ECtHR / Application no. 30587/13 / Judgement / Karaahmed v. Bulgaria

Country

Bulgaria

Title

ECtHR / Application no. 30587/13 / Judgement / Karaahmed v. Bulgaria

View full Case

Year

2015

Decision/ruling/judgment date

Sunday, May 24, 2015

Incident(s) concerned/related

Violence
Property offence
Violence

Related Bias motivation

Religion

Groups affected

Muslims

Court/Body type

European Court of Human Rights

Court/Body

European Court of Human Rights, ECHR

Key facts of the case

Members of a far right party held a demonstration against Friday prayer sounds being broadcast from a mosque through loudspeakers. Muslim worshippers were insulted and attacked. Karaahmed, a Muslim, was nearby when this incident took place and argued that he suffered psychological harm as a result of the demonstration. The European Court of Human Rights [ECtHR] found a violation of Article 9 (freedom of thought, conscience and religion) because the Bulgarian authorities failed to balance the right to peaceful assembly with the right to worship, and responded inadequately to a protest.

Main reasoning/argumentation

The Court found that the failure by the domestic authorities to strike a proper balance in the steps they took to ensure the effective and peaceful exercise rights of the demonstrators and the rights of the applicant and the other worshipers to pray together, as well as their subsequent failure properly to respond to those events, meant that there had been a failure of the State to comply with its positive obligations under Article 9.

Is the case related to the application of the Framework Decision on Racism and Xenophobia, the Racial Equality Directive?

Key issues (concepts, interpretations) clarified by the case

Results (sanctions, outcome) and key consequences or implications of the case

The Court found that the failure by the domestic authorities to strike a proper balance in the steps they took to ensure the effective and peaceful exercise rights of the demonstrators and the rights of the applicant and the other worshipers to pray together, as well as their subsequent failure properly to respond to those events, meant that there had been a failure of the State to comply with its positive obligations under Article 9.

Key quotation in original language and its unofficial translation into English with reference details

"In sum, the failure by the domestic authorities to strike a proper balance in the steps they took to ensure the effective and peaceful exercise rights of the demonstrators and the rights of the applicant and the other worshippers to pray together, as well as their subsequent failure properly to respond to those events, means there has been a failure of the State to comply with its positive obligations under Article 9. There has accordingly been a violation of that article."

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