FIFTH SECTION
DECISION
Application no. 7739/04
by Velichka Georgieva KAMENOVA
against Bulgaria
The European Court of Human Rights (Fifth Section), sitting on 31 January 2011 as a Committee composed of:
Mirjana Lazarova Trajkovska, President,
Karel Jungwiert,
Zdravka Kalaydjieva, judges,
and Stephen Phillips, Deputy Section Registrar,
Having regard to the above application lodged on 13 February 2004,
Having deliberated, decides as follows:
THE FACTS
The application was lodged by Ms Velichka Georgieva Kamenova, a Bulgarian national who was born in 1946 and lives in Pleven. She is represented before the Court by Mrs L. Petkova, a lawyer practising in Pleven. The Bulgarian Government (“the Government”) were represented by their Agent, Mrs N. Nikolova, of the Ministry of Justice.
The applicant complained under Article 6 § 1 of the Convention about the length of proceedings for minor bodily harm and insult in public instituted on her private criminal complaint. She further complained that as a result of the discontinuation of the criminal proceedings, in which she had also participated as a plaintiff, and the consequent non-examination of her civil claim she had been denied effective access to a court as well as a chance to restore her reputation (Articles 6 § 1 and 8).
The applicant’s complaints were communicated to the Government on 22 January 2009, who submitted their observations on the admissibility and merits. On 24 July 2009 the observations were forwarded to the applicant who was invited to submit her own observations. No reply was received to the Registry’s letter.
By letter dated 29 September 2010, sent by registered post, the applicant’s representative was notified that the period allowed for submission of her observations had expired on 16 September 2009 and that no extension of time had been requested. The applicant’s representative’s attention was drawn to Article 37 § 1 (a) of the Convention, which provides that the Court may strike a case out of its list of cases where the circumstances lead to the conclusion that the applicant does not intend to pursue the application. The applicant’s representative received this letter on 28 October 2010.
No further correspondence has been received from the applicant whose last communication to the Court dates back to 19 May 2004.
THE LAW
The Court considers that, in these circumstances, the applicant may be regarded as no longer wishing to pursue her application, within the meaning of Article 37 § 1 (a) of the Convention. Furthermore, in accordance with Article 37 § 1 in fine, the Court finds no special circumstances regarding respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and its Protocols which require the continued examination of the case.
In view of the above, it is appropriate to strike the case out of the list.
For these reasons, the Court unanimously
Decides to strike the application out of its list of cases.
Stephen PhillipsMirjana Lazarova Trajkovska
Deputy RegistrarPresident
Full & Egal Universal Law Academy