71105/14;51842/15;18336/19

FIFTH SECTION CASE OF TSEKHANOVICH AND OTHERS v. UKRAINE (Applications nos. 71105/14 and 2 others – see appended list)             JUDGMENT   STRASBOURG 13 April 2023   This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision. In the case of Tsekhanovich and Others v. Ukraine, The European Court of Human Rights (Fifth Section), sitting as a Committee composed of:  Mārtiņš Mits, President,  Mattias Guyomar,  Mykola Gnatovskyy, judges, and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar, Having deliberated in private on 23 March 2023, Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date: PROCEDURE 1.  The case originated in applications against Ukraine lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on the various dates indicated in the appended table. 2.  The Ukrainian Government (“the Government”) were given notice of the applications. THE FACTS 3.  The list of applicants and the relevant details of the applications are set out in the appended table. 4.  The applicants complained of the unlawful detention. In application no. 51842/15, the applicant also raised other complaints under the provisions of the Convention. THE LAW JOINDER OF THE APPLICATIONS 5.  Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single judgment. ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 5 § 1 of the Convention 6.  The applicants complained principally of the unlawful detention. They relied, expressly or in substance, on Article 5 § 1 of the Convention. 7.  The Court reiterates that Article 5 of the Convention is, together with Articles 2, 3 and 4, in the first rank of the fundamental rights that protect the physical security of the individual, and as such its importance is paramount. Its key purpose is to prevent arbitrary or unjustified deprivation of liberty (see Buzadji v. the Republic of Moldova [GC], no. 23755/07, § 84, ECHR 2016 (extracts), with further references). 8.  Where the “lawfulness” of detention is in issue, including the question whether “a procedure prescribed by law” has been followed, the Convention refers essentially to the national law and lays down the obligation to conform to the substantive and procedural rules thereof. Compliance with the national law is not, however, sufficient: Article 5 § 1 requires in addition that any deprivation of liberty should be in keeping with the purpose of protecting the individual from arbitrariness (see S., V. and A. v. Denmark [GC], nos. 35553/12, 36678/12 and 36711/12, § 74, 22 October 2018, with further references). 9.  The Court found violations in respect of issues similar to those in the present case in the leading cases set out in the appended table. 10.  Having examined all the material submitted to it, the Court has not found any fact or argument capable of persuading it to reach a different conclusion on the admissibility and merits of these complaints. Having regard to its case-law on the subject, the Court considers that in the instant case the applicants’ detention was not in accordance with Article 5 § 1 of the Convention. 11.  These complaints as set out in the appended table are therefore admissible and disclose a breach of Article 5 § 1 of the Convention. OTHER ALLEGED VIOLATIONS UNDER WELL-ESTABLISHED CASE-LAW 12.  In application no.  51842/15, the applicant submitted other complaints which also raised issues under the Convention, given the relevant well‑established case-law of the Court (see appended table). These complaints are not manifestly ill-founded within the meaning of Article 35 § 3 (a) of the Convention, nor are they inadmissible on any other ground. Accordingly, they must be declared admissible. Having examined all the material before it, the Court concludes that they also disclose violations of the Convention in the light of its findings in Svershov v. Ukraine, no. 35231/02, §§ 70-72, 27 November 2008. APPLICATION OF ARTICLE 41 OF THE CONVENTION 13.  Article 41 of the Convention provides: “If the Court finds that there has been a violation of the Convention or the Protocols thereto, and if the internal law of the High Contracting Party concerned allows only partial reparation to be made, the Court shall, if necessary, afford just satisfaction to the injured party.” 14.  Regard being had to the documents in its possession and to its case‑law (see, in particular, Malyk v. Ukraine, no. 37198/10, 29 January 2015), the Court considers it reasonable to award the sums indicated in the appended table and rejects any additional claims for just satisfaction raised by the applicants. FOR THESE REASONS, THE COURT, UNANIMOUSLY, Decides to join the applications; Declares the applications admissible; Holds that these applications disclose a breach of Article 5 § 1 of the Convention concerning the unlawful detention; Holds that there has been a violation of the Convention as regards the other complaints raised under the well-established case-law of the Court (see appended table); Holds (a)  that the respondent State is to pay the applicants, within three months, the amounts indicated in the appended table, to be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable at the date of settlement; (b)  that from the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the above amounts at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points; Dismisses the remainder of the applicants’ claims for just satisfaction. Done in English, and notified in writing on 13 April 2023, pursuant to Rule 77 §§ 2 and 3 of the Rules of Court.  Viktoriya Maradudina Mārtiņš Mits  Acting Deputy Registrar President APPENDIX List of applications raising complaints under Article 5 § 1 of the Convention (unlawful detention) No. Application no. Date of introduction Applicant’s name Year of birth   Representative’s name and location Period of unlawful detention Specific defects Relevant domestic decision Other complaints under well-established case-law Amount awarded for non-pecuniary damage per applicant (in euros)[1]       71105/14 27/10/2014   Yevgen Yuriyovych TSEKHANOVICH Polyak Petro Petrovych Chernivtsi from 29/08/2014 to 05/09/2014 arbitrary arrest by the court (Ladent v. Poland, no. 11036/03, §§ 55-56, 18 March 2008; Khayredinov v. Ukraine, no. 38717/04, §§ 28‑30, 14 October 2010) Kolomyya Local Court, 29/08/2014     1,800       51842/15 09/10/2015   Vasyl Fedorovych STOYETSKYY Yenich Volodymyr Sergiyovych Kyiv from 12.20 p.m. on 25/03/2015 to 1.00 p.m. on 28/03/2015 1) no legal basis for arrest without a prior court decision (Strogan v. Ukraine, no. 30198/11, §§ 88‑89, 6 October 2016, and Grubnyk v. Ukraine, no. 58444/15, §§ 83‑85, 17 September 2020);   2) 72 hours 40 minutes’ detention without a court order in excess of maximum period allowed by the domestic law (up to 72 hours from the moment of arrest) (see Gal v. Ukraine, no. 6759/11, § 28, 16 April 2015),   arrest report of 25/03/2015 Art. 5 (4) - deficiencies in proceedings for review of the lawfulness of detention - the Kyiv City Court of Appeal’s failure to examine, on 9 April 2015, the applicant’s grievances regarding the lawfulness of his arrest and detention (Svershov v. Ukraine, no. 35231/02, §§ 70-72, 27 November 2008)   2,350       18336/19 18/03/2019   Oleksiy Anatoliyovych OMELYANENKO Dulskyy Oleksandr Leonidovych Kyiv from 19/02/2019 to 08/04/2019 arbitrary arrest by the court (Ladent v. Poland, no. 11036/03, §§ 55‑56, 18 March 2008; Khayredinov v. Ukraine, no. 38717/04, §§ 28‑30, 14 October 2010) Pecherskyy District Court of Kyiv, 19/02/2019     1,800   [1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants.