THIRD SECTION
CASE OF MOROZOV AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA
(Applications nos. 6768/23 and 19 others –
see appended list)
JUDGMENT
STRASBOURG
25 April 2024
This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision.
In the case of Morozov 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 4 April 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
JOINDER OF THE APPLICATIONS5. Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single judgment.
JURISDICTION6. 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 CONVENTION7. 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-LAW12. 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.
APPLICATION OF ARTICLE 41 OF THE CONVENTION14. 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 these applications as they relate to facts that took place before 16 September 2022;Declares the applications admissible;Holds that these complaints disclose a breach of Article 11 of the Convention;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);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 25 April 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)
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 / criminal offence
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]
6768/23
14/01/2023
Anton Alekseyevich MOROZOV
1980
anti-war protest
Moscow
06/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 20,000
Moscow City Court
23/09/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 06/03/2022 for compiling an offence report.
4,000
6869/23
27/01/2023
Galina Nikolayevna ZOLINA
1952
anti-war protest
Moscow
06/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 10,000
Moscow City Court
27/09/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 06/03/2022 for compiling an offence report.
4,000
9553/23
23/01/2023
Yekaterina Stanislavovna BARDENKOVA
1979
anti-war protest
Moscow
06/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 10,000
Moscow City Court
23/09/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station from 2.50 p.m. to 11.20 p.m. on 06/03/2022 for compiling an offence report.
4,000
9809/23
11/02/2023
Natalya Sergeyevna RUDAKOVA
1990
anti-war protest
Moscow
06/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 15,000
Moscow City Court
11/10/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - Escorting to a police station from 3 to 8.50 p.m. on 06/03/2022 for compiling an offence report.
4,000
10126/23
23/02/2023
Artur Nazarovich KHORKHALEV
1998
Baranova Natalya Andreyevna
Moscow
anti-war protest
Moscow
28/02/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 10,000
Moscow City Court
25/10/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station from 7.45 p.m. on 28/02/2022 to 2.10 a.m. on 01/03/2022 for compiling an offence report.
4,000
10705/23
14/02/2023
Anastasiya Ivanovna SIVKO
2001
Zboroshenko Nikolay Sergeyevich
Moscow
anti-war protest
Moscow
04/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 10,000
Moscow City Court
21/10/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 04/03/2022 for compiling an offence report.
4,000
11859/23
24/02/2022
Artur Nikolayevich NOVIK
2001
anti-war protest
Moscow
06/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of EUR 10,000
Moscow City Court
25/10/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 06/03/2022 for compiling an offence report
4,000
12318/23
13/03/2023
Ilya Valentinovich VORONTSOV
1985
Vasilchenko Olesya Anatolyevna
Minyar
anti-war protest
Moscow
06/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 10,000
Moscow City Court
15/11/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station for compiling an offence report from 4.45 p.m. 06/03/2022 to 1 a.m. on 07/03/2022
4,000
12881/23
03/03/2023
Leonika Yevgenyevna KONSTANTINOVA
1997
anti-war protest
Moscow
06/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 15,000
Moscow City Court
03/11/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 06/03/2022 for compiling an offence report
4,000
13245/23
10/03/2023
Mariam Tigranovna SARKISYAN
1994
anti-war protest
Moscow
27/02/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 15,000
Moscow City Court
11/11/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station from 27/02/2022 to 28/02/2022 for compiling an offence report
4,000
13764/23
12/03/2023
Yekaterina Nikolayevna TISHINA
1961
anti-war protest
Moscow
06/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 20,000
Moscow City Court
05/12/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 06/03/2022 for compiling an offence report
4,000
14620/23
21/03/2023
Dmitriy Aleksandrovich LAVRENTYEV
1996
Malinina Yuliya Valeryevna
Moscow
anti-war protest
Moscow
24/02/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 10,000
Moscow City Court
09/12/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station from 24/02/2022 to 25/02/2022 for compiling an offence report
4,000
14973/23
21/03/2023
Yeva Yuryevna NADELYAYEVA
1993
anti-war protest
Moscow
06/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 10,000
Moscow City Court
23/11/2022
3,500
15754/23
20/03/2023
Anna Olegovna GORELOVA
1987
anti-war protest
Moscow
24/02/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 15,000
Moscow City Court
21/11/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 24/02/2022 for compiling an offence report
4,000
16370/23
23/03/2023
Mariya Viktorovna SOROKINA
1986
anti-war protest
Moscow
06/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 15,000
Moscow City Court
23/11/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 06/03/2022 for compiling an offence report.
4,000
17433/23
25/03/2023
Yekaterina Nikolayevna POKROVSKAYA
1971
anti-war protest
Moscow
13/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 20,000
Moscow City Court
25/11/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 13/03/2022 for compiling an offence report
4,000
17724/23
18/04/2023
Diana Viktorovna SADEKOVA
1998
anti-war protest
Moscow
06/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 15,000
Moscow City Court
19/12/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 06/03/2022 for compiling an offence report
4,000
19183/23
06/04/2023
Anastasiya Fedorovna SUSLOVA
1997
anti-war protest
Moscow
13/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 15,000
Moscow City Court
07/12/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to the police station on 13/03/2022 for compiling an offence report
4,000
21415/23
02/02/2023
Igor Aleksandrovich DMITRIYEV
1977
Mikhaylova Varvara Dmitriyevna
St Petersburg
anti-war protest
Moscow
06/03/2022
article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
fine of RUB 10,000
Moscow City Court
03/10/2022
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to and detention at the police station after compiling an offence report from 5.30 p.m. until 9.05 p.m. on 06/03/2022
4,000
23800/23
25/05/2023
Lilit Arturovna SARKISYAN
1999
Bochilo Anna Yevgenyevna
Barnaul
anti-war protest
Moscow
27/02/2022
article 20.2 § 6.1 of CAO
fine of RUB 15,000
Moscow City Court
07/02/2023
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful detention - escorting to and detention at the police station after compiling an offence report from 5.30 p.m. on 27/02/2022 until 9.25 a.m. on 28/02/2022
4,000
[1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants.