PROCEDURE

The case originated in an application (no. 77741/01) against the Republic of Poland lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) by a Polish national, Mr Roman Piekara (“the applicant”), on 17 October 2000.

The Polish Government (“the Government”) were represented by their Agents, Mr K. Drzewicki, and subsequently, Mr J. Wołąsiewicz of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

On 5 June 2003 the President of the Fourth Section decided to communicate the complaint concerning the length of the proceedings to the Government. Under the provisions of Article 29 § 3 of the Convention, it was decided to examine the merits of the application at the same time as its admissibility. The President of the Chamber further gave priority to the application, pursuant to Rule 41 of the Rules of the Court.

THE FACTS

The applicant was born in 1920 and lives in Łódź, Poland.

On an unspecified date in 1992 the applicant asked the Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office (Urząd do Spraw Kombatantów i Osób Represjonowanych) to grant him “veteran status.”

The President of the Office informed the applicant that his application was not complete and should be submitted first to a local veterans association.

On 2 October 1993, after having contacted the Łódź District Veterans Association, the applicant lodged for the second time an application with the Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office concerning his “veteran status.”

The Office failed to issue a decision and informed the applicant that he should first lodge an application with the World Veteran Association.

On 25 February 1994 the applicant lodged a complaint about the inactivity of the Office with the Supreme Administrative Court. On 24 June 1994 the Supreme Administrative Court allowed his complaint and ordered the Office to give a decision within two months. The court established that the applicant’s application of 2 October 1993 had satisfied legal requirements and that the Office should have given a decision on merits instead of asking the applicant to fulfil other conditions.

On 8 February and 3 April 1995 the Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office requested the applicant to submit additional documents concerning his case. The applicant complied with the requests.

On 4 July 1995 the President of the Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office gave a decision in which he refused to grant the applicant “veteran status”. The Office found that the applicant had failed to provide evidence of his participation in the Polish Defence War in September 1939.

The applicant lodged a complaint against this decision with the Supreme Administrative Court.

On 5 March 1996 the Supreme Administrative Court quashed the impugned decision and remitted the case to the first-instance authority. The court found that the Office had not examined the case properly and, in particular, had not heard the applicant despite his several applications and had not heard other soldiers who had allegedly fought with him.

Since the Office had failed to give a decision, on 11 July 1996 the applicant complained about this inactivity to the Supreme Administrative Court. At the hearing held on 10 January 1997 the Supreme Administrative Court gave judgment in which it dismissed the allegations concerning the inactivity of the authority since it established that the Office had been collecting additional evidence in the applicant’s case.

On 28 May 1997 the applicant lodged another complaint with the Supreme Administrative Court alleging inactivity on the part of the President of the Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office. On 6 February 1998, the Supreme Administrative Court discontinued the proceedings because in the meantime, on 3 December 1997, the President had given a decision. In this decision the President of the Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office again dismissed the applicant’s application to grant him “veteran status.”

On 16 December 1997 the applicant appealed against this decision by lodging an application for the case to be reconsidered by the President of the Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office.

On 24 June 1998 the President of the Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office dismissed the applicant’s appeal.

The applicant lodged a complaint against this decision with the Supreme Administrative Court.

On 4 April 2000 the Supreme Administrative Court dismissed the complaint. The applicant was notified about this decision on 23 June 2000.
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check
001-61822_a6_e1
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CODE
DIRECT
77741/01
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correct
001-61822_a6_e2
001-61822_a6_em2
ORG
NO_MASK
Republic of Poland
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001-61822_a6_e2
001-61822_a6_em3
DEM
QUASI
Polish
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001-61822_a6_e3
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PERSON
DIRECT
Mr Roman Piekara
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001-61822_a6_e4
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DATETIME
QUASI
17 October 2000
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correct
001-61822_a6_e2
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ORG
NO_MASK
001-61822_a6_em2
Polish
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001-61822_a6_e2
001-61822_a6_em7
ORG
QUASI
001-61822_a6_em2
Polish
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001-61822_a6_e5
001-61822_a6_em8
PERSON
QUASI
Mr K. Drzewicki
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PERSON
QUASI
Mr J. Wołąsiewicz
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001-61822_a6_e7
001-61822_a6_em10
DATETIME
QUASI
5 June 2003
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001-61822_a6_e8
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DATETIME
QUASI
1920
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001-61822_a6_e9
001-61822_a6_em12
LOC
QUASI
Łódź, Poland
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001-61822_a6_e10
001-61822_a6_em13
DATETIME
QUASI
1992
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insert
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001-61822_a6_em14
ORG
QUASI
Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office
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insert
001-61822_a6_e11
001-61822_a6_em15
ORG
QUASI
001-61822_a6_em14
Urząd do Spraw Kombatantów i Osób Represjonowanych
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001-61822_a6_e12
001-61822_a6_em16
DATETIME
QUASI
2 October 1993
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001-61822_a6_e13
001-61822_a6_em17
ORG
QUASI
Łódź District Veterans Association
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001-61822_a6_e11
001-61822_a6_em18
ORG
QUASI
Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office
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001-61822_a6_e14
001-61822_a6_em19
ORG
QUASI
World Veteran Association
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001-61822_a6_e15
001-61822_a6_em20
DATETIME
QUASI
25 February 1994
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001-61822_a6_e16
001-61822_a6_em21
ORG
NO_MASK
Supreme Administrative Court
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001-61822_a6_e17
001-61822_a6_em22
DATETIME
QUASI
24 June 1994
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001-61822_a6_e16
001-61822_a6_em23
ORG
NO_MASK
Supreme Administrative Court
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001-61822_a6_e18
001-61822_a6_em24
DATETIME
QUASI
two months
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DATETIME
QUASI
2 October 1993
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DATETIME
QUASI
8 February and 3 April 1995
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ORG
QUASI
Persecuted Persons’ Office
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001-61822_a6_em28
DATETIME
QUASI
4 July 1995
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001-61822_a6_e11
001-61822_a6_em29
ORG
QUASI
Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office
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correct
001-61822_a6_e22
001-61822_a6_em30
ORG
QUASI
Polish Defence War
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001-61822_a6_e23
001-61822_a6_em31
DATETIME
QUASI
September 1939
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001-61822_a6_em32
ORG
NO_MASK
Supreme Administrative Court
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001-61822_a6_e24
001-61822_a6_em33
DATETIME
QUASI
5 March 1996
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001-61822_a6_e16
001-61822_a6_em34
ORG
NO_MASK
Supreme Administrative Court
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001-61822_a6_e25
001-61822_a6_em35
DATETIME
QUASI
11 July 1996
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001-61822_a6_e16
001-61822_a6_em36
ORG
NO_MASK
Supreme Administrative Court
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001-61822_a6_e26
001-61822_a6_em37
DATETIME
QUASI
10 January 1997
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001-61822_a6_e16
001-61822_a6_em38
ORG
NO_MASK
Supreme Administrative Court
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001-61822_a6_e27
001-61822_a6_em39
DATETIME
QUASI
28 May 1997
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001-61822_a6_e16
001-61822_a6_em40
ORG
NO_MASK
Supreme Administrative Court
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001-61822_a6_e11
001-61822_a6_em41
ORG
QUASI
Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office
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001-61822_a6_e28
001-61822_a6_em42
DATETIME
QUASI
6 February 1998
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001-61822_a6_e16
001-61822_a6_em43
ORG
NO_MASK
Supreme Administrative Court
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001-61822_a6_e29
001-61822_a6_em44
DATETIME
QUASI
3 December 1997
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001-61822_a6_e11
001-61822_a6_em45
ORG
QUASI
Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office
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001-61822_a6_e30
001-61822_a6_em46
DATETIME
QUASI
16 December 1997
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001-61822_a6_e11
001-61822_a6_em47
ORG
QUASI
Veterans and Persecuted Persons’ Office
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001-61822_a6_e31
001-61822_a6_em48
DATETIME
QUASI
24 June 1998
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001-61822_a6_e20
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ORG
QUASI
Persecuted Persons’ Office
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001-61822_a6_em50
ORG
NO_MASK
Supreme Administrative Court
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001-61822_a6_e32
001-61822_a6_em51
DATETIME
QUASI
4 April 2000
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001-61822_a6_e16
001-61822_a6_em52
ORG
NO_MASK
Supreme Administrative Court
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001-61822_a6_e33
001-61822_a6_em53
DATETIME
QUASI
23 June 2000
Roman Piekara
POL
CHAMBER
Task: Annotate the document to anonymise the following person: Roman Piekara