The European Court communicated S. Dmitrievsky’s complaint as a matter of priority

The European Court of Human Rights, after considering the complaint of the Executive Director of the Russian-Chechen Friendship Society (RCFS) Stanislav Dmitrievsky, sent the Government of the Russian Federation the following questions: was the punishment of the applicant for the publication of the appeals of Akhmed Zakayev and Aslan Maskhadov in the newspaper Pravozashchita justified in the understanding of part 2 Article 10 of the European Convention ? Was it legal? If so, did the punishment of S. Dmitrievsky pursue a legitimate aim? If so, was it necessary in a democratic society? Were the proceedings against the applicant fair within the meaning of Part 1 of Art. 6 of the European Convention? The Russian government must provide the court with answers to these questions by May 4.

The Strasbourg Court intends to apply Rule 54A to the case of the leader of the RCFS, according to which a decision on the merits of the case is possible simultaneously with a decision on admissibility. This means that the final decision on this case can be made in 2007.

Let us recall that in February 2006 S. Dmitrievsky was convicted under Art. 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (incitement of national hatred) for the publication in the newspaper "Pravo-Zashchita" of Akhmed Zakayev's appeals to the Russian people and Aslan Maskhadov's appeals to the European Parliament.

Sources

• The European Court communicated the complaint of the Executive Director of the RCFS Dmitrievsky as a matter of priority // NTA-Privolzhye. 2007. March 2.