09/07/2024 Legal Affairs and Human Rights
Sunna Ævarsdóttir (Iceland, SOC), PACE’s General Rapporteur for Political Prisoners and Rapporteur for follow-up on The arbitrary detention of Vladimir Kara-Murza and the systematic persecution of anti-war protesters in the Russian Federation, has expressed deep concern at the situation of Russian opposition politician and historian Vladimir Kara-Murza.
“On 4 July, Mr Kara-Murza’s lawyers attempted to visit him in a detention centre in Omsk, after having been out of contact since 2 July. The Russian authorities informed the lawyers that Mr Kara-Murza had been moved to a hospital earlier that day. The authorities provided no explanation for the transfer to hospital, or information about Mr Kara-Murza’s health. Since then, his lawyers have tried to visit him repeatedly, but have been refused entry to the hospital,” Ms Ævarsdóttir said.
“Prior to his unlawful arrest, Mr Kara-Murza was already suffering from polyneuropathy after attempted poisonings by the Russian authorities. This condition severely deteriorated during his detention and imprisonment.
It is absolutely unacceptable to deliberately prevent a family from knowing why their loved one is in hospital and what his current state of health is. Following the death of Alexei Navalny in prison earlier this year, there are widespread fears that the Russian regime is arranging for its most prominent critics to die behind bars.
I am deeply concerned by this chilling act of inhumanity. I urge the Russian authorities to grant Mr Kara-Murza’s lawyers access to him in hospital and once again call on the authorities to ensure Mr Kara-Murza’s immediate release, in line with our past resolutions.
I also call on the UK and US authorities to use diplomatic channels to inquire about Vladimir Kara-Murza’s health and make every effort to secure his release, also on humanitarian grounds.”