I propose to take Questions Nos. 62 to 64, inclusive, together.
As stated in my reply to Question No. 138 on 21 February 2012, Human Rights are, and have always been, a priority of successive Irish Governments and a central part of our foreign policy. Ireland attaches considerable importance to the vital work of human rights defenders and condemns all acts or threats of violence against organisations and individuals working to protect human rights. Ireland, along with our partners in the EU, is committed to promoting human rights and to eliminating torture and mistreatment of prisoners. The EU makes detailed representations regularly in response to executions, extrajudicial killings, arrests of human rights activists and restrictions on freedom of expression.
In 2004, during Ireland's Presidency of the EU, a set of EU Guidelines for the protection of Human Rights Defenders were formulated. Our Presidency gave us the unique opportunity to bring the issue of Human Rights Defenders centre stage. The guidelines ensure that EU Missions outside the EU monitor, report, and assess the situation of Human Rights Defenders. They outline the steps required to ensure that pressure on the relevant authorities, where necessary, remains high. Ireland is also currently a member of the EU Human Rights Working Group's Task Force on Human Rights Defenders, which looks at practical ways of implementing the Guidelines and making them more effective.
At the United Nations, Ireland has committed to support Human Rights Defenders in line with the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders. This Declaration was adopted by consensus by the UN General Assembly in 1998, and it remains the normative basis for international efforts for human rights defenders. Ireland has consistently taken the lead in negotiating resolutions at the United Nations General Assembly to ensure human rights defenders can operate in an environment free from hindrance and insecurity. Ireland actively promotes the work of Human Rights Defenders at the Human Rights Council. We have acted as burden sharer on behalf of the European Union to secure the renewal of the special procedures mandate for Special Rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights Defenders and on resolutions which ensure that the spirit of the 1998 Declaration on Human Rights Defenders is adhered to.
The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has accumulated a substantial body of commitments in the fields of human rights, democracy and the rule of law. The participating States of the OSCE have long recognised the importance of Human Rights Defenders in helping States to meet the human rights standards to which they have committed. The recognition of civil society and the role NGOs play in promoting respect for human rights was first reflected in the 1975 Helsinki Final Act and has been reaffirmed since then in many OSCE commitments. Specific commitments in relation to Human Rights Defenders were first made in 1994, when participating States emphasised the need for their protection.
In 2007, a "Focal Point on Human Rights Defenders and National Human Rights Institutions" was created within the OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR). The Focal Point runs training for human rights defenders aimed at developing monitoring and advocacy skills and supports the development of networks of human rights defenders. In my capacity as Chairperson-in-Office of the OSCE in 2012, I am committed to ensuring that the OSCE supports Human Rights Defenders in the most effective way, and will explore the opportunities for strengthening OSCE engagement, within the limitations imposed by consensus decision-making in the OSCE.
I am aware of the cases of Mr. Dilmurod Saidov of Uzbekistan and Mr. Azimjan Askarov, an ethnic-Uzbek in Kyrgyzstan.
Mr. Saidov, an independent Uzbek journalist and member of the Ezgulik Human Rights Organisation, who has written about corruption and abuse of power by local officials, and about social and economic problems in the Samarkand region, was sentenced to twelve-and-a-half years imprisonment in a closed trial in 2009, on charges of extortion and forgery. At the time of the trial, the OSCE Representative of the Freedom of the Media wrote to the Uzbek Foreign Minister expressing alarm at the extremely harsh sentence, following a trial which did not meet international standards of fair procedure. I welcome Uzbekistan's commitment to pursue numerous reforms in the Universal Periodic Review procedure of the United Nations Human Rights Council in March 2009 and urge the Uzbek authorities to review his case.
Mr. Azimjan Askarov has received a life sentence in prison on charges of organizing mass disorder, inciting inter-ethnic hatred, hostage-taking, and incitement to murder during violence in southern Kyrgyzstan in June 2010. Concerns have been expressed regarding over-reliance on police evidence, and the failure of the authorities to adequately address the intimidation of defence witnesses and lawyers, to consider exculpatory evidence, and to effectively follow-up on indications of possible torture. Concerns have also been expressed about Mr. Askarov's health. On 20 December 2011, Ambassador Janez Lenarcic, the Director of ODIHR, expressed dismay over a Supreme Court decision to uphold the life sentence imposed by lower courts, referring to the serious violations of Askarov's right to a fair trial. In a statement released on 22 December, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Ms Navi Pillay, said it was particularly alarming that the Supreme Court judges had failed to consider claims that confessions had been extracted under duress. On 10 January 2012, the EU delegation in Kyrgyzstan issued a statement calling upon the Kyrgyz authorities to consider all possible ways to re-examine the case of Mr. Askarov and his co-defendant, noting reports of serious violations of legal procedures. I have been closely monitoring this case in recent weeks and we have communicated our concerns to the Government of Kyrgyzstan. I hope that the new Government will give the case the most careful consideration.
