After the full-scale invasion in 2022, the Russian authorities passed laws banning criticism of military operations, qualifying it as ‘discrediting the army’ or spreading ‘fake news’. Citizens were fined, imprisoned and brought to court for expressing an anti-war position.
The Ukrainian government, which joined the proceedings as a third party, stressed that repression of dissidents had begun since the occupation of Crimea. The persecution of people for their pro-Ukrainian position is a systemic practice of the Russian Federation, which is confirmed by both ECHR judgements and numerous international reports.
‘The situation has deteriorated significantly since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Russia, as people who express their position against the war and Russian aggression against Ukraine have been constantly persecuted and physically abused for statements that Russia interprets as ‘discrediting the Russian army’, – said the Commissioner for the ECHR Margarita Sokorenko.
The ECtHR unanimously found that Russia had violated Article 10 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights, which guarantees freedom of expression. The court found that the Russian authorities had no legal grounds to restrict freedom of expression, and their actions were aimed solely at suppressing criticism of the war.
The ECtHR also stressed that the sentences passed by the so-called courts in the occupied territory of Crimea are illegal, as the application of Russian law there contradicts international law.
This decision of the ECHR once again confirms Russia’s systemic human rights violations and its attempts to suppress freedom of speech both in its own country and in the occupied territories of Ukraine.