The UN Committee against Torture assessed the situation of the observance of human rights based on the sixth periodical report of the Russian Federation, IPN reports, with reference to Promo-LEX Association.
Given that at the session to review the Republic of Moldova of 2017, the UN Committee against Torture ascertained Moldova’s incapacity to effectively control the Transnistrian region, which hampers the implementation of the United Nations Convention against Torture in this region, while the recognition of a “legal vacuum” in the region or of a “black hole” in the European legal space is inadmissible, Promo-LEX, in partnership with the World Organization Against Torture, presented to the Committee’s experts a report on Russia’s extraterritorial obligation to ensure the protection of the right not to be subject to torture and inhuman or degrading treatment in the Transnistrian region. The report draws attention to the fact that the state’s extraterritorial obligations to prevent torture and inhuman or degrading treatment is applied even when the states indirectly or directly exert effective control over persons or territories.
When reviewing the Russian Federation, for the first time the experts of the Committee raised the subject of Russia’s extraterritorial obligation to ensure the protection of human rights in the Transnistrian region. At the same time, contrary to the findings of the European Court of Human Rights, Russia’s delegation replied that the state has never held effective control over the Transnistrian region and the human rights situation cannot be discussed in the session to review the Russian Federation. Reacting to the comments of the Russian delegation, the Committee’s experts reminded of the complementary character of the human rights bodies and of the principle of extraterritorial jurisdiction.
The UN Committee against Torture is to later issue the concluding observations with relevant recommendations that the Russian Federation will have to implement during the next few years. More information is available in the Report of Promo-LEX Association and the video recording of the review of the Russian Federation (UN WEB TV).
