A/HRC/28/68/Add.1 of these individuals to be free from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, as provided by articles 1 and 16 of the CAT. 570. The Special Rapporteur notes that the extreme acts of violence against demonstrators in Maidan square happened at the end of the previous regime. Nevertheless, he reiterates that, based on the principle of continuity of States, the new Government of Ukraine is obliged to investigate the incidents thoroughly and independently, and to prosecute and punish all those responsible. United Arab Emirates (a) JUA 09/01/2014 Case No. ARE 1/2014 State Reply: 16/04/2014 Allegations concerning the cases of Messrs. Ravindra Krishna Pillai, Abdullah Abdur-Rahman Abdullah, Mohomed Naif Ali, Kamrul Islam and Ateek Ashraf, who are reportedly scheduled to be executed on 12 January 2014, in the United Arab Emirates. 571. The Special Rapporteur thanks the Government of United Arab Emirates for its reply, dated 16.04.2014, to the present communication. 572. The Rapporteur takes note of the information provided by the Government that, on the date of the dispatch of the reply, discussions were ongoing with relatives of four of the persons sentenced on waiving the retributive death penalty. However, he regrets the fact that Mr. Ravinda Krishna Pillai had already been executed at the time of the reply, and that, as of the drafting of this report, the Government has not provided any update on the cases. 573. As observed by the Special Rapporteur in his 2012-report to the General Assembly (A/67/279), there is evidence of an evolving standard within international bodies and a robust State practice to frame the debate about the legality of the death penalty within the context of the fundamental concepts of human dignity and the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. This evolving standard, along with the resulting illegality of the death penalty under such prohibition, is developing into a norm of customary law, if it has not already done so (para. 74). The Special Rapporteur calls upon all States to reconsider whether the use of the death penalty per se respects the inherent dignity of the human person, causes severe mental and physical pain or suffering and constitutes a violation of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (para. 79). 574. The Rapporteur finds that the Government’s reply fails sufficiently to address the concerns raised in the initial communication; as a result, the Government fails to cooperate fully and expeditiously with the mandate issued by the Human Rights Council in Resolution 25/13, as well as to comply with its obligation, under international customary law, to investigate, prosecute and punish all acts of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, as codified, inter alia, in the Convention against Torture (CAT). 575. In particular, the Special Rapporteur finds that Mr. Ravindra Krishna Pillai was executed for what seems to have been a non-intentional taking of another’s life, in violation of the norm that restricts capital punishment to only “the most serious crimes.” He appears to have been executed pending appeals, which constitutes another serious breach of international law standards regarding the death penalty. The Special Rapporteur also finds that imposing the death penalty on a person with mental disabilities, as is the case with Mr. Abdullah Abdur-Rahman Abdullah, is likewise a violation of UAE international obligations. 576. The Rapporteur concludes that the Government of United Arab Emirates, by not taking steps to prevent the execution of Mr. Krishna Pillai, has violated his right to be free 95