MOSCOW, April 26 (RAPSI) – The European Court on Human Rights (ECHR) on Tuesday published its judgement in favor of five applicants from Russia claiming violation of their rights under several articles of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights (“the Convention”).

The Court decided to rule in favor of five applications on the grounds of their factual and legal similarities and held that there had been a violation of Article 10 of the Convention (freedom of expression) in respect of each applicant.

The Court also held that “there was no need to examine the complaints under Article 5 [right to liberty and security – ed.] of the Convention and Article 2 of Protocol No. 4 [freedom of movement] to the Convention and to make separate findings under Article 11 [freedom of assembly and association] of the Convention”.

ECHR dismissed the remainder of the applicants’ claim for just satisfaction.

The applicants, Marina Novikova, Yuriy Matsnev, Viktor Savchenko, Valeriy Romakhin and Aleksandr Kirpichev are Russian nationals living in Moscow, Kaliningrad, Astrakhan and village of Platonovo-Petrovka in the Rostov Region respectively.

The case concerns the applicants’ complaints about how the authorities responded to demonstrations each of them held, in particular, arrests, and detention at police stations. Three applicants received convictions of administrative offences.

ECHR judges unanimously held that Russia is to pay 7,500 euros in respect of non-pecuniary damage to  Novikova, Kirpichev and Romakhin as well as 6,000 euros to Savchenko on the same grounds. The Court’ judgement granted Kirpichev 120 euros as a compensation for pecuniary damage to him. These amounts should be paid to the applicants in full, notwithstanding possible taxes and charges, within three months of the date the judgement becomes final.

The Court also held to compensate costs and expenditures incurred by Kirpichev and Romakhin in amount of 6,000 euros, making no award to Matsnev, since his lawyer failed to make a claim for just satisfaction within the necessary time-limit.

In its judgement, ECHR pointed out that after the end of the three months period and until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the granted amounts of compensation at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points.