ACTING HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS ASKS UZBEK GOVERNMENT NOT TO CARRY OUT DEATH SENTENCES IN CASES UNDER INTERNATIONAL APPEAL

4 July 2003




Acting High Commissioner for Human Rights Bertrand Ramcharan has asked the Uzbek Government not to carry out the execution of detainees who have appealed their convictions to the United Nations Human Rights Committee.

In a 4 July letter to the Government, Mr. Ramcharan recalls that the Committee, an 18-member panel of independent experts, has requested stays of execution in relation to a number of prisoners while it considers their petitions. The acting High Commissioner notes that during his visit to Uzbekistan last March, he underlined the importance of respecting such interim measures of protection issued by human rights treaty bodies.

Mr. Ramcharan indicates that some of the cases have also been brought to the Government's attention by Special Procedures of the Commission on Human Rights.

Mr. Ramcharan urges the Government to make all necessary efforts in order to ensure strict observance of its international human rights obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and its Optional Protocol and to cooperate fully with the Special Procedures. He advises that the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights stands ready to assist the Government in addressing this matter.




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