The European Court of Human Rights has rejected the complaint of the Russian singer Philipp Kirkorov over being banned from entering the territory of Lithuania.
In its ruling, the European Court said that Lithuania’s decision to ban Kirkorov was not arbitrary or without basis, and at the same time, it stressed that the decision had been based on reasoned data, SchengenVisaInfo reports.
Overall, the Court found that the Lithuanian authorities’ assessment, which had been based on the applicant’s statements and behaviour, had not been arbitrary or without basis.
Lithuania Banned Kirkorov for 5 Years in 2021
Lithuania decided to ban Kirkorov for a period of five years in 2021 as he was considered a threat to national security.
According to the Lithuanian authorities, Kirkorov is a “soft power” tool since he has had a significant influence on Russia and other former Soviet states.
Moreover, the authorities found that Kirkorov supported Russia’s aggression policy by holding concerts in Crimea. Thus, Lithuania decided to ban him from entering the country for five years.
In the same year, Kirkorov appealed against the ban, arguing in court that he was only an artist focused on themes of human relationships, love, and nature.
However, the Lithuania migration authorities reiterated their argument for the ban in their submissions to the court.
The migration authorities specified that Kirkorov had made public statements glorifying the annexation of Crimea and also referred to himself as Vladimir Putin’s “representative on stage.”
Taking into account the above-mentioned, Kirkorov’s appeal was dismissed by the Supreme Administrative Court. The latter found that his behaviour justified the ban.
The same further said that the ban was not disproportionate as Kirkorov had no family, social, or economic ties to Lithuania, and he was not restricted from performing in the other EU member states.
European Court Found That Kirkorov’s Ban Was Not Disproportionate
Considering Kirkorov’s appeal and the arguments from the Lithuanian migration authorities, the European Court of Human Rights came with an official decision this week.
The European Court said that Kirkorov had not denied supporting Russia’s actions in the Crimean peninsula. The same stressed that the ban was imposed only after hearing about Kirkorov’s position.
Based on this, the European Court ruled that there was nothing on the case that suggested that Lithuania had unlawfully banned Kirkorov.
The Court declared the applicant’s complaint under Article 10 inadmissible as manifestly ill-founded.
The same stressed that Lithuania’s national courts as well as the EU Parliament, had acknowledged the need to expose Russian disinformation.
