A/HRC/23/52 cases, allegations of violations of the right to a fair trial were reported, and three of the individuals claimed that they had confessed under duress. 28 45. The Special Rapporteur shares the view that the way the death penalty is carried out in Belarus amounts to inhuman treatment, as outlined by the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment in his recent report to the General Assembly.29 B. Enforced disappearances 46. During the period under review, the Special Rapporteur received no new reports of enforced disappearances. Concerns were, however, raised that there had been no progress in solving the outstanding cases, three of which have been referred to the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances.30 These cases, which date from 1999 and 2000, concern Viktar Hanchar, a member of the dissolved Parliament and his close associate, Anatol Krasouski, as well as Yury Zakharenko, former Minister of the Interior, and Dimitry Zavadsky, an investigative journalist. Every three months, the authorities report that there have been “no results” in any of the cases. 47. In the first three of the above-mentioned cases, the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances has received three communications from the Government, dated from January to October 2012. It found that the information provided was not sufficient to lead to the clarification of the cases. While in the case of Mr. Krasouski the Human Rights Committee found Belarus in violation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights by failing to provide an effective remedy and to include a thorough and diligent investigation of the facts, the prosecution and punishment of the perpetrators, with adequate information about the inquiries and adequate compensation.31 48. In individual consultations, relatives and lawyers expressed their concern that the cases would be closed officially 15 years after the disappearances owing to the statute of limitations.32 49. The lack of response by the Government to cases of the enforced disappearance of political opponents continues to gravely affect the general trust in rule of the law and the safe exercise of the right to civic activities. C. Prison conditions, torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment 50. Allegations of torture and ill treatment continue to be received from detainees and inmates who have been deprived of their liberty by law enforcement bodies, at the moment of apprehension by police, or during pretrial or post-trial detention. 51. In its concluding observations on Belarus, the Committee against Torture, while noting that article 25 of the Constitution of Belarus prohibited torture, expressed its concern 28 29 30 31 32 Andrei Zhuk, Vasily Yuzepchuk, Aleh Gryshkautstou, Andrei Burdyka and Uladzlau Kavalyou. See the report submitted to OHCHR by the Belarusian Human Rights House, the Human Rights House Foundation, Penal Reform International and the human rights centre Viasna, April 2012. Available from http://humanrightshouse.org/Articles/17981.html. A/67/279, para. 52. E/CN.4/2001/68, paras. 107 and 108. CCPR/C/104/D/1820/2008. See also http://spring96.org/en/news/61860. 11