Limits on freedom of assembly: Standards of the European Court of Human Rights

Abstract

Freedom of peaceful assembly represents one of the forms for involvement of individuals in the community's political life. After identification of the relevant regulations of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, this paper firstly presents the fundamental standpoints of the European Court of Human Rights regarding restrictions to the freedom of assembly; thereafter, examines compliance of the legal solutions in Serbia with European legal standards in this field. The author concludes that the standards of the ECHR affirm the exercise of freedom of peaceful assembly as one of the significant postulates of democracy. The Law on Public Assembly (2016) Serbia has significantly enhanced the legal framework for the exercise of the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and achieves a higher level of compliance with national and European Union law.

Keywords

• public assembly
• restriction on freedom of peaceful assembly
• proportion principle
• police