By: Ryan Ockenden

Impunity Watch Staff Writer

STRASBOURG, France – On March 11, 2021, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) awarded compensation to Joseph Feilazoo after a nearly 13-yearlong immigration battle. In 2008, Mr. Feilazoo was sentenced to 12 years in prison in Malta for drug trafficking. He was also fined €50,000 but was unable to pay the fine. As a result, two years were added to his sentence.

In 2019, he was scheduled for release. He made it known that he intended to return to Spain, which is where he was living prior to his arrest in 2008. However, Spain refused his return. Shortly after his release, he was charged with violence against prison officers and was resentenced to imprisonment. The sentence was changed from imprisonment to deportation and a fine. Mr. Feilazoo could not pay that fine and Nigeria refused to issue a travel document for his deportation. Malta ultimately placed him in the Safi Barracks immigration detention center.

Mr. Feilazoo complained to the ECHR, based on European Convention of Human Rights, alleging violations of: (1) inhuman and degrading treatment; (2) denial of his right to liberty; and (3) denial of his right to individual petition. First, per the European Convention on Human Rights, Malta is required under Article 3 to provide detention conditions that respect human dignity and avoid unnecessary hardship. The ECHR found that Mr. Feilazoo was subjected to non-functioning toilets, pest infestations, solitary confinement without natural light for 77 days, no exercise, and was forced to be in proximity of people in COVID-19 quarantine. Thus, the ECHR found that Malta violated his Article 3 rights by keeping him in inhuman and unacceptable conditions.

Second, under Article 5, Malta is required to protect detainees against arbitrary interference of their right to liberty. The ECHR found that Maltese authorities had not diligently pursued the travel documentation from Nigerian officials; they essentially gave up on trying. Thus, the ECHR found Malta violated Mr. Feilazoo’s Article 5 rights by keeping him detained for a period of time beyond necessary to complete deportation proceedings.

Third, under Article 34, Malta is required to ensure that a detainee’s access to the courts and judicial process is uninhibited. Unfortunately, the ECHR found that Mr. Feilazoo had not been allowed to access his documentation which was needed to submit a complaint to the ECHR. In addition, there were insufficient lawyer-client contacts and Maltese authorities were found to have done nothing to rectify this except to blame COVID-19 for the issues. Thus, the ECHR found that Maltese authorities inhibited his right to petition.

This is the ECHR’s first ruling on COVID-19 related detention issues. The ECHR makes it clear that placing someone in unfair detention with people who were exposed to COVID-19, and blaming COVID-19 for preventing a detainee from accessing the necessary documents and legal assistance to access justice, is unacceptable. This should set precedent in the ECHR that COVID-19 is not an excuse to deny detainees, or anyone, any rights granted to them by the European Convention on Human Rights.

For further information, please see:

Council of Europe – Torture prevention committee calls on Malta to improve treatment of detained migrants – 10 Mar. 2021

European Court of Human Rights – Deportation Detainee Housed With COVID-19 Quarantine Patients, And Multiple Other Violations – 11 Mar. 2021

Times of Malta – Man Wins €25,000 Compensation For Degrading Treatment At Detention Centre – 11 Mar. 2021

By: Hannah Gavin

Impunity Watch Staff Writer

STRASBOURG, France – In February, the European Court of Human Rights (ECRH) stood in clear opposition against Russian leader Vladimir Putin by issuing a written statement calling for the release of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

Navalny has created a firestorm of opposition in recent months against Vladimir Putin and his regime. However, Navalny’s calls have been silenced as he sits in a Russian Prison. The ECHR stated in their press release that Navalny’s arrest was necessary for his own safety. The Court cited a recent attack on his life as the main catalyst for their opinion.

Navalny was arrested in mid-January on a return flight from Germany to Moscow. His flight to Russia was following his absence in the country for months following an extended hospital stay in Berlin. In late August of 2020, Navalny had been traveling on a flight from Siberia to Moscow when he suddenly fell into a coma. He was eventually taken to a hospital in Berlin where a Soviet-era nerve agent was found to have poisoned him. Although Putin has denied Navalny’s accusations that he was behind the poisoning, much of the World assumes Putin was involved. A week prior to his arrest, the Russian Prison Service issued a warrant for Navalny’s arrest stating that he violated the terms of a 2014 suspended sentence for embezzlement. This charge was already ruled on by the ECRH in 2017 and found to be unreasonable. Although the warrant was issued, Navalny believed his arrest would be “impossible” upon his arrival to Moscow and chose to fly back regardless. Since his arrest, Navalny has now also been charged with insulting a WWII veteran. Another move that many believe is meant to silence his opposition. 

In a nation long shut off from the progressing World in many respects, Navalny offered promises of globalism. His goal for Russia was simple, in theory. He wanted a European Russia. A nation connected with the whole of the continent and one that participated in free and fair commerce, communication, and travel. Navalny pushed against the Putin regime which has continued to rule without the true will of the people. For a younger generation of Russians and many of their elder cohorts, Navalny signaled change. However, despite his poisoning and arrest, Navalny continues to inspire. After his poisoning, last year and continuing to today, widespread and often violent protests have ignited across Russia. Navalny’s return to Russia amidst imminent threat only bolsters his supporters. Such an extreme show of bravery and care of Russia reminds the people that what they are fighting for is worth it.

However, regardless of how the ECRH or the globe has responded to Navalny’s arrest, Russia has a different tale. Top Russian officials described the ECRH release as unlawful and claimed it was the Western World attempting to meddle in a domestic issue. Russia’s Justice Minister said that the opinion was not based on even a single fact. He claimed there was no reason to release Navalny under Russian law. He further went on to say that the Court’s issue is impossible to fulfill and was a political move that only exacerbates an already strained relationship.

The implications for Russia’s arrest of Navalny extend beyond the obvious threat he posed to Putin’s grip on unwavering power. Navalny became the figurehead of a movement in Russia, the force of which has not been seen in decades. Navalny’s principals stood in stark opposition to those and gave millions in Russia a sense of hope for the future. With Russia facing potential expulsion from the European Council and sanctions by many Western nations, this may be a turning point for the country. Although Russia is notoriously secretive, the World will wait with bated breath to see if the ECHR ruling will hold any ground. Until then, Russian citizens supporting Navalny will continue to organize and fight for the nation at the center of it all.

For further information, please see:

AP News – Russia Rejects European Rights Court’s Order to Free Navalny – 17 Feb. 2021                     

DW News – ‘Release’ Alexei Navalny, European Court of Human Rights tells Russia – 17 Feb. 2021

DW News – Alexei Navalny: Prosecutors Urge Fine in Slander Case – 16 Feb. 2021

European Court of Human Rights – The Court Grants an Interim Measure in Favour of Aleskey Navalnyy and Asks the Government of Russia to Release him – 17 Feb. 2021

Politico – Kremlin Critic Navalny Arrested After Landing in Moscow – 17 Jan. 2021

Reuters – Russia Dismisses European Court of Human Rights’ Call to Free Navalny – 17 Feb. 2021

By: Rebecca Buchanan

Impunity Watch Staff Writer

STRASBOURG, France – On February 19, 2021, the Ukrainian Government lodged a new inter-state application with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), against the Russian Federation. The application concerns the Ukrainian Government’s allegations of routine state-sponsored assassinations by the Russian Government.

Inter-state applications allow countries to lodge complaints against one another, and they make up a minority of the cases handled by the ECHR. This is the ninth inter-state application made by Ukraine against Russia. In addition to the newest application, three cases between the two nations are currently pending before the Court.

The first of the three pending cases, Ukraine v. Russia (re Crimea), concerns human rights violations by the Russian Federation in Crimea from February 27, 2014, to August 26, 2015. The application alleges that the Russian Government’s conduct, during that period, violated 12 separate articles of the European Convention on Human Rights, including Article 2’s right to life and Article 3’s prohibition of inhumane treatment and torture. This application was declared partly admissible by the Grand Chamber on January 14, 2021, and a Grand Chamber judgment is expected shortly.

The second pending case, Ukraine and the Netherlands v. Russia, was joined by the Grand Chamber on November 27, 2020, combining three separate inter-state complaints against the Russian Federation. Notably, the joined case addresses the alleged abduction of three groups of Ukrainian children who were temporarily held in Russia from June to August 2014, and the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over Eastern Ukraine on July 17, 2014.

The third case, Ukraine v. Russia (VIII), concerns the capture of three Ukrainian Naval vessels in the Kerch Strait in November 2018. The Russian Government captured and held 24 Ukrainian sailors without communication with the Ukrainian Government. Ukraine alleges that the sailors were deprived of their liberty, were refused medical care, and were held without authority under International law. This case is currently pending before the First Section of the Court.

The Ukrainian Government’s newest inter-state complaint, registered under application no. 10691/21, alleges that Russian state-sanctioned assassination operations have targeted opponents of the Russian government within Russia and have extended into the territory of other nations. The application indicates complicity by the Russian Government in continuously covering-up and failing to investigate assassination operations. Ukraine alleges that these assassinations, and the Russian Government’s alleged complicity, violate both the procedural and substantive aspects of Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

February 20, 2021, marked the 7^th year anniversary of the outbreak of the Russo-Ukrainian War in the Crimean Peninsula. In addition to the inter-state applications, 7000 individual applications remain before the ECHR regarding Russian conduct in Ukraine. These applications allege various and extensive violations of the European Convention on Human Rights by the Russian Federation and map the increase in hostilities between the two nations. Proceedings regarding the newest inter-state application are pending and the Russian Federation has yet to submit written observations on its own behalf.

For further information, please see:

European Court of Human Rights – ECHR puts questions in new inter-State case brought by Ukraine against Russia – 30 Nov. 2020

European Court of Human Rights – European Court joins three inter-State applications – 04 Dec. 2020

European Court of Human Rights – Grand Chamber decision Ukraine v. Russia (re Crimea) – 14 Jan. 2021

European Court of Human Rights – New inter-state application brought by Ukraine against Russia – 23 Feb. 2021

European Court of Human Rights – Q & A on Inter-State Cases – Jan. 2021

Statecraft – Ukraine Lodges Ninth Complaint Against Russia at ECHR – 24 Feb. 2021

Unian – Zelensky: I think Putin understands Ukraine is big, independent country – 20 Jan. 2020