228_52 substantive_scope 52. As regards the first ground relied on by the Administrative Court, the Court reiterates in this connection that, although it is not a priori contrary to the spirit of Article 11 if, for reasons of public order and national security, a High Contracting Party requires that the holding of meetings be subject to authorisation, an unlawful situation, such as the staging of a demonstration without prior authorisation, does not per se justify an infringement of freedom of assembly. While rules governing public assemblies, such as the system of prior notification, are essential for the smooth conduct of public events since they allow the authorities to minimise disruption to traffic and take other safety measures, their enforcement cannot become an end in itself. In particular, where irregular demonstrators do not engage in acts of violence, the Court has required public authorities to show a certain degree of tolerance towards peaceful gatherings if the freedom of assembly BARSEGHYAN v. ARMENIA JUDGMENT 14guaranteed by Article 11 of the Convention is not to be deprived of all substance (see, among other authorities, Oya Ataman v. Turkey, no. 74552/01, §§ 39 and 42, ECHR 2006-XIV, and Kasparov and Others v. Russia, no. 21613/07, § 91, 3 October 2013). The appropriate “degree of tolerance” cannot be defined in abstracto: the Court must look at the particular circumstances of the case and particularly the extent of the “disruption of ordinary life” (see Primov and Others v. Russia, no. 17391/06, § 145, 12 June 2014). The Court has found, for example, that, in special circumstances when an immediate response to a political event in the form of a demonstration might be justified, a decision to disband the ensuing, peaceful assembly solely because of the absence of the requisite prior notice, without any illegal conduct by the participants, amounts to a disproportionate restriction on freedom of peaceful assembly (see Bukta and Others v. Hungary, no. 25691/04, § 36, ECHR 2007-III).