28 Sep Criminal proceedings for attempting to set up a political party on a religious basis

In the case of Yordanovi v. Bulgaria (application no. 11157/11) the European Court of Human Rights held that there had been a violation of Article 11 (freedom of assembly and association) of the European Convention on Human Rights. 

The case concerned the complaint by the two applicants about criminal proceedings brought against them for attempting to set up a political party on a religious basis. The applicants are Bulgarian nationals and belong to the Turkish-Muslim minority in Bulgaria. They complained of unjustified interference with their right to freedom of association. 

The Court had to ascertain whether the criminal proceedings brought against the applicants for attempting to set up a party in breach of the Criminal Code had been necessary in a democratic society.

Without considering the assessment by the Bulgarian courts as to whether the political party in question could be regarded as having a “religious basis”, the Court expressed serious doubts about the need for criminal sanctions in addition to the ban on such parties. A criminal conviction represented one of the most serious forms of interference with the right to freedom of expression. The Court observed that the applicants had not pursued until completion the requisite procedure for registering a political party. The legal consequence of that failure was that the party could neither exist nor engage in any activity. The result sought by the authorities – namely the peaceful coexistence of ethnic and religious groups in Bulgaria – could thus be fulfilled through such a procedure, in this case by refusing to register the would-be political party. 

The Court further noted that the authorities could have dissolved the party if it was declared unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court. It did not see any reason why, in the circumstances of the case, criminal proceedings should have been brought against the applicants.

Having regard to the above, the Court found that the criminal proceedings against the applicants for attempting to set up a political party on a religious basis was not necessary in a democratic society and had thus entailed a violation of Article 11.

References from the official website of European Court of Human Rights