Detention and arrest of an individual accused of defrauding a state-owned horse company

Facts

The author of the communication is a national of Turkmenistan who formerly served as the director of a state-owned horse breeding company. He was arrested without a warrant by officers of the Ministry of National Security and held incommunicado for at least eight days, during which time his family was not informed of his whereabouts. He claims he was subjected to psychological pressure and threats of torture to force him to confess to having defrauded the state-owned company, and after his younger brother was arrested and allegedly tortured, he was coerced into making a public confession on national television. Following the confession, he suffered a heart attack and partial paralysis. He was convicted of abuse of office and sentenced to six years in a general regime prison, but was later transferred without a court order to a strict regime facility, where he was held in harsh, unsanitary, and isolated conditions. He lost a significant amount of weight, was denied access to adequate medical care, and was not permitted contact with his family for several months. He was released in 2007 under an amnesty but remained under a travel ban until 2015. The author claims that his transfer to the strict regime prison was in reprisal for complaints submitted by his wife, and that authorities confiscated and demolished his house and horse stables. Despite the Committee’s requests, the State party has failed to provide any information with regard to the admissibility or the merits of the author’s claims.

The author alleged violations of the Covenant in connection with his arbitrary arrest, incommunicado detention, and harsh prison conditions. He invoked article 7 and 10 (1) for inhuman treatment and poor detention conditions, article 9 (1) and 9 (4) for being detained without a warrant or prompt judicial review, and article 12 (2) for being barred from leaving the country. He also cited article 17 for interference with his family life, and article 14 (1), (3) (g), and (5) for being denied a fair trial, including being forced to confess and lacking the right to appeal.

Admissibility

The Committee considers that the facts as presented by the author raise issues under articles 7, 9 (1) and (4), 10 (1) and 12 (2) of the Covenant. The Committee notes that the author’s claim pertaining to being cut off from his family for five months in prison falls under article 10 (1), rather than article 17, of the Covenant, and will consider it under that article. The Committee notes that the author’s claims under article 14 (5), 14 (1) and (3) (g) are inadmissible due to insufficient substantiation.

Merits

The Committee considers that the facts disclose a violation by the State of article 7, 9 (1) and (4), 10 (1) and 12 (2) of the Covenant. The Committee considers that the fact that the author was arrested without an arrest warrant and was held incommunicado for at least seven days makes his detention arbitrary. The length of custody without judicial authorization also should not exceed a few days; therefore, the circumstances of the author’s detention violate articles 9 (1) and (4) of the Covenant. The author has provided a detailed account of the conditions of his detention, and the Committee considers that the author’s conditions of detention as described violated his right to be treated with humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person. The Committee finds that the author’s poor state of health made the generally inadequate conditions of detention even more unbearable for the author, and as such, the author’s detention in prison amounted to a violation of articles 7 and 10 (1) of the Covenant. The Committee further finds that holding the author in incommunicado detention, without the possibility of communicating with his family, violated his rights under article 10 (1) of the Covenant. Finally, with respect to the author’s claims that he has been prevented from leaving Turkmenistan, the Committee finds that, in the absence of information from the State party to explain or justify the restriction, it can conclude that there has been a violation of article 12 of the Covenant.

Recommendations

The State party should, inter alia:

• (a) make full reparation to individuals whose Covenant rights have been violated;
• (b) provide the author with adequate compensation for the violation of his rights; and
• (c) take all steps necessary to prevent similar violations from occurring in the future.

Implementation

Deadline for implementation: 9 January 2025