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European Court of Human Rights
You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> European Court of Human Rights >> BOROVKOV AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA - 46694/21 (Article 11 - Freedom of assembly and association : Third Section Committee) [2024] ECHR 239 (21 March 2024)
URL: http://www.bailii.org/eu/cases/ECHR/2024/239.html
Cite as: [2024] ECHR 239
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THIRD SECTION
CASE OF BOROVKOV AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA
(Applications nos. 46694/21 and 23 others -
see appended list)
JUDGMENT
STRASBOURG
21 March 2024
This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision.
In the case of Borovkov and Others v. Russia,
The European Court of Human Rights (Third Section), sitting as a Committee composed of:
Peeter Roosma, President,
Ioannis Ktistakis,
Andreas Zünd, judges,
and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,
Having deliberated in private on 22 February 2024,
Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date:
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. All of the applicants, except for the applicant in application no. 51989/21, also raised other complaints under the Convention.
THE LAW
- 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.
- 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).
- 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 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.
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.
- 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 these complaints 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; 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); and Martynyuk v. Russia, no. 13764/15, §§ 38-42, 8 October 2019, relating to the lack of suspensive effect of an appeal against the sentence of administrative detention.
- REMAINING COMPLAINTS
14. Some applicants raised further additional complaints under Article 6 of the Convention concerning other aspects of fairness of the administrative-offence proceedings. In view of the findings in the above paragraphs, the Court considers that there is no need to deal separately with these remaining complaints.
- 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,
- Decides to join the applications;
- Holds that it has jurisdiction to deal with the applicants' complaints as they relate to facts that took place before 16 September 2022;
- 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 finds that there is no need to examine separately the remaining complaints under Article 6 of the Convention;
- Holds that these applications disclose a breach of Article 11 of the Convention;
- Holds that there has been a violation of the Convention and the Protocols thereto as regards the other complaints raised under the well-established case-law of the Court (see appended table);
- 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 21 March 2024, pursuant to Rule 77 §§ 2 and 3 of the Rules of Court.
Viktoriya Maradudina Peeter Roosma
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)
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) | |
07/08/2021 | Artem Valeryevich BOROVKOV 1995 | Memorial Human Rights Centre Moscow | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Moscow
31/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 6.1 of CAO | detention for 13 days | Moscow City Court 08/02/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to and detention at the police station after compiling an offence report from 2.20 p.m. on 31/01/2021 until 8.10 p.m. on 01/02/2021;
Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings;
Prot. 7 Art. 2 - delayed review of conviction by a higher tribunal - the sentence of administrative detention imposed on the applicant was executed immediately, on account of the lack of suspensive effect of an appeal under the CAO | 5,000 | |
07/08/2021 | Artem Gennadyevich NIKIFOROV 1990 | Memorial Human Rights Centre Moscow | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Moscow
02/02/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 20,000 | Moscow City Court 10/03/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to and detention at the police station after compiling an offence report from 11.10 a.m. on 02/02/2021 until 2.00 a.m. on 03/02/2021;
Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings | 4,000 | |
15/09/2021 | Anastasiya Yevgenyevna ILYINA 2002 | Pomazuyev Aleksandr Yevgenyevich Vilnius | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Ulyanovsk
31/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 10,000 | Ulyanovsk Regional Court 25/03/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 31/01/2021 for 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 | |
11/09/2021 | Ruslan Aleksandrovich ROZHNEV 1996 | Soboleva Yelena Aleksandrovna Izhevsk | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Izhevsk
21/04/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 10,000 | Supreme Court of the Udmurtia Republic 21/06/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 21/04/2021 for 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 | |
24/09/2021 | Anton Sergeyevich ZHIGALOV 1982 | Pomazuyev Aleksandr Yevgenyevich Vilnius | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Kaliningrad
31/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 20,000 | Kaliningrad Regional Court 30/03/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 31/01/2021 for compiling an offence report | 4,000 | |
17/09/2021 | Nikita Nikolayevich RODIONOV 1998 |
| Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Chelyabinsk
31/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 10,000 | Chelyabinsk Regional Court 17/03/2021 | Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings | 3,500 | |
17/09/2021 | Konstantin Nikolayevich OKUNEV 1968 |
| Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Perm
31/01/2021
| article 20.2 § 2 of CAO | detention for 5 days | Perm Regional Court 24/03/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to police station on 02/02/2021 for 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 | 5,000 | |
18/09/2021 | Ilya Pavlovich LEVIN 1998 | Nechiporenko Natalya Aleksandrovna Moscow | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Moscow
31/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 6.1 of CAO | fine of RUB 10,000 | Moscow City Court 18/03/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 31/01/2021 for 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 | |
22/09/2021 | Denis Valentinovich ORLOV 1990 | Soboleva Yelena Aleksandrovna Izhevsk | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Izhevsk
31/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 10,000 | Supreme Court of the Udmurtia Republic 24/05/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 31/01/2021;
Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings | 4,000 | |
23/09/2021 | Aleksey Nikolayevich GOLOVKO 1998 | Shindyapin Arkadiy Vitalyevich Moscow | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Moscow
31/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 15,000 | Moscow City Court 17/05/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to police station on 31/01/2021 for 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 | |
29/09/2021 | Alina Alekseyevna STELMASHENKO 2001 | Zubarev Dmitriy Vladimirovich Vladivostok | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Vladivostok
31/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 15,000 | Primorye Regional Court 27/04/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 31/01/2021 for 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 | |
29/09/2021 | Kirill Borisovich CHISTYAKOV 1980 | Zubarev Dmitriy Vladimirovich Vladivostok | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Vladivostok
31/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 15,000 | Primorye Regional Court 13/04/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to police station on 31/01/2021 for 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 | |
29/09/2021 | Anna Aleksandrovna SAPRONOVA 1997 | Zubarev Dmitriy Vladimirovich Vladivostok | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Vladivostok
31/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 15,000 | Primorye Regional Court 17/05/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 31/01/2021 for compiling an offence report
| 4,000 | |
05/10/2021 | Anna Andreyevna NAZAROVA 1993 | Solovyev Stanislav Vyacheslavovich Moscow | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Moscow
23/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 15,000 | Moscow City Court 06/04/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 23/01/2021 for 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 | |
08/10/2021 | Oleg Sergeyevich GOLOTYAK 1977 | Chashchilova Mariya Valeryevna Moscow | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Moscow
31/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 10,000 | Moscow City Court 13/05/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 31/01/2021 for 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 | |
01/10/2021 | Aleksey Alekseyevich DEMENTYEV 1981 | Olgerdt Oksana Gennadyevna Moscow | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Moscow
03/02/2021 | article 20.2 § 6.1 of CAO | detention for 10 days | Moscow City Court 02/04/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to and detention at the police station for more than twenty hours on 03/02/2021 after the offence record was drawn up;
Art. 6 (1) - unfair criminal proceedings - various deficiencies of the administrative offence proceedings (no possibility to adduce evidence) | 5,000 | |
01/10/2021 | Andrey Aleksandrovich SHEVCHENKO 2002 |
| Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Penza
23/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 15,000 | Penza Regional Court 01/04/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station for compiling an offence report on 31/01/2021;
Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings
| 4,000 | |
08/10/2021 | Leonid Vladimirovich NIKONISHIN 1991 |
| Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Voronezh
31/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 10.000 | Voronezh Regional Court 13/04/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to and detention at the police station between 4 p.m. and 10 p.m. on 31/01/2021 after 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 | |
12/10/2021 | Lyubov Dmitriyevna MISHINA 2002 | Benyash Mikhail Mikhaylovich Krasnodar | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Krasnodar
31/01/2021
| article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 10,000 | Krasnodar Regional Court 24/05/2021 |
| 3,500 | |
08/10/2021 | Marina Mikhaylovna PODVALNAYA 1995 | Nazarov Ilya Yulyevich Moscow | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Moscow
02/02/2021 | article 20.2 § 6.1 of CAO | detention for 5 days | Moscow City Court 12/04/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to and detention at the police station after compiling an offence report between 11 p.m. on 02/02/2021 and 5.30 p.m. on 03/02/2021;
Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings
| 5,000 | |
08/10/2021 | Anna Sergeyevna MINCHENKO 1996 | Nazarov Ilya Yulyevich Moscow | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Moscow
02/02/2021 | article 20.2 § 6.1 of CAO | detention for 5 days | Moscow City Court 12/04/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to and detention at the police station after compiling an offence report between 11 p.m. on 02/02/2021 and 5 p.m. on 03/02/2021;
Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings | 5,000 | |
01/10/2021 | Gordey Yevgenyevich SIVKOV 1990 | Levenberg Yeva Viktorovna Moscow | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Moscow
23/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 10,000 | Moscow City Court 21/06/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to and detention at the police station for compiling an offence report between 4.35 p.m. and 9.40 p.m. on 23/01/2021;
Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings
| 4,000 | |
04/10/2021 | Sergey Nikolayevich PANASYUK 1990 | Sidelnikova Polina Aleksandrovna Vladivostok | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Vladivostok
31/01/2021
| article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 10,000 | Primorye Regional Court 19/04/2021 | Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 31/01/2021 for 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 | |
05/10/2021 | Dmitriy Andreyevich BEREZNIKOV 1996 | Sivoldayev Ilya Vladimirovich Voronezh | Rally "Free Navalnyy"
Voronezh
23/01/2021 | article 20.2 § 5 of CAO | fine of RUB 10,000 | Voronezh Regional Court 05/04/2021 | 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.