Human rights mission calls on Belarusian authorities to comply with international treaties on treatment of prisoners
The Observation Mission of the International Committee for
Monitoring the Human Rights Situation in Belarus has expressed “deep
concern” about the reported maltreatment of Dzmitry Bandarenka, Mikita
Likhavid and Andrey Sannikaw who are serving prison sentences after
being convicted in connection with the December 19, 2010 post-election
protest in Minsk.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the
Observation Mission accused the Belarusian authorities of violating UN
treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights that contains an express right to humane treatment in detention,
the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment and the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment
of Prisoners adopted by the UN Congress on the Prevention of Crime and
the Treatment of Offenders in 1955.
The Observation Mission is
particularly concerned about reports that young post-election protester
Mikita Likhavid has repeatedly been placed in a disciplinary cell,
former presidential candidate Andrey Sannikaw fears for his life after
being subjected to torture while in pre-trial detention, while his
ailing associate Dzmitry Bandarenka has been forced to give his consent
to back surgery that would not be followed by a proper rehabilitation
course.
The Observation Mission has demanded an urgent
investigation into all the reports of the cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment of the prisoners and called on the Belarusian authorities to
allow Mr. Bandarenka a consultation with competent doctors and ensure
that he will undergo proper rehabilitation following the operation.
It also demanded that the authorities comply with international standards for the treatment of prisoners and detainees.
“We
believe that Belarus should contribute to the adoption of complex
measures against torture in prisons by signing the Optional Protocol to
the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment and applying to the Committee of Ministers of
the Council of Europe for admission to the European Convention for the
Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment,”
the Observation Mission added. //BelaPAN
