PART 2: How to Bring a Case to the Court racial discrimination and violence. The information and the arguments submitted by these NGOs were summarised in the judgment.121 Whereas the information submitted by the ERRC provided background information for the Court about the problems facing Roma in Bulgaria, the arguments submitted by INTERIGHTS led the Court to explain its reliance on the standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt and to address – for the first time in its history – the criticisms which have been levelled against the Court for its insistence on this high standard of proof. Finally, it cannot be excluded that the OSJI’s amicus brief had some bearing on the Court’s conclusion that “the authorities’ duty to investigate the existence of a possible link between racist attitudes and an act of violence is an aspect of their procedural obligations arising under Article 2 of the Convention, but may also be seen as implicit in their responsibilities under Article 14 of the Convention taken in conjunction with Article 2 to secure the enjoyment of the right to life without discrimination.” 122 For further reference, the joint intervention of the AIRE Centre, INTERIGHTS, Amnesty International, the Association for the Prevention of Torture, Human Rights Watch, the International Commission of Jurists, and Redress in the case of Ramzy v. the Netherlands123 is reprinted in the Appendices. 2.1.15 Written Pleadings a) Governments Observations If the application has been communicated to the respondent State, the Government will submit its observations on the case. The respondent Government will in most cases submit its observations in one of the official languages of the Court, i.e. English or French. However, the President of the Chamber may invite the respondent Contracting Party to provide a translation into an official language of that Party in order to facilitate the applicant’s understanding of those submissions.124 An applicant may make a request to that effect. Furthermore, the President of the Chamber may also ask the respondent State to provide a translation into, or a summary in, English or French of all or certain annexes to its written submissions or of any other relevant documents.125 In the alternative, the applicant can arrange for the translation of the respondent Contracting Party’s observations and of any documents and subsequently claim the costs under Article 41 of the Convention.126 121 122 123 124 125 126 Ibid., §§ 59 and 138–143. Ibid., § 161. Ramzy v. the Netherlands, no. 25424/05, 20 July 2010. Rule 34 § 5 of the Rules of Court. Rule 34 § 4 (c) of the Rules of Court. See section 2.1.20. 59