CAAMAÑO VALLE v. SPAIN JUDGMENT
persons who are effectively unable to make a free and self-determined
electoral choice.
76. Having regard to the reasons for the exclusion of the applicant’s
daughter from the electoral process (see paragraphs 71-73 above), the Court
considers that the contested measure does not thwart the free expression of
the opinion of the people.
(δ) Conclusion
77. In the light of the above, the Court considers that the decision taken
by the domestic courts in the present case falls within the margin of
appreciation of the States to regulate the right to vote. The
disenfranchisement of the applicant’s daughter took place on the basis of
her personal circumstances and by means of judgments that were delivered
following a thorough analysis of her mental capacity. Contrary to the
applicant’s assertion, M. was not deprived of the right to vote simply
because she belonged to a certain group of persons. Her disenfranchisement
cannot be considered to thwart the free expression of the opinion of the
people in the choice of the legislature.
78. Having regard to the foregoing, the Court concludes that there has
been no violation of Article 3 of Protocol No. 1 to the Convention.
(c) Alleged violation of Article 14 of the Convention in conjunction with
Article 3 of Protocol No. 1, and of Article 1 of Protocol No. 12
79. The Court has stated that, in spite of the difference in scope between
Article 14 of the Convention and Article 1 of Protocol No. 12 to the
Convention, the meaning of the notion of “discrimination” in Article 1 of
Protocol No. 12 is intended to be identical to that in Article 14 (see
paragraphs 18 and 19 of the Explanatory Report to Protocol No. 12). In
applying the same term under Article 1 of Protocol No. 12, the Court
therefore sees no reason to depart from the established interpretation of
“discrimination”. It can be inferred that, in principle, the same standards
developed by the Court in its case-law concerning the protection afforded
by Article 14 are applicable to cases brought under Article 1 of Protocol
No. 12 (see Napotnik v. Romania, no. 33139/13, § 69 and 70, 20 October
2020).
80. The Court reiterates that in the enjoyment of the rights and freedoms
guaranteed by the Convention, Article 14 affords protection against
different treatment, without objective and reasonable justification, of
individuals in analogous, or relevantly similar, situations. In other words,
the requirement to demonstrate an analogous position does not require that
the comparator groups be identical. For the purposes of Article 14, a
difference in treatment is discriminatory if it “has no objective and
reasonable justification” – that is to say if it does not pursue a “legitimate
aim” or if there is not a “reasonable relationship of proportionality” between
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