The ECHR issued a decision in the case of Nemetov and others against Russia, in which he considers restrictions on public events during the pandemic in Moscow and St. Petersburg. The decision is published on the court website.
Three applicants (including journalist Ilya Azar) participated in various protests: single pickets (one of them was on Red Square), picket lines and a rally in support of Alexei Navalny in 2020–2021. All of them were detained, after which they were subjected to administrative arrest or fine.
The European Court considered that most of the restrictions violate the rights of applicants, including freedom of speech and freedom of assembly. The ECHR emphasized that in general, the state could introduce restrictions on protecting the life and health of citizens, but in the case of applicants, most of them were not necessary and proportional. They created a “cooling effect” for protesters, demotivating to participate in subsequent protest events. The detention of applicants for several hours and subsequent delivery to the department for compiling the protocol did not help fight the pandemia Covid-19. The ECHR awarded each of the three applicants of 9,700 euros compensation for moral damage.
“In this resolution, the ECHR for the first time examined in such detail the restrictions on shares during the pandemic period in Russia. And despite the fact that one of the applicants was denied, according to most episodes, the court recognized violations of rights to freedom and freedom of assembly, ”comments Fitzner Violetta Fitzner, lawyer Violetta Fitzner.
In December 2021, the ATS-Info, together with the PC Memorial, filed an expert opinion to this case, in which he analyzed the current covid restrictions on events in different regions and their distribution to single pickets.
In 2022, the OTD-Info lawyers filed a complaint with the Constitutional Court of the ban on public events due to coronavirus restrictions in Moscow, but the judges refused the complaint.
Now the ban on the holding of protest promotions is preserved in some regions of Russia, including Moscow and St. Petersburg, despite the removal of all the main covid restrictions. On this basis, the authorities continue to refuse to agree on rallies and delay those who went to a single picket.