NGOs under European Convention on Human Rights / Tymofeyeva

to the Convention (in a wide understanding, when the Protocols are considered to be the part of the treaty). The notion ‘NGO’ in the text of Article 34 of the Convention was illustrated above and its main features will be outlined further. Next we will look at the expression ‘non-governmental organisation’ in the passages of Article 56 of the Convention, Article 5 of Protocol No. 4, Article 6 of Protocol No. 7 and Article 2 of Protocol No. 12 to the Convention. All these Articles have the same title, to be exact, ‘Territorial application’. The text of all these provisions is also very similar, specifically, the parties to the Convention or Protocols thereto agreed to accept the competence of the Court to receive applications from the subjects envisaged in Article 34 of the Convention. The only difference in these texts is that the territorial application of the provisions of the Convention relates, in Article 56, to the rights envisaged in the Convention of 1950, and, in other Articles, the rights foreseen by Protocols No. 4, 7 and 12 respectively. The conclusion is that all these Articles of the Convention speak about a position of an applicant. In a wider understanding of the Convention, all the Protocols are only the documents amending or supplementing its own text. Accordingly, there is no significant disparity between the term NGO in Article 34 of the Convention and all the other provisions named ‘Territorial application’. Surprisingly, Protocol No. 1 to the Convection does not includes any reference to NGOs in its text, though some of the rights set forth there are definitely applicable to non-governmental organisations. Many judgments rendered by the Court found a breach of Article 1 of this Protocol. The wording ‘non-governmental organisation’ is also absent in Protocols 6 and 13 to the Convention concerning prohibition of the death penalty. However, in view of the nature of NGOs this is understandable. The information on the status of an NGO in the capacity of an applicant was already provided in the previous sections. To summarise, it is possible to say that NGOs acting in the capacity of applicant NGOs before the Court, include not only traditional non-profit organisations, but also business entities, 475 trade unions, 476 religious organisations 477 and political parties. 478 The main condition is that they must be independent from the influence of governmental authorities. The decisive 475 Askon AD , cited above; AO Neftyanaya Kompaniya Yukos case , cited above; OAO Plodovaya Kompaniya , cited above; Oklešen and Pokopališko Pogrebne Storitve Leopold , cited above; Västberga Taxi Aktiebolag , cited above; Centro Europa 7 S.r.l. , cited above; Anheuser-Busch Inc. , cited above; Regent Company , cited above; Sacilor-Lormines , cited above; Capital Bank AD , cited above. 476 Federation of Offshore Workers’ Trade Unions and Others v. Norway (dec.), no. 38190/97, ECHR 2002-VI and Trade Union of the Police in the Slovak Republic and Others v. Slovakia , no. 11828/08, 25 September 2012. 477 The Holy Monasteries , cited above, and Biblical Centre of the Chuvash Republic , cited above. 478 Christian Democratic People‘s Party , cited above; Communist Party of Russia, cited above; Democracy and Change Party , cited above; Demokratik Kitle Partisi and Elçi , cited above; Dicle for the Democratic Party (DEP) , cited above; Freedom and Democracy Party ( ÖZDEP ) [GC], cited above; Georgian Labour Party , cited above; Grüne Alternative Wien , cited above; Parti nationaliste basque , cited above; Partidul Comunistilor (Nepeceristi) , cited above; Presidential Party of Mordovia , cited above; Refah Partisi (the Welfare Party) , cited above; Republican Party of Russia , cited above and Russian Conservative Party , cited above.

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