CCPR/C/117/D/2224/2012
prisoners with tuberculosis and skin diseases were kept together with healthy inmates,
putting him at a high risk of contracting tuberculosis and other infections. The Committee
notes the author’s claims that he was always monitored when he was in the LBK-11 prison,
and that he was not allowed to associate freely with his fellow believers who were in the
same prison. The Committee notes that the State party did not contest these allegations. The
Committee recalls that persons deprived of their liberty may not be subjected to any
hardship or constraint other than that resulting from the deprivation of liberty; they must be
treated in accordance with, inter alia, the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of
Prisoners.17 In the absence of any other pertinent information on file, the Committee
decides that due weight must be given to the author’s allegations. Accordingly, the
Committee finds that confining the author in such conditions constitutes a violation of his
right to be treated with humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human
person under article 10 (1) of the Covenant.18
7.4
The Committee also notes the author’s claim under article 14 (7) of the Covenant
that he has been convicted and punished twice for his objection to performing compulsory
military service, which is “based on the same constant resolve grounded in reasons of
conscience”. The Committee further notes that, on 28 December 2010, Boldumsaz District
Court convicted and sentenced the author to 18 months of imprisonment, under article
219 (1) of the Criminal Code, for his refusal to perform compulsory military service, and
that he was then convicted again by the same court under article 219 (1) of the Criminal
Code on 24 December 2012 and sentenced to 24 months of imprisonment. The Committee
notes the author’s submission that article 18 (4) of the Military Service and Military Duty
Act permits repeated call-up for military service and stipulates that a person refusing
military service is exempt from further call-ups only after he has received and served two
criminal sentences. The Committee notes that these claims were not refuted by the State
party.
7.5
The Committee recalls its general comment No. 32 (2007) on the right to equality
before courts and tribunals and to a fair trial, wherein, inter alia, it stated that article 14 (7)
of the Covenant provides that no one shall be liable to be tried or punished again for an
offence of which they have already been finally convicted in accordance with the law and
penal procedure of each country. Furthermore, repeated punishment of conscientious
objectors for not obeying a renewed order to serve in the military may amount to
punishment for the same crime if such subsequent refusal is based on the same constant
resolve grounded in reasons of conscience. 19 The Committee notes that in the present case,
the author has been tried and punished twice with lengthy prison sentences under the same
provision of the Criminal Code of Turkmenistan on account of the fact that, as a Jehovah’s
Witness, he objected to, and refused to perform, compulsory military service. In the
circumstances of the present case, and in the absence of contrary information from the State
party, the Committee concludes that the author’s rights under article 14 (7) of the Covenant
have been violated.
17
18
19
See, for example, communications No. 1520/2006, Mwamba v. Zambia, Views adopted on 10 March
2010, para. 6.4; and No. 2218/2012, Abdullayev v. Turkmenistan, Views adopted on 25 March 2015,
para. 7.3.
See, for example, communication No. 1530/2006, Bozbey v. Turkmenistan, Views adopted on
27 October 2010, para. 7.3; Abdullayev v. Turkmenistan, para. 7.3; communication No. 2221/2012,
Mahmud Hudaybergenov v. Turkmenistan, Views adopted on 29 October 2015, para. 7.3; Ahmet
Hudaybergenov v. Turkmenistan, para. 7.3; and communication No. 2223/2012, Japparow v.
Turkmenistan, Views adopted on 29 October 2015, para. 7.3.
See the Committee’s general comment No. 32 (2007) on the right to equality before courts and
tribunals and to a fair trial, paras. 54 and 55.
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