Ministry of Finance of Kyrgyzstan will compensate for death in prison

The judge of Pervomaisky district court Maksat Orozbakova partially satisfied the demands of Kyrgyz citizen Mamatkarim Ernazarov to the Ministry of Finance to recover $4000 (300 000 KGS) for an ineffective investigation concerning the death of his brother, who was accused of sodomy in 2005.

In March 2011, Mamatkarim Ernazarov appealed to the UN Committee, claiming a violation of the rights of his late brother Rakhmonberdi Ernazarov.

The man was arrested on November 4, 2005 on suspicion of having committed an act of forced sodomy against the father of his ex-girlfriend. Rakhmonberdi Ernazarov was detained in the police station of Osh city. At the time of his arrest, he was physically and mentally healthy.

On November 7, 2005, Rakhmonberdi Ernazarov was formally charged with violating the article 130 of the Kyrgyz Criminal Code prohibiting forced sodomy. On the same day, the local prosecutor issued the order to transfer him to a pre-trial detention center under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Justice.

Despite the prosecutor’s order to transfer, and for reasons that the authorities did not investigate and explain, the defendant was left at the police station for another 13 days. He was held in 3×3 meters room with six other prisoners.

For reference, according to the report of the Coalition against torture in Kyrgyzstan “On the results of monitoring the temporary isolation ward of the Internal Affairs authorities of the Kyrgyz Republic for 2016-2018,” the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic has 46 TIWs, in which there are 259 cells with 1217 beds. Actual occupancy is 1374 people. Many temporary detention facilities were built in 1960-1980 and do not comply with international and sanitary standards.

On November 20, 2005, a little after 6.30 in the morning, Ernazarov was found unconscious and with severe bleeding from multiple cut wounds in the cell. He had cut wounds on his neck, on the inner surface of his left wrist and on the inner surface of his left ankle, abrasion on his left forearm, on the inner surface of his right ankle and on his stomach. He also lacked several teeth.

An ambulance delivered a man to the Central hospital of Osh. There he died shortly after admission.

An autopsy was performed on the same day, summarizing that “prisoner Rakhmonberdi Ernazarov, born in 1961, cut his throat to commit suicide”.

On November 21, 2005, an investigator from the Ministry of the Interior issued the decree instituting criminal proceedings on the death of Ernazarov, which was entrusted to the prosecutor of Osh. The next day, the Department of Internal Security of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic issued the order to conduct an internal audit on this fact.

The deceased’s brother, Mamatkarim Ernazarov, considered that the investigation into the suicide of his relative was superficial; the police did not take measures to collect important evidence, interrogate the main witnesses, properly conduct the autopsy and investigate why the vulnerable prisoner had been in such conditions.

Despite the fact that during the investigation it was established that the man had cut his throat, no cutting tools were found in the cell. An independent assessment of Rakhmonberdi Ernazarov’s autopsy report by Doctors for human rights indicates that it’s impossible to conclude that death occurred as a result of suicide and that several of the wounds described in the anatomical examination protocol are very uncharacteristic of suicide and may indicate that Rakhmonberdi Ernazarov tried to defend himself. The protocol does not provide any assessment regarding the time of non-fatal wounds and the exact time of the application of fatal neck injuries.

Mamatkarim Ernazarov also claimed that a cigarette packet had been found in his brother’s cell, with a suicide note allegedly written on it. However, no writing aids were found in the cell. During the investigation, a handwriting examination was carried out, which concluded that the note was made by the deceased. However, family members who were familiar with the victim’s handwriting claimed that it was not he who wrote the note.

Before contacting the UN Committee, Rakhmonberdi Ernazarov’s relatives resorted to all in-country remedies.

Between November 29, 2005 and June 2, 2006, the victim’s family sent seven requests to the State Prosecutor’s office and two complaints to the MIA regarding the investigation into the circumstances of the death. The family requested information on the progress of the investigation, established facts and circumstances that required further investigation, evidence that needed to be collected, and protested that they were not allowed to participate in the investigation.

Between August 16, 2006 and February 10, 2007, Ernazarov’s relatives filed four complaints with the City court of Osh and two complaints with the Regional court, protesting the inappropriate conduct of the investigation. These appeals were ineffectual.

The victim’s family also filed a complaint with the Supreme court. It returned the case to the City court for the decision. On March 13, 2008, the City court again rejected the application without considering the merits.

As a result, the family of Rakhmonberdi Ernazarov decided to appeal to the UN Human Rights Committee. In March 2011, a corresponding appeal was drawn up. It stated that the deceased was subjected to psychological and physical violence by cellmates during his detention because of charges against him. The authorities were aware of this violence and the danger it posed to his life, but did nothing to prevent, stop or punish his cellmates.

Ernazarov was particularly vulnerable due to the charge of sexual assault against a man. The security officer of the police station, where he was detained, told the family’s lawyer that Ernazarov was constantly insulted, forced to eat and sleep near the toilet (bucket for excrement), that his cellmates made holes in his plate and spoon to make it difficult for him to eat, and also forced him to wound himself with metal cutlery.

During the entire period of imprisonment, the man was not allowed to see family members, and a meeting with a lawyer took place only once. There were no rooms for visiting relatives at the police station. The prisoner’s family members were told that he should not be contacted and that letters or food should not be sent to him.

In connection with the appeal to the UN Human Rights Committee, the investigation into the death of Rakhmonberdi Ernazarov was resumed in February 2012.

In March 2015, the UN Committee on Human Rights was issued views according to which the Kyrgyz Republic was held responsible for arbitrary deprivation of life and torture of Ernazarov Rakhmonberdi.

The UN Committee obliged the Kyrgyz Republic to provide the family of the late Ernazarov with an effective remedy and to pay fair compensation for non-pecuniary damage for human rights violations.

This is the second such precedent. Earlier, in the case of Turdubek Akmatov, who died from torture, the judge Zhanybek kyzy Venera granted the claim of the family of the deceased to the Ministry of Finance for compensation for non-pecuniary damage in the amount of $2865 (200 000 KGS).

“The civil case examined under the lawsuit of Mamatkarim Ernazarov demonstrates the efforts of Kyrgyzstan to fulfill its obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which affects the observance of human rights and the ability of the Kyrgyz Republic to provide redress, including compensation and rehabilitation for victims of torture and cruel treatment. The Kyrgyz Republic, as part of the world community, must fulfill its international legal obligations under the absolute ban on the use of torture,” the Coalition against torture notes.