Tsonev v. Bulgaria, No. 45963/99, ECtHR (First Section), 13 April 2006

Refusal to register a political party on account of its name and the aims set out in the preamble to its Constitution and in its programme.

Art. 11 ECHR

1. The fact that the political party’s aims are identical to those of certain other parties cannot serve as grounds to refuse its registration in a pluralistic and democratic society.

2. The refusal to register a political party including the word “revolutionary” in the preamble to its constitution cannot be deemed necessary in a democratic society if there is no indication that the party is seeking, despite its name, to establish the domination of one social class over the others; nor any evidence that it has opted for a policy which represents a real threat to the Bulgarian society or State; nor anything in the party’s declarations which could lead to the conclusion that its aims are undemocratic or that it intends to use violence in order to attain them.

3. In order to verify that it does not conceal objectives and intentions contrary to the fundamental principles of democracy, a party’s political programme must be compared with the actions of its leaders and the positions they defend.
(In the present case, the Court found that the refusal to register the Communist Party of Bulgaria on the grounds that its goals and declarations allegedly ran counter to both the Constitution and political parties’ national legislation violates Article 11 ECHR)

The ECtHR also noted that, in case the party subsequently tried to engage in any violent or antidemocratic action, the national authorities would not have been powerless. As a matter of fact, the competent court could dissolve the party if its functioning proved to be contrary to the Constitution or the law.