Kavalyou's mother and sister filed a complaint to UN Human Rights Committee

Uladzislau Kavalyou's mother and sister have filed a complaint to the United Nations Human Rights Committee.

On December 15 the mother and sister of one of the two persons sentenced to death in Minsk metro terrorist attack case sent a message informing about violation of the right to life to the United Nations Human Rights Committee.

As BelaPAN was informed by a lawyer Raman Kislyak, who represents the authors of the complaint at the UN Human Rights Committee, the mother of the convicted, Lyubou Kavalyova, and his full sister Tatsyana Kozyar, inform that Uladzislauhimself cannot file a complaint, as the administration of the KGB remand prison, where he is kept, blocks passing a letter of delegation from him. As the women believe, they want to prevent his filing a complaint.

In an individual address to this independent international agency of investigation the mother and sister of Kavalyou write about violation of the principles of the fair trial. In particular, the trial based the guilty verdict on Kavalyou’s confessionary statements during the preliminary investigation, though, as considered by applicants, they had been obtained under duress.

At the court trial Kavalyou waived the evidence given earlier, and said he was not guilty, and that he had incriminated himself and Dzmitry Kanavalau.

The court granted all motions of the prosecution, and denied most motions of the defence. This fact demonstrates that the parties in the process are not equal, the relatives of Kavalyou write. According to mother and sister, when considering the criminal case, the court was not independent and unbiased, and besides, they believe that pressure had been exerted on the court.

"To my mind, the state violated the right of Kavalyou to challenge the conviction and the verdict at a higher authority, which is granted under Article 14 Part 5 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights", Kislyak comments on the situation.

"Under the international commitments of Belarus, a person could be sentenced to a capital punishment only in a trial where all minimal requirements of a fair trial are observed", the lawyer stated. "An execution after such a trial, which was falling short of such requirements, is viewed as an arbitrary deprivation of life and violation of the state’s obligations to a person. The grounds enumerated in the complaint are enough for registration of the application, and I hope that this message is to be registered".

On December 7 Uladzislau Kavalyou filed a petition for pardon addressed to Alyaksandr Lukashenka.

On November 30 the Supreme Court sentenced Dzmitry Kanavalau and Uladzislau Kavalyou to capital punishment without confiscation of property. Kavalyou was found guilty of malicious hooliganism, intentional destruction of property; illegal purchase, keeping and trafficking of explosives and explosive devices, failure to report about a preparing extremely grave crime, about committed extremely grave crime and a person who and committed it, about his whereabouts, and also of terrorism aiding.