CASE OF MARGUŠ v. CROATIA
Hearing: Marguš v. Croatia (no. 4455/10) (Grand Chamber hearing, 2013-06-26 00:00:00)
Application no.: 4455/10
Document type: GRANDCHAMBER
Document date: 2014-05-27 00:00:00
ECLI: ECLI:CE:ECHR:2014:0527JUD000445510
Respondent state: HRV
Articles of the Convention: 2;3;6;6-1;6-3-c;35;35-3;P7-4
Judges: Anatoly Kovler;André Potocki;Angelika Nußberger;Ann Power-Forde;Corneliu Bîrsan;Dean Spielmann;Dmitry Dedov;Elisabeth Steiner;Erik Møse;Guido Raimondi;Helena Jäderblom;Ineta Ziemele;Isabelle Berro-Lefèvre;Ján Šikuta;Josep Casadevall;Khanlar Hajiyev;Kristina Pardalos;Krzysztof Wojtyczek;Linos-Alexandre Sicilianos;Mark Villiger;Nebojša Vučinić;Peer Lorenzen;Zdravka Kalaydjieva;Ksenija Turković
Represented by: SABOLIC P.
Issue: General Amnesty Act of 24 September 1996 (Official Gazette no. 80/1996, Zakon o općem oprostu) 
Strasbourg case-law cited: Abdülsamet Yaman v. Turkey, no. 32446/96, § 55, 2 November 2004;Al-Adsani v. the United Kingdom [GC], no. 35763/97, § 55, ECHR 2001-XI;Andronicou and Constantinou v. Cyprus, 9 October 1997, § 171, Reports 1997-VI;Austin and Others v. the United Kingdom [GC], nos. 39692/09, 40713/09 and 41008/09, § 54, ECHR 2012;Craxi III v. Italy (dec.), no. 63226/00, 14 June 2001;Demir and Baykara v. Turkey [GC], no. 34503/97, § 67, ECHR 2008;Diennet v. France, 26 September 1995, Series A no. 325 A, § 38;Egmez v. Cyprus, no. 30873/96, § 71, ECHR 2000-XII;El Masri v. “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” [GC], no. 39630/09, § 182, ECHR 2012;Ferrantelli and Santangelo v. Italy, 7 August 1996, § 59, Reports 1996 III;Gradinger v. Austria, 19 May 1994, opinion of the Commission, §§ 67-69, Series A, no.  328-C;Harutyunyan v. Armenia (dec.), no. 34334/04, 7 December 2006;Hauschildt v. Denmark, 24 May 1989, § 50, Series A no. 154;Kaya v. Turkey, 19 February 1998, § 86, Reports 1998-I;McCann and Others v. the United Kingdom, 27 September 1995, Series A no. 324;Nada v. Switzerland [GC], no. 10593/08, § 169, ECHR 2012;Okkalı v. Turkey, no 52067/99, § 76, 17 October 2006;Ould Dah v. France (dec.), no. 13113/03, ECHR 2009;Rantsev v. Cyprus and Russia, no. 25965/04, §§ 273-74, ECHR 2010 (extracts);Ringeisen v. Austria, 16 July 1971, Series A no. 13, § 97;Romero Martin v. Spain (dec.), no. 32045/03, 12 June 2006;Saadi v. the United Kingdom [GC], no. 13229/03, § 62, ECHR 2008;Sergey Zolotukhin v. Russia [GC], no. 14939/03, § 82, ECHR 2009;Smirnova and Smirnova v. Russia (dec.), nos. 46133/99 and 48183/99, 3 October 2002;Solomou and Others v. Turkey, no. 36832/97, § 63, 24 June 2008;Stec and Others v. the United Kingdom (dec.) [GC], nos. 65731/01 and 65900/01, § 48, ECHR 2005-X;Thomann v. Switzerland, 10 June 1996, §§ 35-36, Reports of Judgments and Decisions 1996 III;Turan Cakir v. Belgium, no. 44256/06, § 69, 10 March 2009;Vaillant v. France, no. 30609/04, §§ 29-35, 18 December 2008;Yeşil and Sevim v. Turkey, no. 34738/04, § 38, 5 June 2007
External sources: International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, Furundžija case, judgment of 10 December 1998;UN Human Rights Committee, General Comment 20, Article 7 (Forty-fourth session, 1992);UN Human Rights Committee, Concluding observations, Lebanon, 1 April 1997;UN Human Rights Committee, General Comment No. 31 [80], The Nature of the General Legal Obligation Imposed on States Parties to the Covenant, 26 May 2004;Article 31 § 3 (c) of the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties;Article 6 § 5 of the second Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions, relating to the protection of victims of non-international conflicts;Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Gomes Lund v. Brazil (judgment of 24 November 2010, Preliminary Objections, Merits, Reparations and Costs);Inter-American Court of Human Rights, The Massacres of El Mozote and Nearby Places v. El Salvador;1949 Geneva Conventions Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War;Article V of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide;Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment;Convention on the Non-Applicability of Statutory Limitations to War Crimes and Crimes against Humanity;Article 20 of the Statute of the International Criminal Court;International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;European Parliament, Resolution A3-0056/93, 12 March 1993;Fifth report, UN Doc. E/CN.4/1998/38, 24 December 1997;Article 1 of the American Convention on Human Rights;Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Case 10.287 (El Salvador), Report of 24 September 1992, Report on the situation of human rights in El Salvador, Doc. OEA/Ser.L/II.85 Doc. 28 rev. (1 June 1994) and Case 10.480 (El Salvador), Report of 27 January 1999

Conclusion: Preliminary objection dismissed (Article 35-3 - Ratione temporis);Remainder inadmissible;No violation of Article 6 - Right to a fair trial (Article 6 - Criminal proceedings;Article 6-1 - Impartial tribunal);No violation of Article 6 - Right to a fair trial (Article 6 - Criminal proceedings;Article 6-1 - Fair hearing;Article 6-3-c - Defence in person)
Separate opinion: TRUE