On 15 December mother and sister of Uladzislau Kavaliou who was found guilty of terrorism and sentenced to the death penalty, have sent a complaint regarding the right to life violation to the UN Committee on Human Rights .The complaint tells about the violation of the principles of fair trial. In particular, the women wrote that the the conviction was based on Kavaliou’s confession brought forth during the preliminary investigation, despite the fact that the testimony was obtained under compulsion, and retracted by Kavaliou during the hearing. According to his mother and sister, the court did not meet the criteria of independence and impartiality during the trial. In addition, they believe that the court was put under pressure.

In accordance with the procedural rules of the Committee on Human Rights, the UN appealed to the state – not to carry out the death penalty to Kavaliou, untill the complaint will be considered. However, the Belarusian government   considered the plea as invalid due to unexhausted national remedies.The government of Belarus has referred to Article 2 of the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, under which a complaint may be accepted in the UN Human Rights Committee only after all available domestic remedies had been exhausted. The government, for instance, has informed the UN Committee that Kavaliou had filed a complaint to the Supreme Court of Belarus and appealed to the President of Belarus for pardon.

Lawyer and human rights defender  Raman Kisliak (left), believes the Government’s arguments to be unfounded.According to him , petition for review by way of judicial supervision is not recognized by international human rights law as a domestic remedy, as in this case the legal procedures are not initiated – it is a person who appeals to the official.According to Kisliak, seeking pardon can not be regarded as a legal remedy at all, as the principal in this procedure are not legal issues, but moral or humanitarian.

– Experience shows that a person sentenced to death   in Belarus finds out that he was denied   the complaint in the manner of supervision and pardon   a few minutes before death.It is evident that there is no real possibility   for a death-convict in those few minutes to submit a complaint to the Committee on Human Rights and wait for its registration.Therefore, the requirement of exhaustiveness of domestic remedies before filing a complaint to the UN sounds like a mockery, – says Raman Kisliak.

The mother and sister of the death-convict Uladzislau Kavaliou sent to the UN Human Rights Committee their arguments to the comments made by Belarusian authorities . According to Raman Kisliak, challenging the arguments of Belarusian government is necessary for admissibility of the complaint and the possibility of its further consideration.  

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On 30 November, 2011 the Supreme Court of the Republic of Belarus has passed a death sentence in the case of Dzmitry Kanavalau and Uladzislau Kavaliou, who were accused of committing a series of bombings, including during the celebration of Independence Day in 2008, and the terrorist attack in Minsk Metro on 11 April, 2011.  As a result of the terrorist attack in metro 15 people were killed and hundreds were injured. The public prosecutor in his speech demanded capital punishment to both defendants. On 7 December, Uladzislau Kavaliou has filed a petition for a pardon in the name of Aliaksandr Lukashenka. According to Prosecutor General of Belarus Aliakandr Kaniuk, Dzmitry Kanavalau, the second convict, refused to file a petition for clemency.

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