PACE fully confirmed the powers of the Russian delegation | News from Germany about Europe

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has expressed concern about a number of serious violations of the rule of law and human rights taking place in the Russian Federation. But, despite this, she decided to confirm the powers of the members of the new Russian delegation without restrictions.

In making this decision, PACE indicated that “the EU, NATO, OSCE and the United States, while directly criticizing the behavior of the Russian authorities, did not interrupt their relations with Moscow in order to maintain a dialogue on security in Europe.” This is stated in the resolution “Appeal on substantial grounds of the non-ratified powers of the parliamentary delegation of the Russian Federation”, adopted on Wednesday, January 26, in Strasbourg. 97 deputies spoke in support of this document, 41 voted against.

Facts of Violations of CE Principles

The powers of the new Russian delegation were challenged at the opening of the PACE session on Monday, January 24, with reference to Russia’s violations of the principles of the Charter of the Council of Europe (CoE). In particular, articles that say that each member state of the CE must respect the principle of the rule of law and guarantee the observance of human rights.

Piero Fassino (archive photo)

Ten paragraphs of the resolution on the powers of the State Duma delegation, which was prepared on behalf of the PACE monitoring committee by the Italian socialist deputy Piero Fassino, lists the facts of the deterioration of the situation in Russia with respect for fundamental rights and freedoms in Russia. Among them, the assembly names the persecution of the political opposition, independent journalists, social activists and non-governmental organizations.

Separately, the document mentions the closure of the Human Rights Center “Memorial”, the imprisonment of the opposition leader Alexei Navalny, the imperfect electoral legislation, in accordance with which elections to the State Duma were held in September 2021.

In addition, PACE “expressed regret” that Russia has not yet fulfilled the “requirements and requests” of a number of assembly resolutions adopted “in the context of the 2008 war between the Russian Federation and Georgia”, as well as “military intervention in the Donbass and the annexation of Crimea by Russia “. PACE also expressed “deep concern about the escalation of tensions that threaten security in Europe and about the buildup of military forces along the border with Ukraine.”

Conclusion: ratify powers without limits

After that, the resolution states that “although the above fears justify the issue of Russia’s respect for its obligations as a member state of the Council of Europe,” however, PACE is “a unique pan-European platform for political dialogue.” “The Assembly can play its important role only if Russia takes full part in the work of its bodies,” the document notes.

“Thus, the assembly decides to ratify the credentials of the members of the Russian delegation,” is the final conclusion of the resolution. All the proposed amendments aimed at ensuring that the powers of the Russian delegation were ratified even with minor restrictions (depriving its members of being elected PACE rapporteurs or being members of monitoring missions), the assembly did not support.

See also:

The most high-profile decisions of the ECtHR in Russia since 2017
Litvinenko poisoning case
On September 21, 2021, the ECHR found Russia responsible for the poisoning of ex-Russian FSB officer Alexander Litvinenko in the UK in 2006, committed with the use of the rare radioactive isotope polonium-210. There is no doubt that the murder was committed by Russian citizens Andrey Lugovoy and Dmitry Kovtun, the court in Strasbourg said after considering the complaint of Marina Litvinenko’s widow.

The most high-profile decisions of the ECtHR in Russia since 2017
Estemirova’s murder case
On August 31, 2021, the ECtHR ruled that the Russian authorities had failed to provide an effective investigation into the murder of well-known journalist and human rights activist Natalia Estemirova, but found no evidence of state involvement in this crime. At the same time, the court ruled that Russia should pay the applicant, Estemirova’s sister, EUR 20,000 “as compensation for non-pecuniary damage”.

The most high-profile decisions of the ECtHR in Russia since 2017
Navalny’s release from jail
On February 17, 2021, the ECtHR demanded that the Russian authorities immediately release opposition politician Alexei Navalny from the pre-trial detention center. As noted in a letter sent by the court to Navalny’s lawyer, the chamber of seven judges, when making a decision, was guided by Rule 39 of the ECHR Rules, which “endows the court with the authority to indicate to the parties to the process on mandatory interim measures.”

The most high-profile decisions of the ECtHR in Russia since 2017
Case “Georgia v. Russia”
On January 21, 2021, the ECHR partially satisfied the claim of Georgia against the Russian Federation regarding the war in South Ossetia. He did not recognize the jurisdiction of the Russian Federation on Georgian territory during the hostilities of August 8-12, 2008. Therefore, the Russian Federation cannot be recognized as violating the Convention on Human Rights during this period. At the same time, he satisfied many of the claims of Georgia, pointing to the “effective control” of the Russian Federation in South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

The most high-profile decisions of the ECtHR in Russia since 2017
Magnitsky case
On August 27, 2019, the ECHR ruled in the case of Sergei Magnitsky, auditor of the Hermitage Capital investment fund, obliging the Russian Federation to pay compensation in the amount of 34,000 euros to his mother and widow. Magnitsky claimed that he convicted a number of officials of stealing more than $230 million from the budget. In 2008, he was arrested on charges of tax evasion. In November 2009, he died in a SIZO hospital in Moscow.

The most high-profile decisions of the ECtHR in Russia since 2017
The case of Navalny’s detentions
On November 15, 2018, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights ruled that the detentions of Alexei Navalny during Russian opposition protests in 2012-2014 were “politically motivated”. Compensation for moral damage to Navalny – 50 thousand euros, plus costs and expenses – almost 15 thousand more.

The most high-profile decisions of the ECtHR in Russia since 2017
Case of members of the punk band Pussy Riot
On July 17, 2018, the ECHR ruled to recover compensation from Russia for members of the punk band Pussy Riot in the criminal case of an action in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. Maria Alyokhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova were awarded 16,000 euros each, and Yekaterina Samutsevich – 5,000 euros. During the consideration of this criminal case, according to the verdict of the ECtHR, four articles of the European Convention on Human Rights were violated.

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“anti-gay law”
In June 2017, the ECtHR recognized as discriminatory the law adopted in the Russian Federation in 2013 prohibiting propaganda among minors of same-sex sexual relations. The court indicated that it violated two articles of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights. The prerequisite for the decision was the appeal to the ECHR of three Russians – activists of the LGBT movement. The court decided to pay them compensation in the amount of 50 thousand euros.

The most high-profile decisions of the ECtHR in Russia since 2017
Growth in the number of complaints from Russia to the ECtHR
Almost every second complaint received by Strasbourg is from Russia. At the same time, about 90% of them are recognized by the European court as not subject to consideration. In addition to incorrectly executed documents, the ECtHR is often denied because the applicants apply directly to the international court, bypassing the national one.

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No freedom, no security
According to the head of the Agora human rights group, Pavel Chikov, in 2017, the number of complaints to the ECHR from participants in protest actions increased especially. “Over the past year there were at least 400 of them – the largest number for the entire period of observation,” the expert says.

The most high-profile decisions of the ECtHR in Russia since 2017
A billion for payments under the decisions of the ECtHR
Compensation, which the ECHR assigns based on the results of the consideration of cases, the applicants receive from the state. In the budget of Russia for 2017, 600 million rubles were initially allocated for payments based on decisions of international courts (most of it was for the verdicts of the ECtHR). But this money ran out by autumn, and the state increased the annual amount to 1 billion rubles.

The most high-profile decisions of the ECtHR in Russia since 2017
Geography of violations
Russia is the absolute leader in terms of the number of court rulings (until 2012, it was noticeably ahead of Turkey). Over the past ten years, Russians have become twice as likely to win court cases against the country’s authorities.
Author: Elena Barysheva