Anjali Sharma
GG News Bureau
UNITED NATIONS, 17th Feb. UN human rights office in Geneva on Friday said it was “appalled” over the death announced by Russian authorities of opposition leader Alexei Navalny in prison, called for an impartial and transparent independent investigation.
According to news media reports, Mr. Navalny, 47, had lost consciousness and could not be revived.
OHCHR spokesperson Liz Throssell said “If someone dies in the custody of the State, the presumption is that the State is responsible a responsibility that can only be rebutted through an impartial, thorough and transparent investigation carried out by an independent body.”
She called on Russia “to ensure such a credible investigation is carried out”.
OHCHR stated that any State has a heightened duty to protect the lives of individuals deprived of their liberty.
Ms. Throssell called on Russia to end its persecution of opposition politicians, human rights defenders and journalists, among others.
“All those who are held or have been sentenced to various prison terms in relation to the legitimate exercise of their rights, including the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and expression, should be immediately released and all charges against them dropped,” she said.
It stated that the Russian authorities like all States have a duty under international law to protect the lives of individuals deprived of their liberty. A comprehensive and independent investigation, including a full autopsy must be carried out as a matter of urgency.
Mr. Navalny was serving several sentences, including fresh charges of extremism announced in August, following his arrest in 2021, OHCHR said in a press release on his death.
Ms. Throssell said.OHCHR had “repeatedly raised serious concerns relating to the charges against Navalny and his repeated detention which appeared to be arbitrary,”.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk highlighted that the latest 19-year sentence raised questions about judicial harassment and instrumentalization of the court system for political purposes in Russia and called for Mr. Navalny’s release, Ms. Throssell said.
Mariana Katzarova, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Russia, issued an alert in December voiced concern over the enforced disappearance of Mr. Navalny, whose whereabouts and wellbeing were unknown after more than 10 days.
Mr. Navalny was transferred to the prison last December where he has died.
UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Alice Edwards said that several UN independent experts, privately and publicly urged the Russian Government to end the punitive conditions in which Mr. Navalny was held.
She said they had called for an investigation into credible allegations of torture against Mr. Navalny and told the authorities of the essential need for him to receive medical treatment, after his alleged poisoning in 2020, she added.
“That our appeals to the Kremlin were ignored so blatantly, and with such disregard for human life is a tragedy for Mr. Navalny, his family and supporters,” she said.
She added “It is also a bleak day for the rule of law, free expression and human rights.”
Mr. Navalny has been a vocal anti-corruption activist and critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, leading protests and garnering support, since early 2000.
He was hospitalized for injuries sustained from a poisoning that involved Novichok, a nerve agent developed by Russia during the cold war in 2020
The media reported that on Thursday, Mr. Navalny had appeared in court via video.
The news media noted that Mr. Navalny’s spokesperson was asking for confirmation and further details of his death.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is “shocked by the reported death”, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said at the briefing in New York.
“The Secretary-General calls for a full, credible and transparent investigation into the circumstances of Mr. Navalny’s reported death in custody,” Mr. Dujarric said.
Special Rapporteurs and other human rights experts are appointed by the UN Human Rights Council, are mandated to monitor and report on specific thematic issues or country situations.
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