

 

Khabarovsk

 

19/12/2020

article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Khabarovsk Regional Court

28/01/2021

 

3,500

  1.  

24727/21

29/03/2021

Ilya Sergeyevich FROLOV

1992

Bayeva Aleksandra Nikolayevna

Moscow

Rally in support of A. Navalnyy

 

Volgograd

 

23/01/2021

article 20.2 § 5 of CAO

fine of

RUB 10,000

Volgograd Regional Court

25/02/2021

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest, escorting to a police station and detention on 23/01/2021 for the sole purpose of drawing up a record of administrative offence;

 

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

4,000

  1.  

25898/21

07/05/2021

Anton Yuryevich ZHIVIN

1990

Zboroshenko Nikolay Sergeyevich

Mytishchi

Rally in support of A. Navalnyy

 

Moscow

 

31/01/2021

article 20.2 § 6.1 of CAO

administrative detention of

10 days

Moscow City Court

05/02/2021

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest, escorting to a police station and detention between 31/01/2021 and 01/02/2021 as administrative suspect, pending trial, after the offence record had been compiled;

 

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

5,000

  1.  

25930/21

07/05/2021

Denis Vladimirovich TKHAROVSKIY

1987

Zboroshenko Nikolay Sergeyevich

Mytishchi

Rally in support of A. Navalnyy

 

Moscow

 

31/01/2021

article 20.2 § 6.1 of CAO

administrative detention of 15 days

Moscow City Court

05/02/2021

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest, escorting to a police station and detention between 31/01/2021 and 01/02/2021 as administrative suspect, pending trial, after the offence record had been compiled;

 

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

5,000

  1.  

39838/21

29/07/2021

Aleksandr Yevgenyevich YANIN

1989

Eysmont Mariya Olegovna

Moscow

Rally in support of A. Navalnyy

 

Moscow

 

31/01/2021

article 20.2 § 6.1 of CAO

administrative detention of 10 days

Moscow City Court

05/02/2021

Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - arrest; escorting to a police station, detention between 31/01/2021 and 01/02/2021 as administrative suspect, pending trial, after the offence record had been compiled;

 

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

5,000

 

 


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


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