Overview of Rule 9 Submissions in view of the Committee of Ministers' Deputies Human Rights Meeting in September 2023

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From 19th -21st September 2023, the Committee of Ministers will meet for their quarterly Human Rights Meeting. During this meeting, the Committee of Ministers will examine 44 leading judgments of the European Court of Human Rights that are pending implementation.

EIN members and partners, other civil society actors, lawyers and applicants have made the 43 Rule 9 submissions for 27 cases under consideration. The list below sets out an overview of these submissions related to cases on the current agenda.

Overview of Submissions

Strazimiri v. Albania

Violation: Poor conditions of detention and inadequate medical treatment of a mentally ill person subject to a court-ordered compulsory medical treatment; unlawful detention in an inadequate (penitentiary) institution without proper psychiatric treatment; failure to examine speedily the lawfulness of the applicant's detention; absence of right to compensation.

Last Examination: September 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1443/H46-1

Latest Submissions:

Chiragov and Others v. Armenia

Violation: Impossibility for persons displaced during the active military phase (1992-1994) of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to gain access to their homes and properties in the region; lack of effective remedies.

Last Examination: December 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1451/H46-2

Latest Submissions:

Mushegh Saghatelyan v. Armenia

Violation: Ill-treatment by the police and absence of any official investigation; unlawful arrest and detention; disproportionate and unnecessary dispersal of protests.

Last Examination: 30 November - 2 December 2021-  CM/Del/Dec(2021)1419/H46-1

Latest Submissions:

Mammadli Group v. Azerbaijan

Violation: Arrest and pre-trial detention to punish the applicants for his activities in the area of electoral monitoring or for their active social and political engagement in breach of Article 18 taken in conjunction with Article 5.

Last Examination: June 2023 - CM/Del/Dec(2023)1468/H46-3

Latest Submissions:

Sargsyan v. Azerbaijan

Violation: Impossibility for persons displaced during the active military phase (1992-1994) of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to gain access to their homes and properties in the region; lack of effective remedies.

Last Examination: December 2022 -  CM/Del/Dec(2022)1451/H46-6

Latest Submissions:

L.B Group & W.D v. Belgium

Violation: Structural problem concerning the care of persons with mental health problems detained in prison.

Last Examination: September 2021 - CM/Del/Dec(2021)1411/H46-6

Latest Submissions:

Vasilescu Group v. Belgium

Violation: Structural problem concerning prison overcrowding, material conditions of detention and lack of effective remedies. 

Last Examination: June 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1436/H46-3

Latest Submissions:

United Macedonian Organisation & Ilinden and Others Group v. Bulgaria

Violation:  Unjustified refusals by the courts to register an association aiming at achieving “the recognition of the Macedonian minority in Bulgaria”.

Last Examination: December 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1451/H46-8

Latest Submissions:

S.Z Group & Kolevi v. Bulgaria

Violation: Systemic problem of ineffective criminal investigations with regard to shortcomings which affect investigations concerning both private individuals and law enforcement agents and lack of guarantees for the independence of criminal investigations against the Chief Prosecutor.

Last Examination: June 2023 - CM/Del/Dec(2023)1468/H46-8

Latest Submissions:

Y.T. Group v. Bulgaria

 Violation: Unjustified refusals by the courts to the applicants’ applications for gender reassignment. 

First examination - (group in standard procedure) 

Latest Submissions:

M.H. and Others v. Croatia

Violation: Lack of effective investigation into the death of the applicants’ daughter at the Croatian border; inadequate conditions of detention of migrant children; lack of administrative and court diligence and expedition concerning asylum seeking applicants’ detention and asylum proceedings; collective expulsion; violation of the right of individual application.

First Examination

Latest Submissions:

Violation: Conditions of detention of asylum seekers and irregular migrants (including minors) and lack of an effective remedy to challenge conditions of detention; living conditions of asylum seekers; ineffective remedies against expulsion due to shortcomings in asylum procedure.

Last Examination: 29 September – 1 October 2020 - CM/Del/Dec(2020)1383/H46-7

Latest Submissions:             

Ilias and Ahmed v. Hungary

Violation: Authorities’ failure to assess the risks of ill-treatment before expelling the applicants, asylum-seekers, to a “safe third country” (Ilias and Ahmed); applicant’s collective expulsion without identifying him and examining his situation (Shahzad).

 Last Examination: September 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1443/H46-11 

Latest Submissions:

Laszlo Magyar v. Hungary

Violation: Life sentence without parole in combination with the lack of an adequate review mechanism, life sentence with parole after 40 years.

Last Examination: September 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1443/H46-12

 Latest Submissions:

Talpis Group, J.L., & M.S. v. Italy

Violation: Failure to comply with the positive obligation to properly assess the risk to life in domestic violence cases and to secure a timely and adequate response. Sexism in the perception of the phenomenon of violence against women, including in court decisions, leading to secondary victimisation. Impunity for domestic violence acts due to a combination of judicial passivity and intervening changes to the prescription regime.

Last Examination:

  • J.L - First examination.

  • M.S. - First examination.

Latest Submissions:

L. v. Lithuania

Violation: Lack of legislation governing the conditions and procedures relating to gender reassignment.

Last Examination: June 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1436/H46-13

Latest Submissions:

Levinta v. The Republic of Moldova

Violation: Ill-treatment and torture in police custody; ineffective investigations; lack of an effective remedy; conviction based on evidence obtained under torture.

 Last Examination: September 2021 - CM/Del/Dec(2021)1411/H46-23

Latest Submissions:

Petrescu v. Portugal

Violation: Overcrowding and poor conditions of detention in prisons and lack of effective remedies.

Last Examination: March 2021- CM/Del/Dec(2021)1398/H46-20

Latest Submissions:

Bucur and Toma v. Romania

Violation: Conviction of a whistle-blower for having disclosed information on the illegal secret surveillance of citizens by the Intelligence Service; lack of safeguards in the statutory framework governing secret surveillance.

Last Examination: December 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1451/H46-28

Latest Submissions:

S.C. Polyinvest S.R.L. and Others (Applications Concerning S.C. Polyinvest S.R.L. (No. 20752/07) and Omegatech Enterprises Ltd. (No. 24612/07)) & Seven Other Similar Applications v. Romania

Violation: Non-implementation of court’s or arbitral awards ordering State-controlled companies to pay various sums to the applicants/applicant companies.

Last Examination: March 2023 - CM/Del/Dec(2023)1459/H46-17

Latest Submissions:

Dmitriyevskiy Group v. Russia

Violation: Unjustified prosecution for alleged hate speech and/or extremism.

First Examination.

Latest Submission:

Taganrog LRO and Others v. Russia

Violation: Various rights of the Jehovah’s Witnesses

Last Examination: December 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1451/H46-33

Latest Submissions:

 Bati and Others v. Turkey

Violations: Ineffectiveness of investigations against law enforcement officers in allegations of torture and ill-treatment and impunity.

Last Examination: September 2022- CM/Del/Dec(2022)1443/H46-27

Latest Submissions:

Selahattin Demirtas v. Turkey (No. 2)

Violation: Unjustified detention of the applicants without reasonable suspicion that they had committed an offence, with the ulterior purpose of stifling pluralism and limiting freedom of political debate. Unforeseeable lifting of the parliamentary immunity and subsequent criminal proceedings to penalise the applicants for their political speeches.

Last Examination: June 2023 - CM/Del/Dec(2023)1468/H46-33

Latest Submissions:

Kavala v. Turkey

Violation: Unjustified and extended detention of the applicant without reasonable suspicion and with the ulterior purpose of reducing him to silence.

Last Examination: June 2023 -  CM/Del/Dec(2023)1468/H46-35

Latest Submissions:

Xenides-Arestis Group v. Turkey

Violation: Continuous denial of access to property in the northern part of Cyprus (individual measures and just satisfaction).

Last Examination: September 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1443/H46-31

Latest Submissions:

Mckerr v. The United Kingdom

Violation: Actions of security forces in Northern Ireland in the 1980s and 1990s; failure to conduct Article 2 - compliant investigations.

Last Examination: June 2023 - CM/Del/Dec(2023)1468/H46-41

Latest Submissions:

Webinar: From Court to Practice: Implementing ECtHR Rulings on Legal Gender Recognition

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On July 13th, EIN and Transgender Europe (TGEU) collaborated on a webinar titled ‘Webinar: From Court to Practice: Implementing European Court of Human Rights Rulings’. This training event aimed to share knowledge and experiences for those advocating for legal gender recognition, seeking to hold their governments accountable and seeking to be involved in the ECtHR implementation process before the Committee of Ministers’. 

The training began with welcome remarks from Richard Köhler, TGEU Expert Advisor and Senior Policy Officer.

The first session covered the basics of the ECtHR implementation process. Agnes Ciccarone, EIN Program and Finance Manager, and Ioana Iliescu, EIN Law and Advocacy Officer, presented on the topic, explaining how the process works and how NGOs and lawyers can get involved in ECtHR implementation.

The second half of the training event focused on sharing experiences by lawyers & activists on the X v North Macedonia and X and Y v Romania cases.

The webinar ended with a Q&A session, allowing participants to engage with presenters, who provided valuable insights on engaging with the implementation process of ECtHR judgments concerning legal gender recognition.

We thank TGEU for collaborating with EIN on the event and thank everyone who joined.

EU Commission Rule of Law Report 2023 & Non-Implementation of ECtHR Judgments

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Last week, the EU Commission published its 2023 Rule of Law Report, analysing four areas concerning the rule of law: the justice system, the anti-corruption framework, media pluralism and freedom, and other institutional issues related to checks and balances, and examining developments within each of the 27 EU countries. 

EIN is pleased that the Commission is now systematically including the non-implementation of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights in its 2023 Rule of Law report. The report states:

“Included in the Rule of Law report for the first-time last year, the track record of implementing leading judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) is an important indicator for the functioning of the rule of law in a country. The country chapters therefore again include systematic indicators on the implementation of ECtHR leading judgments by all Member States, showing also the change compared to last year. Performance continues to vary between Member States. Overall, around 40% of the leading judgments of the ECtHR relating to EU Member States from the last 10 years have not been implemented, similar to last year’s figure.”

Furthermore, individual country chapters on the rule of law situation in member states include EIN’s key data sets: the percentage of pending leading judgments over the last ten years, the average time lending judgments have been pending, and the number of leading judgments pending implementation.

Over the last two years, EIN has worked closely with Democracy Reporting International (DRI) in advocating for the EU’s Rule of Law Report to take into account the non-implementation of European Courts’ judgments, and to use other tools to tackle the failure of certain Member States to fully implement reforms in line with the European Court’s judgments. On the 3rd of July 2023, we launched our latest report ‘Justice Delayed and Justice Denied: Non-Implementation of European Court Judgments and the Rule of Law’, which shows that the non-implementation of ECtHR judgments is slightly worsening from year to year. As of 1 January 2023, there were 616 leading ECtHR judgments pending implementation in EU states, 40 % of leading judgments from the last ten years are pending implementation in EU states, and the average length of time that leading ECtHR judgments concerning EU states have been pending implementation was 5 years and 1 month.

For future editions of the European Commission’s Rule of Law Report and the EU’s ongoing work on the rule of law, we set out the following recommendations to the European Commission and to EU institutions:

Recommendations

1. The future editions of the European Commission Rule of Law Report should also include specific recommendations for (a) states with particularly concerning records of ECtHR implementation overall; and (b) states with ECtHR and CJEU judgments pending implementation concerning the areas covered by the Report, especially those of independence and impartiality of the judiciary.

2. The European Commission should consistently use other tools available, including infringement procedures and financial pressure, to tackle the failure of certain Member States to fully implement reforms in line with the CJEU and ECtHR judgments. 

3. The EU institutions should raise the issue of ECtHR and CJEU judgment non-implementation and the data in the Justice Delayed and Justice Denied report in discussions with Member State governments and national parliaments.

4. The EU should fund civil society activities designed to enhance ECtHR and CJEU judgement implementation, as well as Council of Europe activities designed to enhance ECtHR judgement implementation.

We welcome this continued development in the EU Commission’s rule of law reporting, which enhances both the EU’s rule of law procedures and sheds light on the overall record of implementation of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights. We are grateful to the EU Commission for its open engagement on this issue.

For more on individual countries’ implementation records, see our implementation country map.

Webinar Registration: From Court to Practice: Implementing European Court of Human Rights Rulings

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In the past years, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has delivered several leading judgments concerning the rights of transgender people and their right to legal gender recognition. These cases concern the lack of a clear and predictable legal framework governing the conditions and procedures relating to gender reassignment, as well as the refusal of national authorities to recognise the real identity of transgender persons. How can these legal wins also translate into real change for transgender people? 

Implementation of ECtHR judgments - and the positive developments it brings - often requires civil society involvement in order to ensure that governments implement Court judgments effectively and in full. This is particularly relevant where general measures are needed, and the government must enact new laws and public policies. For instance, when a Strasbourg judgment requires the government to establish clear and accessible procedures for legal gender recognition.

On July 13th, from 10:00 to 11:30 CEST, EIN will be co-hosting an online training event alongside Transgender Europe on implementing judgments of the European Court of Human Rights relating to legal gender recognition and how NGOs and lawyers can be involved in the process.

During this webinar participants will learn how to: 

  • navigate the implementation process;

  • hold their country accountable for human rights violations;

  • get the most out of European Court of Human Rights rulings.

Who is this webinar for?

This webinar is of particular interest for lawyers and activists from countries that currently have cases in the implementation process. This includes Bulgaria, Georgia, Hungary, Lithuania, North Macedonia, and Romania. It is also for lawyers and activists thinking about bringing cases to the European Court of Human Rights and, of course, those with pending cases. 

I am not a lawyer, can I still attend?

We invite trans activists without legal training to attend the webinar. Wherever possible, we will use plain language and avoid legal jargon.

If you still have questions, email richard@tgeu.org

The webinar will be in English and will provide Russian – English simultaneous interpretation.

We look forward to seeing you at this online event.

Justice Delayed and Justice Denied: Report on the Non-Implementation of European Judgments and the Rule of Law

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The European Implementation Network (EIN) and Democracy Reporting International (DRI) are delighted to present “Justice Delayed and Justice Denied: Non-Implementation of European Courts’ Judgments and the Rule of Law,” a joint report on the non-implementation of European Court judgments in EU states.

The attacks on fundamental European values in recent years has continued to raise concern for European stakeholders – governments, the media, and citizens alike. The EU has introduced a series of policy measures designed to halt and reverse this phenomenon, ranging from the new annual rule of law review cycle, to targeted measures, such as withholding structural funds from countries with severe infringements of the rule of law.

In 2022, following civil society calls for the EU’s rule of law reporting to take into account the non-implementation of judgments from the two key European courts – the ECtHR and the CJEU (hereafter, “the European Courts”) – the EU Commission has included this type of data in its annual Rule of Law Report. This development allowed the EU to identify longer-term problems with the rule of law across all Member States that had previously been overlooked.

As of 1 January 2023, there were 616 leading ECtHR judgments waiting to be implemented across the EU. Each of these represents a human rights problem that has not been resolved – and which, therefore, is likely to recur.

Some 40 % of leading judgments concerning EU states from the last ten years are yet to be implemented. This means that the systemic human rights issues these judgments identify have not yet been resolved; it indicates that national authorities in Europe are not sufficiently active in dealing with a significant proportion of human rights issues identified by the ECtHR.

The average length of time that leading ECtHR judgments concerning EU states have been pending implementation is 5 years and 1 month. Some cases require extensive reforms that can – and should – take many years to implement. It should, however, be possible to implement the majority of leading judgments in a relatively short period of time. The longer leading judgments have been pending, the greater the concern that implementation is not being carried out.

In view of these recommendations, EIN and DRI set out the following recommendations to the European Commission and to EU institutions:

Report Recommendations

1. The European Commission should analyse the level of implementation of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) judgments in European Union (EU) Member States in its annual Rule of Law Report. The Report should also include specific recommendations for (a) states with particularly concerning records of ECtHR implementation overall; and (b) states with ECtHR and CJEU judgments pending implementation concerning the areas covered by the Report, especially those of independence and impartiality of the judiciary.

2. The European Commission should consistently use other tools available, including infringement procedures and financial pressure, to tackle the failure of certain Member States to fully implement reforms in line with the CJEU and ECtHR judgments. 

3. The EU institutions should raise the issue of ECtHR and CJEU judgment non-implementation and the data in this report in discussions with Member State governments and national parliaments.

4. The EU should fund civil society activities designed to enhance ECtHR and CJEU judgement implementation, as well as Council of Europe activities designed to enhance ECtHR judgement implementation.

For more on individual countries’ implementation records, see our implementation country map.

EIN General Assembly 2023

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Photo de Sigmund sur Unsplash

On 27th June, EIN organised its yearly General Assembly. This year, the event was held online.

The meeting was the opportunity to go through institutional matters and adopt the EIN 2022 accounts as well as budget for 2023 and 2024. Members were informed by EIN Treasurer Krassimir Kanev and our independent auditor about the very positive funding situation of EIN.

EIN Chair Başak Çalı gave an overview of the achievements since June 2022, and presented the new projects launched by EIN in 2023 - a project about the rule of law (follow-up to the 2021-2022 project), and a project about freedom of expression - and invited all members to take an active part in these activities.

The new Director of EIN, Ioulietta Bisiouli, who will take up her functions on 7th August, was also present to introduce herself and exchange with members.

The General Assembly concluded with a partial renewal of the EIN Board: we are very happy to announce that Anna-Katrin Speck, doctoral researcher, and Kerem Altiparmak, individual member, both joined the EIN Board. The first meeting of the new EIN Board will take place end September 2023.

Call for Interest - Supporting Freedom of Expression Through ECtHR Implementation

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On 1st June, EIN launched a new project aimed at protecting freedom of expression by supporting ECtHR implementation, which will last for two years. The project aims at mapping ECtHR judgments pending implementation and NGOs working on freedom of expression, and helping them to use the ECtHR judgments implementation avenue to push for freedom of speech in Europe.

A two-day event will be organised in the second half of November (20-21 November, Mediencampus, Leipzig) for partners in the project. Activities will include assistance with drafting written submissions to the Council of Europe’s implementation monitoring process, and advice on advocacy best practices at national level to promote ECtHR implementation; briefings on cases concerning freedom of expression or media freedom to delegates of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe; training and a conference to share lessons-learnt and best practices among stakeholders, and reporting on the overall state of implementation of ECtHR judgments concerning free speech.

EIN has a limited number of grants to allocate to NGOs committed to take part in our project.

Applications from NGOs which are specialized in the defense of freedom of expression but do not work yet on the implementation of ECtHR judgments are welcome. If your NGO already works on the implementation of FoE pending judgments, you might also benefit from our support.  At this stage, if your organisation is interested in applying for a grant, we kindly ask you to fill in this form by the end of July: https://forms.gle/jrd4bH2RqbLXcShMA.

Partners who will receive a grant from EIN in the frame of the project “Promoting Free Speech with European Judgments” will be considered Beneficiaries and will sign a subgrant agreement with EIN. For more information about the eligible activities, please see the Guidelines for beneficiaries.

The expertise of your organizations would be a valuable contribution to advocacy efforts for the implementation of ECHR judgments on free speech and can help turn judgments from the ECHR into real changes.

Save the Date: Rule of Law 2023 Report Launch Virtual Event

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The European Implementation Network (EIN) and Democracy Reporting International (DRI) would like to invite you to join us for the virtual launch of our 2023 report on the non-implementation of regional courts’ judgments.

The launch will be held as an online panel debate on Monday, 3 July between 16:00 and 17:30 ECT with our distinguished speakers:

Ambassador Vesna Kos, Head of the EU Delegation to the Council of Europe, European External Action Service;

Prof Jörg Polakiewicz, Director of Legal Advice and Public International Law, Council of Europe and

Dr Marcin Szwed, Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights.

The report will be presented by 

Ms Ioana Iliescu, Law and Advocacy Officer, EIN and

Dr Nino Tsereteli, Research Officer, DRI.

The debate will be moderated by Jakub Jaraczewski, Research Coordinator, DRI.

 

About the launch event:
The launch event will be opened with a presentation of the report’s findings and recommendations, followed by a moderated panel debate on how the EU and the Council of Europe can cooperate better on enforcing the implementation of the judgments of the two European courts. As part of this, concrete examples from national cases will also be introduced to be explored by the panel. We will close the debate with a Q&A session with the online audience.

The participation is free of charge and open to all interested stakeholders.

Overview of Rule 9 Submissions in view of the Committee of Ministers' Deputies Human Rights Meeting in June 2023

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From 5th -7th June 2023, the Committee of Ministers will meet for their quarterly Human Rights Meeting. During this meeting, the Committee of Ministers will examine 41 leading judgments of the European Court of Human Rights that are pending implementation.

EIN members and partners, other civil society actors, lawyers and applicants have made the 36 Rule 9 submissions for 24 cases under consideration. The list below sets out an overview of these submissions related to cases on the current agenda.

 Overview of Submissions

Oganezova v. Armenia

Violation: Lack of protection against homophobic attacks and hate speech; failure to carry out effective investigation; absence of effective domestic criminal-law mechanism for investigating discrimination complaints.

First Examination.

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rules 9.2 and 9.6 - Communication from NGOs (Pink Armenia and EHRAC) (02/05/2023) in the case of Oganezova v. Armenia (Application No. 71367/12) and reply from the authorities (17/05/2023)

Makuchyan and Minasyan v. Azerbaijan 

Violation: Failure to continue to enforce prison sentence for ethnic hate crime committed abroad, after transfer to Azerbaijan.

First Examination.

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.1 - Communication from the applicant (18/04/2023) in the case of Makuchyan and Minasyan v. Azerbaijan (Application No. 17247/13)

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.1 - Communication from the applicant (29/03/2023) in the case of Makuchyan and Minasyan v. Azerbaijan (Application No. 17247/13)

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from NGOs (Democracy Development Foundation, Protection of Rights without Borders, Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly Vanadzor, Transparency International Anti-Corruption Center, Law Development and Protection Foundation) (17/04/2023) in the case of Makuchyan and Minasyan v. Azerbaijan (Application No. 17247/13)

Mammadli group v. Azerbaijan

 Violation: Arrest and pre-trial detention to punish the applicants for activities in the area of electoral monitoring or for their active social and political engagement in breach of Article 18 taken in conjunction with Article 5.

 Last Examination: March 2023 -  CM/Del/Dec(2023)1459/H46-3

 Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from IGOs (Election Monitoring and Democracy Studies Center) (28/04/2023) in the case of Mammadli v. Azerbaijan (Application No. 47145/14)

Sejdić and Finci Group v. Bosnia and Herzegovina

Violation: Ethnic-based discrimination on account of the ineligibility of persons not affiliated with one of the “constituent peoples” (Bosniaks, Croats or Serbs) to stand for election to the House of Peoples and the Presidency. 

Last Examination: March 2023 - CM/Del/Dec(2023)1459/H46-36

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.4 - Communication from the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights (24/04/2023) in the case of SEJDIC AND FINCI v. Bosnia and Herzegovina (Application No. 27996/06)

Statileo Group v. Croatia

Violation: Statutory limitations on use of property by landlords, including through the rent control scheme for flats subject to protected leases.

 Last Examination: 30 November – 2 December 2021- CM/Del/Dec(2021)1419/H46-11

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from NGOs (Association of Ownership and Possession of Apartment, Owners with Protected Tenants) (18/04/2023) in the case of STATILEO v. Croatia (Application No. 12027/10)

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NGO (Udruga Proljeće) (31/03/2023) in the STATILEO group of cases v. Croatia (Application No. 12027/10)

1459th meeting (March 2023) (DH) - Rules 9.2 and 9.6 - Reply from the authorities (17/02/2023) following a communication from an NGO (Association of Ownership and Possession of Apartment Owners with Protected Tenants) (02/02/2023) in the case of STATILEO v. Croatia (Application No. 12027/10)

Moustahi v. France

Violation: Detention and rapid return of two foreign unaccompanied minors from Mayotte to the Comoros, without an examination of their individual situation

Last Examination: March 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1428/H46-10

Latest Submissions:

1468e réunion (juin 2023) (DH) - Règle 9.2 - Communication d'une INDH (Défenseur des droits) (14/04/2023) dans l’affaire Moustahi c. France (requête n° 9347/14)

1468e réunion (juin 2023) (DH) - Règle 9.2 - Communication d'ONG (GISTI, Avocats pour la Défense des Droits des Etrangers (ADDE) et Syndicat des avocats de France (SAF)) (19/04/2023) dans l’affaire Moustahi c. France (requête n° 9347/14)

1468e réunion (juin 2023) (DH) - Règle 9.2 - Communication d'une ONG (La Cimade) (18/04/2023) dans l’affaire Moustahi c. France (requête n° 9347/14)

Tsintsabadze Group v. Georgia

Violation: Lack of effective investigations into allegations of ill-treatment or violations of the right to life; excessive use of force by the police in the course of arrest and/or while detaining suspects.

Last Examination: March 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1428/H46-12

Latest Submissions:  

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from NGOs (GYLA and EHRAC) (21/04/2023) in the case of TSINTSABADZE v. Georgia (Application No. 35403/06)

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NHRI (Public Defender of Georgia) (25/04/2023) in the case of TSINTSABADZE v. Georgia (Application No. 35403/06)

Bekir-Ousta and Others Group v. Greece

Violation: Refusal of domestic courts to register associations or dissolution of the applicants’ associations.

Last Examination: December 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)/1451/H46-15

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NGO (Greek Helsinki Monitor) (17/04/2023) in the cases of BEKIR-OUSTA AND OTHERS and HOUSE OF MACEDONIAN CIVILIZATION AND OTHERS v. Greece (Applications No. 35151/05, 1295/10)

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NGO (Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe) (21/03/2023) in the group of cases BEKIR-OUSTA AND OTHERS v. Greece (Application No. 35151/05)

Sy and Itraro and Molino v. Italy

Violation: Detention in ordinary prison of persons mentally ill (Sy) and failure to protect their right to life (Citraro and Molino).

First Examination.

Latest Submission:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NGO (StraLi for Strategic Litigation) (09/05/2023) in the case of Sy v. Italy (Application No. 11791/20)

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NGO (StraLi for Strategic Litigation) (09/03/2023) in the case of Sy v. Italy (Application No. 11791/20)

Sarban Group v. Republic of Moldova

Violation: Various violations mainly arising from pre-trial detention.

Last Examination: 30 November – 2 December 2021 - CM/Del/Dec(2021)1419/H46-23

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rules 9.2 and 9.6 - Communication from an NGO (LRCM) (21/04/2023) in the case of SARBAN v. the Republic of Moldova (Application No. 3456/05) and reply from the authorities (28/04/2023)

T.M and C.M Group v. Republic of Moldova

Violation: Authorities' failure to provide protection from domestic violence

 Last Examination: March 2020 - CM/Del/Dec(2021)1369/H46-17

 Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NGO (Submisison Women’s Law Centre) (15/03/2023) in the case of T.M. and C.M. v. the Republic of Moldova (Application No. 26608/11)

Reczkowicz Group, Broda and Bojara, and Grzęda v. Poland

 Violation: Tribunal not established by law due, inter alia, systemic dysfunction in the judicial appointments procedure.

 Last Examination: December 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1451/H46-25

Grzęda - First examination

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rules 9.2 and 9.6 - Reply from the authorities (20/04/2023) following a communication from an NGO (Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights) (31/03/2023) in the cases of Xero Flor w Polsce sp. z o.o., Reczkowicz group, Grzeda, Broda and Bojara, Juszczyszyn and Zurek v. Poland (Applications No. 4907/18, 43447/19, 43572/18, 26691/18, 35599/20, 39650/18)

 Tysiąc, R.R., and, P. and A. v. Poland

Violation:

  • Absence of an adequate legal framework for the exercise of the right to therapeutic abortion in the event of disagreement between the patient and the specialist doctor (Tysiac) and lack of access to prenatal test enabling to take an informed decision on whether to seek an abortion (R.R.).

  • Failure to provide effective access to reliable information on the conditions and procedures to be followed to access lawful abortion lawful abortion (P. and S.).

Last Examination: September 2022 CM/Del/Dec(2022)1443/H46-19 

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from NGOs (Foundation for Women and Family Planning and the Center for Reproductive Rights) (18/04/2023) in the cases of R.R., TYSIAC and P. and S. v. Poland (Applications No. 27617/04, 5410/03, 57375/08)

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from NGOs (Foundation for Women and Family Planning and the Center for Reproductive Rights) (18/04/2023) in the cases of R.R., TYSIAC and P. and S. v. Poland (Applications No. 27617/04, 5410/03, 57375/08)

Xero Flor W Polsce SP. Z O.O. v. Poland

 Violation: Insufficient reasons of courts for refusal to refer a legal question to the Constitutional Court. Tribunal not established by law due to grave irregularities in the election of one of the Constitutional Court's judges examining the applicant company’s constitutional complaint.

Last Examination: December 2022 CM/Del/Dec(2022)1451/H46-34

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rules 9.2 and 9.6 - Reply from the authorities (20/04/2023) following a communication from an NGO (Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights) (31/03/2023) in the cases of Xero Flor w Polsce sp. z o.o., Reczkowicz group, Grzeda, Broda and Bojara, Juszczyszyn and Zurek v. Poland (Applications No. 4907/18, 43447/19, 43572/18, 26691/18, 35599/20, 39650/18)

Centre for Legal Resources on Behalf of Valentin Câmpeanu & N. (no. 2) v. Romania

Violation: Deficiencies in the legal protection and medical and social care afforded to vulnerable persons.

Lack of legal safeguards allowing an incapacitated person to have a say in the proceedings leading to the change of a legal guardian.

Last Examination: June 2019 - CM/Del/Dec(2019)1348/H46-20

N. (no. 2) v Romania - First examination

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NGO (Centre for Legal Resources) (21/04/2023) in the cases of CENTRE FOR LEGAL RESOURCES ON BEHALF OF VALENTIN CAMPEANU and N. v. Romania (no. 2) (Applications No. 47848/08, 38048/18)

N. v. Romania and R.D. and I.M.D. v. Romania

Violation: Unlawful psychiatric confinement as security measures and deficiencies in the judicial review proceedings. Absence of a legal basis for compulsory administration of medical treatment to such patients.

Last Examination: March 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1428/H46-23

R.D. and I.M.D - First examination 

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NGO (Centre for Legal Resources) (21/04/2023) in the cases of R.D. and I.M.D., and N. v. Romania (Applications No. 35402/14, 59152/08)

Parascineti & Cristian Teodorescu Group v. Romania

Violation: Issues related to the living conditions and treatment of patients subjected to involuntary placements in psychiatric hospitals and to the procedure and safeguards for such placements.

Last Examination: June 2020 - CM/Del/Dec(2020)1377/H46-28

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NGO (Centre for Legal Resources) (21/04/2023) in the cases of CRISTIAN TEODORESCU and PARASCINETI v. Romania (Applications No. 22883/05, 32060/05)

Finogenov and Others v. Russian Federation

Violation: Loss of life and injuries caused during a mass hostage-rescue operation at the “Nord-Ost” theatre in Moscow and lack of effective investigation.

Last Examination: September 2016 - CM/Del/Dec(2016)1265/H46-23

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.1 - Communication from the applicant 21/04/2023) in the case of FINOGENOV AND OTHERS v. Russia (Application No. 18299/03)

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NGO (Centre de la protection internationale) (21/04/2023) in the case of Tagayeva and Others v. Russia (Application No. 26562/07) (Finogenov and Others group, 18299/03)

Navalnyy and Ofitserov Group v. Russian Federation

Violation: Criminal convictions based on an unfair trial and an arbitrary application of criminal law (violations of Articles 6 and 7).

Last Examination: March 2023 - CM/Del/Dec(2023)1459/H46-22

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.1 - Communication from the applicant (12/04/2023) in the case of NAVALNYY AND OFITSEROV v. Russia (Application No. 46632/13)

Cumhuriyetçi Eğitim ve Kültür Merkezi Vakfi Group & Hasan and Eylem Zengin Group v. Türkiye

Violation: Structural and administrative problems leading to various differences in treatment between followers of the Alevi faith and adherents of the majority branch of Islam, including compulsory religious education classes.

Last Examination: 30 November – 2 December 2021- CM/Del/Dec(2021)1419/H46-36 & December 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1451/A2b

Latest Submissions:

468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rules 9.2 and 9.6 - Communication from an NGO (Alevi Philosophy Center Association) (19/04/2023) in the cases of ZENGIN, CUMHURIYETCI EGITIM VE KULTUR MERKEZI VAKFI and IZZETTIN DOGAN AND OTHERS v. Turkey (Applications No. 1448/04, 32093/10, 62649/10) and reply from the authorities (27/04/2023)

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NGO (Norwegian Helsinki Committee’s Freedom of Belief Initiative) (18/04/2023) in the cases of ZENGIN, CUMHURIYETCI EGITIM VE KULTUR MERKEZI VAKFI and IZZETTIN DOGAN AND OTHERS v. Turkey (Applications No. 1448/04, 32093/10, 62649/10)

Selahattin Demirtaş (no. 2) v. Türkiye

Violation: Unjustified detention of the applicant without reasonable suspicion that he had committed an offence, with the ulterior purpose of stifling pluralism and limiting freedom of political debate. Unforeseeable lifting of the parliamentary immunity and subsequent criminal proceedings to penalise the applicant for his political speeches. (Individual measures)

Last Examination: March 2023 - CM/Del/Dec(2023)1459/H46-26

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NGO (Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA)) (14/04/2023) in the case of Selahattin Demirtas v. Turkey (No. 2) (Application No. 14305/17)

Kavala v. Türkiye

Violation: Unjustified and extended detention of the applicant without reasonable suspicion and with the ulterior purpose of reducing him to silence.

Last Examination: December 2022 - CM/Del/Dec(2022)1451/H46-40

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.1 - Communication from the applicant's legal representatives (20/04/2023) in the case of Kavala v. Türkiye (Application No. 28749/18) and reply from the Director General of DGI (09/05/2023)

Ülke Group v. Türkiye

Violations: Repetitive convictions and prosecutions for refusing to carry out compulsory military service on account of religious beliefs or convictions as pacifists and conscientious objectors.

Last Examination: June 2020 - CM/Del/Dec(2020)1377/H46-40

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rules 9.2 and 9.6 - Communication from an NGO (European Association of Jehovah’s Witnesses) (26/04/2023) in the cases of ULKE, BULDU AND OTHERS, ERCEP and FETI DEMIRTAS v. Turkey (Applications No. 39437/98, 14017/08, 43965/04, 5260/07) and reply from the authorities (12/05/2023)

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from NGOs (The Conscientious Objection Watch, War Resisters’ International, The European Bureau for Conscientious Objection, Connection e.V and International Fellowship of Reconciliation) (17/04/2023) in the case of ULKE v. Turkey (Application No. 39437/98)

Mckerr Group v. United Kingdom

Violation: Actions of security forces in Northern Ireland in the 1980s and 1990s; failure to conduct Article 2 - compliant investigations.

Last Examination: March 2023 - CM/Del/Dec(2023)1459/H46-35

Latest Submissions:

1468th meeting (June 2023) (DH) - Rule 9.2 - Communication from an NGO (Committee on the Administration of Justice) (05/05/2023) in the case of MCKERR v. the United Kingdom (Application No. 28883/95)

 

New EIN Project: Protecting Freedom of Expression by Supporting ECtHR Implementation

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This week, EIN is launching a new project which aims to protect free speech in Europe in every country where there is a relevant ECtHR judgment pending implementation. It will do so by empowering civil society to engage with the implementation process of these judgments, by providing them with training, resources, and mentoring.

Violations of the right to free speech are central to the crisis of democratic backsliding in European states. The healthy functioning of democracies is being curtailed (and sometimes undermined) by a mixture of: draconian defamation laws that silence journalists through court proceedings; the undermining of free debate through the excessive ownership of media outlets by the state or those linked to it; and even widespread violence against reporters.

Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

The European Court of Human Rights (“ECtHR”) has issued 330 leading judgments finding a violation of the right to free speech. These judgments concern the most critical free speech issues in Europe today, including defamation laws, media ownership, and journalists’ safety.

However, at the time of writing, 50% of the leading free speech judgments handed down by the ECtHR in the last 10 years are still pending implementation. There are currently 105 leading ECtHR judgments on free speech pending implementation overall.  

EIN will promote free speech reforms across Europe by giving civil society the training, resources, and mentoring they need to push forward the implementation of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights.

The project is set to run for 2 years (June 2023 - May 2025). Project activities would include:

Photo by Maayan Nemanov on Unsplash

  • Reaching out to NGOs, lawyers, and journalists specialising in media freedom in all countries where there are relevant ECtHR cases pending implementation, and ensuring that as many cases as possible are being monitored or engaged with by a local partner;

  • Inviting the target group to a capacity-building conference, to be provided with extensive training and resources about how to promote ECtHR judgment implementation in their country;

  • The creation of a research note on best practices, to be circulated to all relevant stakeholders;

  • Ongoing mentoring for partners through legal advice, liaison with the Council of Europe, assistance with drafting written submissions to the Council of Europe’s implementation monitoring process, and advice on advocacy best practices at national level to promote ECtHR implementation;

  • In the second year of the project, a second conference to share lessons-learnt and best practices among stakeholders;

  • Briefings on cases concerning freedom of expression or media freedom to delegates of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe;

  • Reporting on the overall state of implementation of ECtHR judgments concerning free speech, to be distributed to all relevant partners and institutions throughout Europe.

The project will be kindly funded by the Swedish Postcode lottery, Fritt Ord Foundation and the Isocrates Foundation.