The following is based on a communication written by the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders and other UN experts to the Government of Russia on 21 July 2023. The communication remained confidential for 60 days before being made public, giving the Government time to reply. Regrettably, the Government did not reply within this time frame. If a reply is received it will be posted on the UN Special Procedures communications database.
On 10 July 2023, Emir-Usein Kuku was returned to prison from hospital, allegedly without receiving proper rehabilitation following the surgery he underwent in June. I remain concerned for his health in prison, and in particular his access to necessary medical examinations and a proper diet.
This is a shorter version of the original communication.
BACKGROUND
Topic: treatment and state of health of human rights defender Emir-Usein Kuku while in detention
Mr. Emir-Usein Kuku is a human rights defender, father of two, and Chairperson of the Crimean Contact Group on Human Rights, based in the city of Yalta, Crimea. The non-governmental organisation monitors human rights violations, provides legal support and investigates enforced disappearances. He is also a member of the Crimean Human Rights Movement and has advocated for the rights of Muslim ethnic minorities, including Crimean Tatars, who frequently face discrimination in the region. Mr. Kuku was arrested in 2016 for alleged membership of Hizb ut-Tahrir, and sentenced to 12-years imprisonment in November 2019 for “participation in the activities of a terrorist organisation” and “planning to violently seize state power”.
ALLEGATIONS
Since his detention in 2016, and following his conviction in 2019, Mr. Kuku’s state of health has substantially deteriorated, with issues arising concerning his eyesight, joints, teeth, kidneys, and weight. He has been repeatedly sanctioned by prison authorities, including being placed in solitary confinement for what appear to be minor infractions of prison rules. In these instances, the human rights defender has been held in a punishment cell located in a damp basement, where he is forced to either sit or stand between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m.
In September 2021, he was placed under heightened supervision, reportedly as a result of an event concerning the killing of a prison officer at a separate facility to that in which he is detained. One month later, in October 2021, while Mr. Kuku was being held in a punishment cell, his regular cell was raided and searched, with most of his belongings confiscated, including medicine.
On 21 June 2023, Mr. Kuku was hospitalised from a detention facility in Salavat, Russia, where he is currently being detained. It is reported he was suffering acute pain and kidney issues. He underwent surgery to treat an intestinal problem and at the time of finalising this communication was reported to be recuperating under medical observation at Salavat City Hospital No. 2, in the Bashkortostan Republic of the Russian Federation. The prison authorities did not inform the human rights defender’s family of his hospitalisation or health issues.
CONCERNS
In the communication, we express our grave concern at the ongoing detention of Mr. Kuku, including his alleged ill-treatment in prison. We reiterate our concerns previously communicated to your Excellency’s Government that Mr. Kuku has been targeted in retaliation for his peaceful and legitimate work in defense of human rights, and underline that his continued detention would strongly appear to amount to the instrumentalization of the narrative and measures connected to combatting terrorism to sanction and repress human rights defenders and the exercise of fundamental freedoms.
