The authorities of the Chelyabinsk region had to permit public events after the law suit of the Chairman of the Chelyabinsk branch of Yabloko
Press Release, 29.03.2022
Photo: Yaroslav Shcherbakov and Vasily Moskovets / Photo from social networks
On 28 March, the Governor of the Chelyabinsk Region signed an order to lift coronavirus restrictions, in particular, an unconstitutional ban on holding public events. The suddenly issued order at the end of the working day and after the official registration of the claim in the law suit of Yaroslav Shcherbakov, Chairman of the Chelyabinsk branch of Yabloko, and human rights activist Vasily Moskovets against the Government of the region, which indicates a complete and unconditional victory for the plaintiffs.
It should be noted that Yaroslav Shcherbakov, Chairman of the Chelyabinsk regional branch of the Yabloko party, and human rights activist Vasily Moskovets filed a lawsuit with the Chelyabinsk Regional Court demanding to lift the ban on public events in the region, which was established by the regional Government during the start of the “special military operation” in Ukraine allegedly due to the coronavirus epidemic.
In his Telegram channel, Yaroslav Shcherbakov pointed out three grounds for the illegality of the ban on holding public events:
- The restriction was discriminatory in nature, as it did not apply to the events held by the authorities. Neither the law nor the coronavirus can provide for such discrimination.
- The restriction was not conditioned by the epidemiological situation in the region, as since February 15, official statistics have recorded a decrease in COVID-19 detected cases, and on the day the restriction was adopted, QR codes were canceled and mass indoor events were allowed.
- According to the text, the restrictive order came into force from the moment of signing, however, in accordance with the Constitution, any regulatory legal acts affecting the rights and freedoms of citizens can only be applied from the moment of official publication.
It should be noted that the ban on public events did not affect the initiatives of the regional administration. In particular, on 18 March, the Government organised, despite the restrictions, public festivities of the 2014 events in Crimea.
Posted: March 29th, 2022 under Foreign policy, Freedom of Assembly, Freedom of Speech, Human Rights, Russia-Eu relations, Russia-Ukraine relations, Yabloko's Regional Branches, Без рубрики.