KABLIS v. RUSSIA JUDGMENT
5
hold public events at the location chosen by the complainant – at the crossroads of
Lenin and Kommunisticheskaya streets.
In such circumstances the municipal authority’s proposal to change the location of
Mr Kablis’s public event was well reasoned and lawful ...
The court considers that the refusal to approve the location for the reasons advanced
in the [town administration’s] decision was lawful and acceptable ...
The [town administration’s] decision of 21 September 2015 in Mr Kablis’s case was
made within the time-limit established by law and contained reasons justifying the
impossibility of holding the public event at the chosen location, a well-reasoned
proposal to change the location and an explanation of the procedure for notifying
public events. The complainant was not therefore deprived of a possibility to enjoy his
constitutional right to hold [public events] in accordance with the procedure
established by [the Public Events Act].
The complainant’s rights and freedoms under Articles 10 and 11 of the Convention
were not restricted by the contested decision; there were no obstacles preventing the
complainant from enjoying his constitutional rights.”
18. The applicant appealed. He submitted, in particular, that the
crossroads of Lenin and Kommunisticheskaya streets was outside the area
where public events were prohibited by regional law no. 91-RZ. The town
administration’s decree no. 9/3483, which allegedly prohibited public
events at that location, had never been published and was therefore not
accessible to the public.
19. On 28 January 2016 the Supreme Court of the Komi Republic
upheld the judgment of 18 November 2015 on appeal, finding it lawful, well
reasoned and justified. It held:
“The [district] court rejected the complaint on the merits because the contested
refusal to approve the chosen location of the picket had been made by the competent
authority in accordance with the procedure prescribed by law. The municipal authority
had given the complainant an objective possibility to enjoy his constitutional and
Convention rights.
The [district] court correctly applied [the Public Events Act] providing for the
conditions for enjoying the right to peaceful assembly guaranteed by Article 31 of the
Constitution ...
Having assessed the evidence in the case file, the [district] court made a correct
finding that [the town administration’s] proposal to change the location of the public
event chosen by the organisers had been substantiated, well reasoned and justified by
the necessity to respect the balance of interests of the parties and to ensure public
safety.
As correctly established by the [district] court, it is prohibited to hold public events
at the location chosen by the complainant – at the crossroad of Lenin and
Kommunisticheskaya streets.
Decree no. 598 of 25 December 2012 by the Komi Republic Government designated
[special locations for holding political public events in Syktyvkar].
The choice of a location for an event and its approval by the municipal authorities
does not restrict the participants’ right to freedom of opinion and expression. The