Mr. President,
We thank the Special Rapporteur for her latest report on the human rights situation in Russia. We agree with her conclusion that the situation has continued to drastically deteriorate and the government, with the use of new or revised repressive legislation, has doubled down to “suppress civil society, dissenting views and political opposition.”
In August this year, Russia freed 15 people as part of a historic prisoner swap. Among those freed were Russian activists whose politically motivated imprisonment UN human rights special mechanisms had condemned. They should never have been imprisoned and were effectively used as hostages for leverage by the government. Many more remain behind bars on politically motivated charges. As of August, the Russian human rights group Memorial recorded 776 political prisoners. Human rights, LGBT rights, anti-war activists and independent journalists in Russia face arbitrary arrest, criminal and administrative prosecutions, torture and other mistreatment in detention, intimidation, and brutal violence.
As the human rights crisis deepens, renewing the Special Rapporteur on Russia’s mandate would keep open an important point of contact for Russian civil society and ensure that grave human rights abuses are exposed.
It is vital that rights defenders, journalists, and activists – whether in Russia or in exile – have support in their courageous stand against serious violations by the government. The Human Rights Council should send a strong message to Russian civil society that their calls for international scrutiny of human rights are still being heard, by renewing the mandate of the Special Rapporteur.
Thank you.
