A Russian citizen, 63-year old Yuri Korepanov, sentenced for 16 years in Uzbekistan, has suffered a heart attack in December, 2010. Uzbeki diplomats and investigative authorities (sledstvennie organi), have been silent on this. Korepanov has already been sent labor camp to serve his sentence.
On January 11, 2011, the Military Court of Uzbekistan found Korepanov guilty as a citizen of Uzbekistan. He was given a 16 year prison sentence, based on the following Articles of the Code of Criminal Procude of Uzbekistan: one year under the Article 223 for illegally crossing borders, and 15 years under the Article 157 for betraying the motherland for the Russian Federation. The fact that he has been a Russian citizen since 2004 has been completely ignored. Please see the details on his case in the AHRCA Press Release of February 23, 2011: “The Absurd Verdict: Uzbekistan Has Accused Yuri Korepanov, the Russian Citizen, for ‘Betraying his Motherland.’”
We have just been made aware that between 1st and 5th of December, Yuri Korepanov, a Russian citizen, was placed in the prison hospital) after suffering a heart attack. Members of Korepanov’s family were only informed of this over a month later.
On February 25, 2011, we found out that in the middle of February Korepanov was transferred to the town of Karshi, in a labor camp U/IA 64/49 to serve his 16-year prison sentence.
Uzbeki legislation does contain articles that allow for freeing a prisoner on account of serious medical condition, regardless of the length of the prison sentence (for instance, article 75 of the Uzbekinstan’s criminal code and article 165 of the Uzbekistan’s executive criminal code. However, these laws are seldom applied in practice.
§ According to Clause 1 of the Article 10 of the International Pact on Civil and Political Rights, all individuals deprived of liberty must be treated with humanity and respect.
§ Clause 2, Article 22 of the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners states:
“Sick prisoners who require specialist treatment shall be transferred to specialized institutions or to civil hospitals. Where hospital facilities are provided in an institution, their equipment, furnishings and pharmaceutical supplies shall be proper for the medical care and treatment of sick prisoners, and there shall be suitably trained personnel or officers.”
§ Article 44 of the Rules provides:
1. “<…> serious illness of, <…>, the director shall at once inform the spouse, if the prisoner is married, or the nearest relative and shall in any event inform any other person previously designated by the prisoner.”
3. “Every prisoner shall have the right to inform at once his family of his imprisonment or his transfer to another institution.”
The Association of “Human Rights in Central Asia” is deeply concerned with health conditions of Yuri Korepanov and the infringement of his right to access medical help.
