UN ‘DEEPLY TROUBLED’ BY ARREST OF OPPN ACTIVIST

United Nations, Jan.

19: The UN human rights office has raised alarm over the arrest of Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny and called for his immediate release. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on Monday tweeted that it was “deeply troubled” by Navalny’s arrest and called on the Russian government to respect his right to legal due process.

Navalny, 44, was arrested on Sunday upon return to Moscow from Germany, where he had been recovering after allegedly being poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent. In a statement issued later in the day, two independent UN human rights experts saluted the bravery of the anti-corruption activist and called on Russia to release him, while also ensuring that his life and wellbeing are protected.

Agnes Callamardm, the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, and Special Rapporteur Irene Khan, who covers the right to freedom of opinion and expression, said it was “appalling that Navalny was arrested for breaching parole terms, for a sentence he should not have received in the first place and despite the authorities being fully aware that he had been several months in Germany recovering from an attempt on his life”.

OHCHR said in the press release that it was believed Navalny’s arrest was related to alleged violations of a suspended sentence for a fraud conviction following proceedings that the European Court of Human Rights said in

2018, were arbitrary and unfair. —