By Madeline Schiesser
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe
MINSK, Belarus – When Lyubou Kavalyova’s son was executed last March, all she received from the authorities was a letter from the Belarusian Supreme Court containing his death certificate. A year later, Mrs. Kavalyova still does not know the whereabouts of her son’s remains because of an article in Belarus’ Criminal Executive Code that allows the government to not communicate the burial place of those executed to their relatives.
Mrs. Kavalyova’s son, Uladzslau Kavalyou, and his friend, Dzmitry Kanavalau, both born in 1986, were executed last year in Belarus after having been sentenced to death for an April 2011 subway bombing in Minsk that killed 15 people and wounded more than 300, and two earlier bombings.
Independent investigators, including some from Russia, expressed serious doubts about the evidence used to convict the men. Their trial was also heavily criticized for failing to meet international fair trial standards.
Mrs. Kavalyova announced at a press conference in Minsk on Wednesday her hope that Belarusian authorities would release her son’s body as she marks the first anniversary since his execution.
Alternatively, according to human rights defender Rasman Kisliak, authorities should release the burial location of the men’s bodies. Kisliak further explained that, “It is necessary to find out who had conducted the execution in order to plan future activities and find from whom to demand answers.” He also spoke of plans to demand the annulment of the law under which relatives of deceased convicts are refused access to the body.
The family of Dzmitry Kanavalau has declined to communicate with the press, and human rights activists believe they have been intimidated into silence. Activist Pavel Levinau claims “[T]he whole Kanavalaus family were arrested after the arrest of Dzmitry – an elder brother and the father. They were kept in custody, as far as I remember, for about three months. Only the mother remained free – a woman who was intimidated. I can only guess what psychological pressure was put on her. Probably psychological and physical pressure was put on other relatives of Dzmitry Kanavalau’s as well. Probably, they were even promised something if they keep silent.”
Belarus remains the only nation in Europe to still sentence people to death. Prisoners are informed of their pending execution only hours, or even minutes in advance, and the executions are carried out with a shot to the back of the head.
“The death penalty is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment and a human rights violation. Failing to return the bodies of these two men compounds that cruelty,” said David Diaz-Jogeix, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Europe and Central Asia.
“The complete secrecy surrounding the death penalty denies families the opportunity to bury their relatives according to their traditions and religious beliefs . . . It is unacceptable that authorities in Belarus would not even reveal the burial site to the families, and ban them from saying goodbye to their loved ones,” he further stated.
On Friday, Russia rejected Amnesty International’s request to demonstrate against executions in front of the Belarusian Embassy in Moscow. Although authorities offered Amnesty International two alternative sites to hold the demonstration, Amnesty International rejected them as remote and having nothing to do with the subject of the protest.
For further information, please see:
Chapter’97 – Pavel Levinau: Kanavalau’s Family Does Not Get in Touch Because of Threats of Special Services – 15 March 2013
RFE/RL – Amnesty International Refused Permission For Belarus Embassy Protest In Moscow – 15 March 2013
Viasna – A Year Has Passed Since the Execution of Kanavalau and Kavaliou: Human Rights Defenders Put New Questions – 15 March 2013
Amnesty International – Belarus: After Death, the Cruelty Continues as Bodies of Two Executed Men Still Hidden – 14 March 2013
RFE/RL – Mother Of Belarusian Executed For Terrorism Wants Son’s Body – 13 March 2013
