Submissions were lodged on behalf of torture victim and Guantanamo prisoner Mr. Abu Zubaydah on Friday 21 January before the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers charged with overseeing the implementation of the historic Abu Zubaydah v Poland and Abu Zubaydah v Lithuania judgment of the European Court of Human Rights. The ‘Rule 9’ submissions express deep concern regarding the state of implementation. They recognise recent progress, notably Lithuania’s recent payment of compensation to Mr. Abu Zubaydah’s beneficiaries. However, in both Poland and Lithuania there remains a striking failure to implement all other aspects of the judgment: there is no effective investigation or accountability, an ongoing failure to acknowledge the truth and provide reparations, and grossly insufficient measures to ensure that the flagrant denial of justice to which our client is currently subjected is brought to an end. As in our written and oral submissions to the September meeting of the Committee of Ministers, the submissions were presented jointly with legal representatives form Mr. Al Nashiri. The submissions underscore the importance of robust ongoing engagement in oversight of full implementation by the Committee of Ministers.
The decisions of the Committee of Ministers on Poland and Lithuania of March 2022 are here.