Just Filed - urgent request to UN special procedures to intervene to prevent the deportation of a government critic and #humanrightsdefender from Sweden to Kazakhstan. If returned, Botakoz Issayeva faces “punitive psychiatry” & criminal charges under abusive “terrorism/extremism” legislation, on the sole basis of her political opinions and human rights activism. The Swedish immigration system has failed the applicant, refusing to engage with the compelling evidence of the serious risks HRDs face in Kazakhstan and the personal risk to the applicant. Her deportation is therefore imminent. Support is urgently sought from the UN special procedures, from interested civil society groups, parliamentarians and others to prevent irreparable harm.
The urgent petition is available here. It was submitted for the attention of: The UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders, Mary Lawlor; The UN Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights while Countering Terrorism, Fionnuala Ní Aoláin; The UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Alice Edwards; The UN Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of the Right to Freedom of Expression, Irene Khan; and The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention.