Russian President Vladimir Putin on February 28 sign a law according to which the Charter of the Council of Europe (CE), as well as 20 international treaties of this organization, cease to apply to Russia. RTVI spoke with Eva Merkacheva, a member of the Presidential Human Rights Council (HRC), about how Russians can claim their rights now.
A total of 21 documents are denounced, including the Charter of the Council of Europe, the European Convention for the Suppression of Terrorism, the General Agreement on the Privileges and Immunities of the Council of Europe, the Convention for the Protection of fundamental principles and freedoms, the European Charter of Local Self-Government, the European Social Charter and others. The law signed by the Russian President stipulates that these treaties cease to be valid with regard to Russia due to the end of its membership of the Council of Europe.
At the end of February 2022, after the outbreak of hostilities in Ukraine, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe suspended Russia’s membership of the organisation. In mid-March, representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) voted unanimously for Russia’s immediate withdrawal from the organization. The day before, the Deputy Speaker of the State Duma and head of the Russian delegation to PACE, Petr Tolstoy, had announced that Russia itself intended to withdraw from the Council of Europe, and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had already delivered a letter of this wish to the Secretary General. of the organization Maria Pejcinovic-Buric.
Eva Merkacheva, member of the Human Rights Council to the President of Russia
It all led to this. Now we have to live in new realities. It is clear that the European convention was a powerful deterrent. In any case, we should be grateful to have worked with him, to have come into contact with him, because a lot has changed in our country when our realities have adjusted to the requirements of this convention.
Now, it’s hard to talk about anything, because we live in a special time. Clearly what once seemed wild to us is now becoming the norm, but now is the time. We will be able to understand if there will be a return when there is a completely different and peaceful period. So far, in these realities, we cannot even assess anything adequately. And although we do not have martial law, but, in fact, it is as read, and all discounts and bets are made on this. We have to understand when it’s all over and then try (to do it) so that a rollback doesn’t happen, on the contrary, develop our own national mechanisms.
What should people do? To be extremely careful, attentive, use the national mechanism: there is still an appeal, a cassation, there is a prosecution, (we must) write more there. Now, being legally illiterate is unacceptable. In other words, you need to protect yourself as much as possible: study existing standards, including rapidly changing standards. We still have the United Nations Human Rights Committee, which you can also go to.
First of all, we must think about creating, if not a kind of human rights court within the CIS, or a human rights convention within the CIS, on the basis of which the tribunal, or a human rights commission, then a body that would bring together several countries and that would include, for example, former judges of the ECHR, who represented Russia at different stages. They are proven and authoritative people, I think they could maintain a certain standard. So those who consider themselves victims of unlawful persecution, torture, etc. will at least have some common sense to apply for it.
(This is also necessary for) our courts and law enforcement agencies to understand full accountability: that it is their duty to deliver justice. But will they understand this, and will it be that, for example, they will not cover themselves? Previously, the Council of Europe convention was a kind of deterrent, but now there must be some kind of internal framework. But if it will happen, if it will appear, it is very difficult to say.
Some members of the HRC are involved in the development of a human rights commission or tribunal in the CIS. The work is carried out directly by the members of the council. Most likely, some clear prospects will be at the end of this year or next year.
