A/HRC/45/13/Add.2 10. The imprisonment in 2010 of Azimjan Askarov, a prominent human rights defender who documented abuses against the Uzbek community during and after the violent episodes in the southern provinces of Osh and Jalalabad, attracted mounting criticism from civil society and the international community. In its Views on the case of Mr. Askarov, 1 the Human Rights Committee found that Kyrgyzstan was obligated to immediately release Mr. Askarov, triggering debates about denial of justice to the victims, their families and human rights defenders. Instead of releasing Mr. Askarov, the Government proposed amendments to the Constitution, including the removal of a provision giving international human rights treaties direct applicability and priority over other international treaties and the removal of another provision specifying that restoration and/or compensation were required if international human rights bodies found that a person’s human rights had been violated.2 The amendments were approved in a referendum on 11 December 2016. On 8 May 2020, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders urged that Mr. Askarov be released, noting that his frail health made him particularly vulnerable during the COVID-19 pandemic. On 13 May 2020, the Supreme Court rejected Mr. Askarov’s latest appeal. Mr. Askarov died in detention on 25 July 2020. 11. The Working Group does not have any formal complaints of enforced disappearance registered in its database related to Kyrgyzstan under its humanitarian procedure. It notes, however, that a number of individuals who disappeared following the 2010 violence in the southern provinces remain unaccounted for. According to the Government, 17 individuals are still reported missing, while the remains of 9 others are pending identification. 12. Allegations of short-term enforced disappearance, primarily resulting from delays in the registration of persons deprived of their liberty and in the notification of relatives and defence lawyers, have been raised by the coalition of civil society organizations that monitors places of detention to contribute to preventing torture and ill-treatment of detainees.3 In its response to the present report, the Government stated that no cases of enforced disappearance, whether of a long or short duration, had been registered by the authorities in the penitentiary system of Kyrgyzstan. 13. A lack of awareness of the principle of non-refoulement, which has allegedly resulted in deportations despite the individuals being at risk of enforced disappearance, has also been reported. More generally, while legislative changes have been made to prevent enforced disappearance, there appears to be limited attention given to the issue in other relevant forums. For example, the issue has not been addressed in the human rights action plan for 2019–2021, nor has it been discussed during the meetings of the Coordination Council on Human Rights, the body in charge of monitoring and coordinating reforms in the field of human rights. III. Legislative and institutional framework 14. The Constitution of Kyrgyzstan provides for a non-exhaustive list of protected human rights, including the right to life, the right not to be subjected to torture and the right to personal integrity, liberty and security. While Kyrgyzstan is a party to eight of the nine core human rights treaties, it has yet to sign and ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. Regretfully, while during the first cycle of the universal periodic review several recommendations to ratify the Convention were supported by the Government, in the second cycle they were only noted. During the Working Group’s visit, government representatives reiterated that the possibility and 1 2 3 4 In May 2016, the Human Rights Committee adopted its Views on the case of Azimjan Askarov, who had been detained and allegedly tortured in the aftermath of ethnic violence in southern Kyrgyzstan in 2010. The Committee was of the view that the facts disclosed a violation of the author’s rights under article 7, read separately and in conjunction with article 2 (3), and articles 9 (1), 10 (1) and 14 (3) (b) and (e), of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The Committee noted that Kyrgyzstan was under an obligation to provide Mr. Askarov with an effective remedy and full reparation; to immediately release him; to quash the conviction and, if necessary, conduct a new trial; and to provide him with adequate compensation (CCPR/C/116/D/2231/2012). Articles 6 and 41 respectively. See Notorture.kg.