Alekseev v. Russian Federation

Nikolai Alekseev (plaintiff) was a gay-rights activist living in the Russian Federation (Russia) (defendant). On three occasions, Alekseev requested permission to hold gay-pride parades or pickets, but the municipal authorities denied the requests. Alekseev submitted applications to the European Court of Human Rights, alleging that these denials violated his fundamental right to peacefully assemble on the subject of gay rights. Alekseev then requested permission to hold a picket outside the Iranian embassy in Moscow to protest Iran executing people for homosexuality. The authorities again denied Alekseev’s request, stating that the protest’s subject matter might provoke a negative response that would endanger the protestors. Alekseev challenged the denial in the district court and then the Moscow City Court, but both courts rejected his complaint. Alekseev’s only remaining domestic option was to request discretionary review from a supervisory court. Because the supervisory court had recently declined to review a highly similar complaint, Alekseev believed that requesting discretionary review would be futile. Instead, Alekseev filed a communication with United Nations Human Rights Committee (committee) under the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Russia had joined the ICCPR, which required it to protect the right to peacefully assemble, and agreed to the Optional Protocol, which allowed the committee to hear complaints about possible ICCPR violations. Alekseev alleged that Russia had violated the ICCPR by denying his right to peaceful assembly. Russia argued that the matter was not admissible for consideration because Alekseev (1) had not exhausted all his domestic avenues for relief and (2) was already seeking relief from the European Court of Human Rights on the same issues. On the merits, Russia contended that it had not violated the ICCPR because it had denied Alekseev’s assembly for legitimate security reasons. The committee considered the matter.