Facts: The applicants were Refah Partisi (“RP”), a Turkish political party, its chairman and two other members. The RP was accused of being "a centre of activities against the principle of secularism" and was thereby dissolved and had its assets transferred to the Treasury by an order of the Constitutional Court. The other applicants were banned from their sitting in Parliament and holding certain other forms of political office.

Complaint: The applicants complained of a violation of Article11 (freedom of association) of the European Convention on Human Rights

Holding: no violation of article 11.

Reasoning: Even when campaigning for changes constitutional structures of the State, political parties continued to enjoy the protection of the provisions of the Convention and of Article 11 if their actions are consistent with democratic principles. Even if States' margin of appreciation was narrow in the area of the dissolution of political parties, here the RP’s intentions were unclear and might have jeopardized civil peace and the country's democratic regime because the leaders had declared their intention to establish a system of law in contrast to the values embodied in the Convention. Accordingly, the sanctions imposed on the applicants met the social need for the protection of democratic society and were justified and not in violation of article 11.

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