Saint-Petersburg City court heard the appeal case on refusal of the local General Office of the Ministry of Justice to register LGBT and feminist organisation "Gender-L" but has made a decision to leave in force the previous verdict of the Oktyabrskiy lower court delivered earlier in September.
According to that judgement the "Gender-L" is obliged to bring into its Charter few minor amendments requested by the Ministry of Justice. All other objections of the General Office were considered illegal. City court did not object in any way the organisation's registration under the home address of its organiser. It was a precedent for Saint-Petersburg Registrar office because until now no one could register non-profit organisation under the home residence address of its organisers.
The Nationwide Civil Network (automatic translation of website) notes that the position of the representative of the local Justice Office has embarrassed all who attended the case, because the representative of the Ministry of Justice (the executive power body that examines all documents given for the registration on its conformity to acting laws) did not follow the letter of the law. To be precise, Registration official in her word to the justices stressed the fact that "Gender-L" is "established for rendering of sexual services for group of people with non-traditional sexual orientation and asked the judges to take that fact into consideration of the case".
Notwithstanding that opposing remark the high court has made its decision, not taking into consideration the justice official's requests, because the panel of judges did not see any prove for such allegations in the Charter of "Gender-L".
Translated by Yerdna Bananes