CAT/C/KGZ/CO/2 including Askarov, Tomina, and Usmanov, and prosecute and punish the perpetrators with appropriate penalties; (c) Consider accepting the request for a visit by the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders (A/HRC/22/47/Add.4, para. 250); (d) Refrain from enacting legislation that would impede the ability of human rights defenders to conduct their activities in line with the provisions of the Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms; and ensure that no individual or group will be subjected to prosecution in reprisal for cooperating with United Nations or other international, regional, or national human rights entities. Deaths in custody 17. The Committee is deeply concerned about reports of deaths in custody or immediately after release, and the authorities’ failure to investigate such cases, often despite medical reports revealing marks of beating, as in the case of Bektemir Akunov (A/HRC/7/3/Add.1, para. 121) and the cases of three ethnic Uzbeks raised in the report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (A/HRC/20/12, para. 39). The Committee notes the concern raised by the Special Rapporteur on the question of torture that independent investigations launched into deaths in custody are the exception rather than the rule in Kyrgyzstan and that relatives of victims often come under pressure from the police to withdraw their complaints or to settle in order to close the case. The Committee regrets the State party’s failure to implement the Human Rights Committee’s Views on the case of death in custody referred to in communication No. 1756/2008 (arts. 2, 11, 12 and 16). The Committee urges the State party to: (a) Promptly, thoroughly and impartially investigate all incidents of death in custody; and prosecute those responsible for acts of torture, ill-treatment or wilful negligence and punish them with appropriate penalties; and (b) Ensure independent forensic examinations in all cases of death in custody; permit family members of the deceased to commission independent autopsies; and ensure that the State party’s courts accept the results of such independent autopsies as evidence in criminal and civil cases. Violence against women, including rape and bride-kidnapping 18. While noting various initiatives by the authorities to combat violence against women, the Committee remains concerned at (a) reports of widespread violence against women, including domestic violence, trafficking and bride-kidnapping; and (b) the lack of information provided about prosecutions for such violence. The Committee regrets that existing law prohibiting domestic violence and bride-kidnapping is not implemented in practice, mainly due to the lack of a political commitment and appropriate training for law enforcement officials and the judiciary (arts. 2, 12, 13, 14 and 16). The State party should: (a) Effectively combat violence against women, inter alia by promptly investigating complaints related to such violence, including domestic violence and bride-kidnapping, and institute criminal proceedings against perpetrators and those aiding and abetting the kidnappings, even in the absence of a formal complaint; 8