Oganezova v. Armenia, Nos. 71367/12 and 72961/12, ECtHR (Fourth Section), 17 May 2022

Homophobic attacks and hate crimes against a member of the LGBT community. Violation of prohibition of discrimination and prohibition of inhuman and degrading treatment.

Art. 3 ECHR
Art. 14 ECHR

1. Discriminatory remarks and insults must in any event be considered as an aggravating factor when considering a given instance of ill-treatment in the light of Article 3. This is particularly true for violent hate crimes.

2. When investigating violent incidents, such as ill-treatment, State authorities have a duty to take all reasonable steps to unmask possible discriminatory motives. The authorities must do whatever is reasonable in the circumstances to collect and secure evidence, explore all practical means of discovering the truth and deliver fully reasoned, impartial and objective decisions, without omitting suspicious facts that may be indicative of violence fuelled by, for instance, racial or religious intolerance, or violence motivated by gender-based discrimination.

3. Inciting hatred does not necessarily entail a call for an act of violence or other criminal acts. Attacks on persons committed by insulting, holding up to ridicule or slandering specific groups of the population can be sufficient for the authorities to favour combating racist speech in the face of freedom of expression exercised in an irresponsible manner.
(The applicant, a well-known member of the LGBT Armenian community, complained about violations of the prohibition of discrimination under Article 14, and the prohibition of inhuman and degrading treatment under Article 3, for aggressive homophobic attacks, including an arson on the bar she co-owned. The Court recognised that there had been a violation of Article 3 in conjunction with Article 14, having identified Armenian authorities’ failure to provide adequate protection and conduct effective investigations).