A/HRC/25/60/Add.2 sexual violence while in pre-trial detention on extortion charges and denial of judicial protections such as the right to appeal and the trial proceeding without his attorney present. Concern is expressed that the conviction may relate to Mr. Kuramshim’s activities as a prisoner rights defender. In its reply, the Government of Kazakhstan addressed the allegations of a denial of a fair trial, and explained that Mr. Kuramshim waived his right to an attorney and the date for any appeals had not been set. The government further stated that the physical manifestations of the beatings were a result of his own self-mutilation with a shaving razor in the shower. The reply does not address what steps are being taken to guarantee the safety and physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Kuramshim while he is in detention. The reply also does not address what evidence was used to incriminate Mr. Kuramshim and whether it was obtained apart from the police findings. Although the Special Rapporteur appreciates the reply, he reiterates paragraph 1 of Human Rights Council Resolution 16/23 which “Condemns all forms of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, including through intimidation, which are and shall remain prohibited at any time and in any place whatsoever and can thus never be justified, and calls upon all States to implement fully the absolute and non-derogable prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.” The Special Rapporteur observes that the reply does not establish conclusively that the origin of the the victim’s wounds was determined in an independent, impartial and scientific inquiry. He reiterates article 12 of the CAT, which requires the competent authorities to undertake a prompt and impartial investigation wherever there are reasonable grounds to believe that torture has been committed, and article 7 of the CAT, which requires State parties to prosecute suspected perpetrators of torture. The Special Rapporteur also reminds the Government of paragraph 6b of Human Rights Council Resolution 8/8, which urges States “To take persistent, determined and effective measures to have all allegations of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment promptly and impartially examined by the competent national authority, to hold those who encourage, order, tolerate or perpetrate acts of torture responsible, to have them brought to justice and severely punished, including the officials in charge of the place of detention where the prohibited act is found to have been committed, and to take note in this respect of the Principles on the Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (the Istanbul Principles) as a useful tool in efforts to combat torture”. The Special Rapporteur also encourages the Government to continue its engagement with the mandate. (b) JUA 22/03/2013 Case No. KAZ 2/2013 State Reply: 27/05/2013 Alleged denial of fair trial protections to human rights defender Mr. Vadim Kuramshin by suspending Ms. Raziya Nurmasheva’s license to practice law, and disciplining Mr. Kuramshin’s other defense counsel, Mr. Iskander Alimbayev. 88. The Special Rapporteur thanks the Government of Kazakhstan for its reply, dated 26 March 2013, to this communication in reference to developments in Mr. Vadim Kuramshin’s trial and allegations of legal barriers that prevent Mr. Kuramshim and his attorneys, Ms. Raziya Nurmasheva and Mr. Iskander Alimbayev, from receiving a fair trial. Mr. Kuramshin had been the subject of three previous urgent appeals, the most recent of which also included Ms. Nurmasheva. On 8 October 2010, an urgent appeal (no. KAZ 2/2010) was sent to the Government of Kazakhstan in which concerns were raised regarding the arrest of Mr. Kuramshin while he tried to arrange a visit with a prisoner in his capacity as a defender of prisoners’ rights, on the basis of an anonymous accusation that he was involved in drug trafficking. The Special Rapporteur thanks the Government for its response dated 21 January 2011 laying out details of the investigation, although concerns remained as to the trustworthiness of the accusation. The second urgent appeal (no. KAZ 4/2011) was sent to the Government of Kazakhstan on 3 October 2011 concerning the arrest of Mr. Kuramshin on two occasions, and the alleged failure of the Prosecutor’s 63