In the framework of permanent cooperation with the United Nations’ bodies and agencies, our Association sent the submission to the UN Special Rapporteur on counter-terrorism and human rights, Professor Ben Saul, for his report devoted to issues of counter-terrorism law, organized crime, and human rights.
The ARC’s submission, prepared by Olexii Plotnikov, Andrii Chvaliuk and other experts and published on the official UN web-sources now, stressed on the relevant judgments of the European Court on Human Rights in the interstate cases, devoted to Russian occupation, where the aspects and facts of Russian terrorism were proved, including the relevant Crimean traces. Also, the submission relied on the judgment of the International Court of Justice in case 166, where the violations by Russia of Article 9 of the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism were established.
The ARC submission pointed out that Russian authorities now misuse the category of terrorism in situations of war conflict to circumvent international humanitarian law demands and to “ground” its violations, describing the examples of the detentions and charges of “participation in the battalion named after Noman Çelebicihan” as an alleged “terroristic organization.”
The submission stressed that the occupiers not only ignore the rights of prisoners of war in relation to the members of the “Asker” official formation they captured, but also repressed, as “members of the battalion”, persons who did not participate in the activities of that structure, also as military servants of the the 48th Separate Assault Battalion of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Also, the submission reminded of the situation of crews of the Russian shadow fleet, which contain permanently persons who are not covered by the demands of international maritime law and practice, and who are pointed in crew lists as alleged “technicians” or “supernumeraries.”
Those persons, as usual, two men per vessel, are Russian citizens with military, intelligence, or law enforcement backgrounds, and relevant Russian illicit activities have features of state terrorism.
In the event that such “crew members” commit active military and terroristic actions, including sabotage, that cause real damage or casualties, these actions may constitute a war crime of perfidy, since this constitutes an abuse of the immunities of a supposedly “peaceful” merchant ship, the submission added.
Relevant new UN Report A/81/227 reflected the ARC information described and demanded from states to refrain from using counter-terrorism sanctions and financing laws, and offences to target victims and innocent, including humanitarian and human rights work.
