160_29 substantive_scope 29. The applicants submitted that their protest action had been a peaceful one. The participants had entered the President’s Administration building with the aim of handing over a petition addressed to the President’s Advisor and of drawing his attention to human rights violations in Russia. They had not destroyed any property; the property had been in fact damaged by the arresting police officers. The participants in the protest had moreover compensated the damage in full. In those circumstances, their arrest, remand in custody for a year and the sentences imposed on them had been disproportionate to any legitimate aim. They had been persecuted for their political opinion and their membership of an opposition association.