Pensioners from Rostov Region adjudge 600,000 euros from Russia at ECtHR

According to the decision of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), the authorities of Russia shall have to pay over 600,000 euros to 87 military pensioners from Novocherkassk, Rostov Region.

The decision on the case "Streltsov and others 86 military pensioners from Novocherkassk versus Russia", named as such by the surname of the first applicant, was passed last week by the Strasbourg Court. Before that, for several years the claimants had tried to get their due money by suing the military commissariats of the city and region. Some of them demanded increased pensions in parallel to increase of army salaries, some - of payment of money equivalents of food rations, and others demanded both.

In spite of the fact that local courts passed decisions in favour of the applicants, almost none of them received their due money, either because of revision of some court's rulings through supervision (revision of enacted decisions) or because of non-enforcement of the decisions, the "Vremya Novostei" writes.

The very fact that the pensioners' cases had got into the supervisory proceedings was at once recognized in Strasbourg as a violation of their right to a fair trial. Besides, the European Court has noted that citizens shall not prove the legality of their demanded payments, while already having court orders in their hands, but the state shall pay its debts to citizens.

According to the decision of the ECtHR, Russia shall pay 2000 euros to each of the applicants as compensation of moral harm and compensate their material damage, which varies from 495 to 20,479 euros. Thus, the total compensation of moral harm makes 174,000 euros, and of material damage - 494,336 euros, the "NEWSru.com" reports.

Two out of 87 military pensioners of Novocherkassk, who lodged their complaints to the Strasbourg Court, died before the decision was passed - the compensations will be paid to their relatives.