MOSCOW, June 13 - RAPSI. Opposition leader Alexei Navalny has filed an appeal with the European Court of Human Rights against a court ruling ordering him to refute statements made in an anonymous video on the embezzlement $165.7 million on his blog, his lawyer Ramil Akhmetgaliyev told the Russian Legal Information Agency (RAPSI/rapsinews.com) on Wednesday.

Navalny claims his right to fair justice and his right to free speech was violated. He seeks to cancel the decisions passed by the court in his dispute with businessman Vladlen Stepanov.

Stepanov sought in his motion to oblige Navalny to refute allegations made in a video published on his blog, in which the unidentified author mentioned him and his ex-wife, former Federal Tax Service employee Olga Stepanova. The video alleges that Stepanov and his ex-wife were involved the theft of 5.4 billion rubles from state budget.
The Lyublinsky District Court in Moscow ordered Navalny to prove the allegations.

Navalny's defense then asked the court to include copies of the documents published on the Internet in the case or to request the documents from the relevant organizations.

However, the court ruled against the request and partially held for Stepanov on October 7, 2011. Navalny was then ordered to pay 100,000 rubles ($3,000) in compensation and to refute several statements.

The Moscow City Court later ruled against Navalny's appeal and the decision came into force.