CEDH · CASELAW;JUDGMENTS;CHAMBER;ENG — 5 février 2013

.s800EAC49 { font-size:12pt } .sFE10DC93 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:center } .s265248CF { font-family:Arial; -aw-import:ignore } .sBB9EE52A { font-family:Arial } .s29100277 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold } .sA36B60A1 { font-family:Arial; font-style:italic } .s598389FB { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:center; font-size:14pt } .sF5E1C6CF { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold; text-decoration:underline; color:#ff0000 } .s85A66119 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:justify; font-size:14pt } .s5E706D64 { font-family:Arial; color:#ff0000; -aw-import:ignore } .sE208486F { font-family:Arial; color:#ff0000 } .s2E932ED2 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; font-size:11pt } .s4ACA9207 { page-break-before:always; clear:both; mso-break-type:section-break } .s10950C61 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .s32563E28 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt } .s6B48E6E7 { width:28.35pt; display:inline-block; -aw-tabstop-align:left; -aw-tabstop-pos:28.35pt } .sEC177689 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:36pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .s967D43C6 { margin-top:36pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:14pt } .s87F05BA2 { margin-top:12pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .sC443675D { margin-top:36pt; margin-bottom:30pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:14pt } .sD2857263 { margin-top:30pt; margin-left:17.85pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:-17.85pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s401C450A { margin-top:12pt; margin-bottom:18pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .s7EE1C8F0 { margin-top:18pt; margin-left:29.2pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:-17.6pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s11869A80 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:18pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .s507703F { margin-top:12pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .s9D48DD53 { margin-top:6pt; margin-left:21.25pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:7.1pt; text-align:justify; font-size:10pt } .s984A15CA { margin-top:6pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .s6477A72F { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .sA1CDB767 { margin-top:6pt; margin-left:21.25pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:7.1pt; text-align:justify; font-size:10pt } .s281358E1 { margin-top:12pt; margin-left:21.25pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:7.1pt; text-align:justify; font-size:10pt } .sFD4D42B6 { margin-top:12pt; margin-left:21.25pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:7.1pt; text-align:justify; font-size:10pt } .s684F2214 { margin-top:18pt; margin-left:29.2pt; margin-bottom:24pt; text-indent:-17.6pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s25BD2B45 { margin-top:24pt; margin-left:36.6pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:-15.05pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .sD5DF731 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .sC702907E { margin-top:12pt; margin-left:36.6pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:-15.05pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s93EDF1FF { margin-top:18pt; margin-left:17.85pt; margin-bottom:30pt; text-indent:-17.85pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s90647315 { margin-top:30pt; margin-left:29.2pt; margin-bottom:24pt; text-indent:-17.6pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s8F4EE4B8 { margin-top:6pt; margin-bottom:18pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .sEC2CB098 { margin-top:6pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .s57DA440C { margin-top:12pt; margin-left:21.25pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:8.75pt; text-align:justify; font-size:10pt } .s1913A4C6 { margin-top:6pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .s1540AE13 { -aw-bookmark-end:minsk } .sA5425006 { -aw-bookmark-end:MinskarticlEIGHT } .sDBFD26A1 { -aw-bookmark-end:article109 } .s3E1269F { -aw-bookmark-end:article466 } .s4E51A0D7 { margin-top:6pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-indent:21.3pt; text-align:justify } .sF023082F { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-indent:21.3pt; text-align:justify } .s1A52FCEB { -aw-bookmark-end:SC } .sF961BE1F { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:18pt; text-indent:21.3pt; text-align:justify } .s988F61DE { margin-top:12pt; margin-left:21.25pt; margin-bottom:18pt; text-indent:7.1pt; text-align:justify; font-size:10pt } .s21F08A35 { margin-top:18pt; margin-left:36.6pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:-15.05pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s3C0142D3 { margin-top:30pt; margin-left:29.2pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:-17.6pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .sEAAC84CD { font-family:Arial; font-size:12pt; -aw-import:ignore } .s1B0D0B53 { margin-top:12pt; margin-left:21.25pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:7.1pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:10pt } .sA6C752FC { width:3.45pt; text-indent:0pt; display:inline-block } .s8A9F351B { margin-top:12pt; margin-left:21.25pt; margin-bottom:24pt; text-indent:7.1pt; text-align:justify; font-size:10pt } .s804EF768 { margin-top:24pt; margin-left:29.2pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:-17.6pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .sCA92750 { margin-top:12pt; margin-left:21.25pt; margin-bottom:42pt; text-indent:7.1pt; text-align:justify; font-size:10pt } .sD777C0A5 { margin-top:42pt; margin-bottom:30pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:14pt } .sE7C30868 { margin-top:12pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .sE6F6C865 { margin-top:12pt; margin-left:48.75pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:-17pt; text-align:center; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:10pt } .s8C771D24 { margin-top:18pt; margin-left:48.75pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:-17pt; text-align:center; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:10pt } .sB6F98828 { margin-top:12pt; margin-left:36.6pt; margin-bottom:18pt; text-indent:-15.05pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s677DA8A { margin-top:18pt; margin-left:48.75pt; margin-bottom:18pt; text-indent:-17pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:10pt } .s8C50CFA1 { margin-top:18pt; margin-left:59.5pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:-17.85pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:10pt } .sCA71A5BA { margin-top:12pt; margin-left:59.5pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:-17.85pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:10pt } .s8378218E { margin-top:12pt; margin-left:48.75pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:-17pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:10pt } .s9F223FEE { margin-top:18pt; margin-left:17.85pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:-17.85pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s360DA689 { margin-top:18pt; margin-left:48.75pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:-17pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:10pt } .sB1BD30C0 { margin-top:6pt; margin-left:21.25pt; margin-bottom:24pt; text-indent:7.1pt; text-align:justify; font-size:10pt } .s8E011338 { margin-top:12pt; margin-bottom:6pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s56E27C8 { margin-top:6pt; margin-left:21.25pt; margin-bottom:24pt; text-indent:7.1pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:10pt } .sC1F0960A { margin-top:24pt; margin-left:29.2pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:-17.6pt; text-align:justify; page-break-after:avoid } .s3B3A5DE9 { margin-top:12pt; margin-bottom:36pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .sAB173E38 { margin-top:12pt; margin-left:17pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-indent:-17pt; text-align:justify } .s127C7598 { margin-top:0pt; margin-left:17pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-indent:-17pt; text-align:justify } .sD66C1369 { margin-top:0pt; margin-left:17.3pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:justify } .s60723A49 { margin-top:0pt; margin-left:39.7pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:justify } .s81CCF55C { margin-top:0pt; margin-left:17pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:-17pt; text-align:justify } .s48DB3670 { margin-top:12pt; margin-bottom:36pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s7CB9076 { margin-top:36pt; margin-bottom:0pt; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s90E4386E { width:171.95pt; display:inline-block; -aw-tabstop-align:center; -aw-tabstop-pos:320.35pt } .s59A658F0 { width:204.97pt; display:inline-block; -aw-tabstop-align:center; -aw-tabstop-pos:320.35pt }       FIRST SECTION           CASE OF ZOKHIDOV v. RUSSIA   (Application no. 67286/10)             JUDGMENT     STRASBOURG   5 February 2013     FINAL   08/07/2013   This judgment has become final under Article 44 § 2 of the Convention. It may be subject to editorial revision. In the case of Zokhidov v. Russia, The European Court of Human Rights (First Section), sitting as a Chamber composed of: Isabelle Berro-Lefèvre, President, Mirjana Lazarova Trajkovska, Julia Laffranque, Linos-Alexandre Sicilianos, Erik Møse, Ksenija Turković, Dmitry Dedov, judges, and André Wampach, Deputy Section Registrar, Having deliberated in private on 15 January 2013, Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date: PROCEDURE 1. The case originated in an application (no. 67286/10) against the Russian Federation lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) by an Uzbek national, Mr Rustam Zokhidov (“the applicant”), on 19 November 2010. 2. The applicant was represented by Ms Y. Korneva, a lawyer practising in St Petersburg. The Russian Government (“the Government”) were represented by Mr G. Matyushkin, Representative of the Russian Federation at the European Court of Human Rights. 3. The applicant alleged, in particular, that if he was extradited to Uzbekistan he would run a risk of being subjected to ill-treatment, and that he had not been afforded effective remedies in respect of that grievance; that his detention pending extradition had been unlawful; that he had not been promptly informed of the reasons for his detention; and that there had been no effective and speedy judicial review of his detention. 4 . On 19 November 2010 the President of the First Section indicated to the respondent Government that the applicant should not be extradited to Uzbekistan until further notice (Rule 39 of the Rules of Court). On the same date the application was granted priority under Rule 41 of the Rules of Court. 5. On 17 March 2011 the application was communicated to the Government. It was also decided to rule on the admissibility and merits of the application at the same time (Article 29 § 1). 6. In March and August 2012 the parties submitted further written observations at the request of the President of the Chamber (Rule 54 § 2 (c) of the Rules of Court). THE FACTS I. THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CASE 7. The applicant was born in 1972 and is currently serving a term of imprisonment in Uzbekistan. A. The background to the case and the applicant’s arrival in Russia 8. In 1999-2000 the applicant started studying Islam and attending a mosque in the town of Urgut, Uzbekistan. 9. On an unspecified date in 2000 a local police officer summoned the applicant to the police station and questioned him extensively on his reasons for attending the mosque. The police officer entered the applicant’s name in a special book. After the conversation, the applicant stopped going to the mosque as he was afraid. 10. On an unspecified date in 2005 the applicant arrived in Russia to look for work. He settled in St Petersburg, where his wife and minor daughter joined him in 2006. According to the applicant, in St Petersburg he lived in a community of Uzbek migrants, taking up temporary jobs such as street cleaner, and so his command of Russian remained poor. B. Criminal proceedings against the applicant in Uzbekistan 11. On 7 May 2010 an investigator of the Urgut branch of the National Security Service (“the Urgut NSS”) instituted criminal proceedings against the applicant in connection with his presumed participation in Hizb ut‑Tahrir (“HT”), a religious organisation recognised as extremist and banned in Uzbekistan (Article 159 § 1 of the Uzbek Criminal Code (“the UCC”)). The applicant was suspected of having participated, in the period between 2001 and 2005, in the above-mentioned organisation by creating secret cells for it at the place of his residence and organising the meetings of its members with a view to creating an “Islamic Caliphate”. 12. On 21 May 2010 the Samarkand department of the National Security Service (“the Samarkand NSS”) charged the applicant, in connection with his presumed membership of HT, with public appeals to overthrow the constitutional order of Uzbekistan committed as part of an organised group (Article 159 § 3 (a) of the UCC), preparation and dissemination of extremist materials constituting a threat to national security and public order (Article 244 § 3 of the UCC) and participation in an extremist organisation (Article 244 § 1 of the UCC). The decision stated, among other things, that, after joining HT, the applicant had recruited new members for the organisation, had organised meetings for them, at which he had called for the seizure of State power, and had stored and disseminated the organisation’s extremist materials. 13. On 21 May 2010 the Samarkand City Court ordered the applicant’s placement in custody. On the same day the applicant’s name was put on a wanted list. C. Proceedings concerning the applicant’s detention with a view to extradition 14 . On 14 July 2010 the applicant was arrested in St Petersburg. His arrest record of the same date stated that he had been arrested in accordance with the Minsk Convention as a person who was on an international wanted list. The arrest record contained the following pre-typed statement, signed by the applicant: “I have been informed of the receipt of the competent foreign authority’s notification that they are sending an extradition request, a detention [order] or a final judgment convicting [me] ( to be filled in if the documents mentioned have been received at the time of the compilation of the record )”. 15 . The arrest record also contained the following statement, signed by the applicant: ”Concerning [his] arrest [the applicant] stated: as to the reasons why [I am] being sought in the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan [I] don’t know anything”. 16. On 15 July 2010 the applicant was interviewed by the acting prosecutor of the Frunzenskiy District of St Petersburg (“the district prosecutor”). Following the interview, the district prosecutor compiled two documents entitled “express interview record of a person arrested under an international warrant” ( лист экспресс-опроса задержанного по межгосударственному розыску ) and an “explanation” ( объяснение ). Both documents were signed by the applicant. 17 . The interview record contained pre-typed fields, with information to be filled in, such as the applicant’s name, date and place of birth, data concerning his identity documents, the authority which had arrested him in Russia, and whether he had applied for political asylum or was in possession of information relating to State secrets. The document did not contain any description of the charges in connection with which the applicant was wanted; it only referred to the Articles of the UCC, as follows: “... 8. Date of initiation of search, Article: 01.06.2010, circular 2010/316, Article 159 § 3 (a), Article 244-I § 3 (a), Article 244-2 of the Criminal Code of Uzbekistan. ... 16. Statement of the detained, which State he considers himself to be a national of, his account of the reasons for his criminal prosecution: [the applicant] considers himself a citizen of Uzbekistan, he learnt that he is being sought by the Uzbek law‑enforcement authorities at the time of his arrest.” 18 . The “explanation” of 15 July 2010 started with the pre-typed statement: “I have a good command of Russian and do not need the services of an interpreter”, signed by the applicant. It continued with the information that the applicant had arrived in Russia in 2005 to work, had not previously applied for registration or asylum and that he had learnt that he was wanted by the Uzbek authorities at the time of his arrest on 14 July 2010. The explanation did not contain any reference to the charges on which the applicant was wanted. 19 . On 15 July 2010 the district prosecutor ordered the applicant’s placement in custody with reference to Article 61 of the Minsk Convention. The decision stated that the applicant was wanted by the Uzbek authorities “for having committed crimes under Articles 159 § 3 (a), 244-I § 3 (a), and 244-2 of the Uzbekistan Criminal Code”, without providing any further information in that regard. It further noted that on 14 July 2010 the Uzbek authorities had confirmed their intention to request the applicant’s extradition and had forwarded the Samarkand City Court’s detention order in respect of the applicant. No time-limits for the applicant’s detention were set in the decision and the applicant was not provided with a copy of it. 20 . On 16 August 2010 the Russian General Prosecutor’s Office (“the Russian GPO”) received the request by their Uzbek counterpart for the applicant’s extradition (see paragraph 33 below). 21. On 18 August 2010 the applicant appointed a lawyer, Mrs K., to represent him in the domestic proceedings, and it appears that she had access to him on the same date. 22 . On 24 August 2010 the district prosecutor again ordered the applicant’s detention. He referred to the extradition request received from the Uzbek authorities, and the Uzbek court’s detention order and relied on Article 466 § 2 of the Russian Code of Criminal Procedure (“the CCrP”). The applicant was not provided with a copy of that decision. 23 . On 15 September 2010 the applicant, through his lawyer, complained to the Frunzenskiy District Court of St Petersburg (“the District Court”) under Article 125 of the CCrP that his detention was unlawful, and requested to be released. He submitted that he had a poor command of Russian, except for some basic communication, that he had not been explained, in a language he understood, the reasons for his arrest and placement in custody and accusations against him, and that he had signed the arrest and interview records, as well as the “explanation”, without understanding their meaning, under stress, and on the instructions of the prosecutor, who had allegedly told him that they would “just talk” and that he then would invite an interpreter for him. The applicant further complained that the detention orders of 15 July and 24 August had been unlawful. As regards the former, it had not set any time-limits for the detention and referred only to Article 61 of the Minsk Convention. The applicant had not been provided with a copy of that detention order or a translation of it into Uzbek. The second decision had ordered the applicant’s detention de novo , without setting any time-limits for it, which contradicted decision no. 101-O of the Constitutional Court. None of the detention orders set out the procedure for challenging them before the courts. 24. On 15 September 2010 the district prosecutor requested the District Court to extend the applicant’s detention until 15 January 2011. On the same date the applicant’s lawyer requested the District Court to secure, before examining the extension request, the translation into Uzbek of the documents concerning the applicant’s detention and extradition, including the detention orders of 15 July and 24 August 2010 and the documents concerning his criminal prosecution in Uzbekistan and the Uzbek court’s detention order, and to give him time to acquaint himself with those documents. It appears that her request was turned down. 25 . By a decision of 15 September 2010 the District Court granted the prosecutor’s request and extended the applicant’s detention until 15 January 2011. It can be seen from the decision and the hearing record that an interpreter for the applicant participated in the hearing. As regards the applicant’s argument that he had not been made aware of the reasons for his arrest and detention, the District Court noted that in his explanation of 15 July 2010 the applicant had stated that he did not need the services of an interpreter. 26. On 17 September 2010 the District Court returned to the applicant’s lawyer her complaint of 15 September 2010 on the ground that she had failed to enclose a representation mandate ( ордер ). She appealed against the decision of 17 September 2010 and on 26 October 2010 the District Court informed her that her appeal would be examined by the St Petersburg City Court (“the City Court”) and that she would be advised of the hearing date by that court. 27. On 18 September 2010 the applicant’s lawyer appealed against the detention order of 15 September 2010 to the City Court and on 18 October 2010 the District Court received an additional appeal statement from her. In those appeal statements the applicant’s lawyer reiterated that the authorities had failed to inform her client of the reasons for his arrest and the charges against him, as had been stated in her complaint under Article 125 of the CCrP of 15 September 2010. She also stressed that the applicant’s poor command of Russian had been recognised by the District Court, which had considered it necessary to secure an interpreter’s presence at the hearing of 15 September 2010. 28 . On 10 November 2010 the City Court set aside the decision of 15 September 2010. The case was examined with the participation of an interpreter for the applicant. The court found that at the time of his arrest on 14 July 2010 the applicant had not been advised of his right to an interpreter and a lawyer. Moreover, the District Court had recognised at the hearing of 15 September 2010 that the applicant’s command of Russian was poor and had appointed an interpreter for him. By dismissing, without sufficient reasons, the applicant’s request to have access to the case-file materials with the participation of an interpreter, the District Court had breached his right to state his case in court. By the same decision the court extended the applicant’s detention until 30 November 2010. 29 . On 22 November 2010 the District Court extended the applicant’s detention until 15 January 2011. The case was examined in the presence of an interpreter. 30. On 9 December 2010 the applicant retracted his appeal against the decision of 17 September 2010, considering that it was devoid of purpose and could not lead to his release because on 22 November 2010 the District Court had already authorised his detention until 15 January 2011. 31. On 12 January 2011 the City Court upheld the decision of 22 November 2010 on appeal and on 14 January 2011 the District Court extended the applicant’s detention until 15 April 2011. 32. On 14 April 2011 the St Petersburg City Court ordered the applicant’s release from custody owing to the fact that it had set aside the decision to extradite the applicant to Uzbekistan (see below). D. Extradition proceedings 33 . On 16 August 2010 the Russian GPO received their Uzbek counterpart’s request for the applicant’s extradition. The document also stated, among other things, that without Russia’s consent the applicant would not be extradited to a third-party State, or be prosecuted or punished for offences committed before extradition and not mentioned in the extradition request, and that he would be free to leave Uzbekistan after serving his sentence. The request further stated that he would be provided with medical assistance, if necessary, and secured the right to a fair trial, and that his criminal prosecution was not discriminatory. Lastly, the document mentioned that the Uzbek legislation prohibited torture and inhuman and degrading treatment and that Uzbekistan had abolished the death penalty. 34. On 5 September 2010 the applicant’s lawyer, K., informed the prosecuting authorities that she was representing the applicant in the extradition proceedings and requested to be informed if any decisions concerning the applicant’s extradition had been taken. 35. On 9 September 2010 a deputy Prosecutor General decided to extradite the applicant to Uzbekistan. The prosecutor’s decision enumerated the charges against the applicant and stated that his actions were punishable under Russian criminal law. The extradition order was granted in respect of actions aimed at the overthrow of the constitutional order, public appeals inciting extremist activities and participation in an organisation banned by a court decision owing to its extremist activities, which were proscribed by Russian criminal law. Lastly, it noted that no reasons had been established which precluded the applicant’s extradition to Uzbekistan. In the applicant’s submission, he was not informed of that decision. 36. On 30 September 2010 the applicant’s lawyer renewed her request to the Russian GPO to be informed whether any decisions had been issued in respect of her client in the extradition proceedings. 37. On 15 October 2010 the Russian GPO informed K. that on 9 September 2010 it had decided to extradite the applicant to Uzbekistan and that since the latter had not made use of his right to challenge it in the courts, the order had become final. However, his extradition had been stayed owing to his application for asylum lodged on 1 October 2010 (see below). 38 . On 18 October 2010 the applicant complained about the extradition order before the St Petersburg City Court, submitting that neither he himself nor his lawyer had been furnished with a copy of the extradition order, and requesting that the time-limits for appealing against it be reinstated. With reference to reports by UN bodies, NGOs such as Human Rights Watch, and the judgments of the European Court in the cases of Ismoilov , Muminov , Yuldashev and Karimov v. Russia he argued that he ran a real risk of being exposed to ill-treatment in case of his extradition to Uzbekistan. He also argued that the legal classification of his acts by the Russian GPO under the Russian criminal law had been incorrect and that the limitation period for his criminal prosecution had expired. 39 . On 19 November 2010 the President of the First Section granted the applicant’s request for an interim measure and indicated to the Russian Government under Rule 39 of the Rules of Court that they should not extradite the applicant to Uzbekistan until further notice. The Court’s letter of the same date, addressed to both parties, in so far as relevant, reads as follows: “On 19 November 2010 the President of the Section to which the case has been allocated decided, in the interests of the parties and the proper conduct of the proceedings before the Court, to indicate to your Government, under Rule 39 of the Rules of Court, that the applicant should not be extradited to Uzbekistan until further notice. The parties’ attention is drawn to the fact that failure of a Contracting State to comply with a measure indicated under Rule 39 may entail a breach of Article 34 of the Convention. In this connection, reference is made to paragraphs 128 and 129 of the Grand Chamber judgment of 4 February 2005 in the case of Mamatkulov and Askarov v. Turkey (applications nos. 46827/99 and 46951/99) as well as point 5 of the operative part.” 40 . On 26 November 2010 the City Court dismissed the applicant’s complaint against the extradition order. As regards the risk of ill-treatment, the court considered that the applicant’s reference to reports from various international actors, as well as judgments of the European Court which had not become final, was not indicative of the existence of such a risk for the applicant personally, and that his submissions in that regard were speculative and “not objectively confirmed”. It also noted that in issuing the decision to extradite the applicant the Russian GPO had taken into account their Uzbek counterpart’s assurances that he would not be subjected to treatment in breach of Article 3. 41 . The applicant appealed against the decision, reiterating that, as a person accused of participation in a proscribed religious and extremist organisation and of crimes against State security, he ran an increased risk of ill-treatment and torture in case of his extradition. In this connection, he relied on reports from various international organisations, which specifically pointed out that individuals accused of membership of HT were particularly exposed to a risk of torture. He also referred to the case-law of the European Court mentioned in his previous complaint to the City Court. He further asserted that the assurances provided by the Uzbek authorities were unreliable and insufficient, and averred that the Russian GPO had given an incorrect legal classification of the offences imputed to him by the Uzbek authorities under the Russian criminal law, and that his criminal prosecution had become time-barred under Russian law. 42. On 28 February 2011 the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation (“the Supreme Court”) set aside the decision of 26 November 2011 and instructed the first-instance court to verify the applicant’s allegations concerning the legal classification of his acts under the Russian criminal law and the expiry of the limitation periods for his criminal prosecution. 43 . On 14 April 2011 the City Court set aside the extradition order in respect of the applicant, finding that the Russian GPO’s legal classification of his acts under the Russian criminal law was incorrect and that his criminal prosecution had become time-barred. By the same decision it ordered the applicant’s release. 44 . On 8 June 2011 the Supreme Court dismissed an appeal by the Russian GPO against the decision of 14 April 2011, endorsing the reasoning of the City Court. The Supreme Court also noted that in taking its decision it had taken into account the conclusions of the European Court made in a number of similar cases to the effect that ill-treatment of detainees in Uzbekistan constituted a serious problem and that the guarantees of the Uzbek authorities were not sufficient to dispel the risk of such treatment. E. Asylum proceedings 45. On 1 October 2010 the applicant filed an application for asylum with the St Petersburg branch of the Federal Migration Service (“the FMS”). 46. By a telegram of 4 October 2010 the applicant’s lawyer informed the Russian GPO that her client had lodged an asylum application. 47. On 11 November 2010 an official of the St Petersburg branch of the FMS interviewed the applicant in connection with his asylum application. In the applicant’s submission, he informed the official that he was persecuted in his home country on account of his religious beliefs. 48. On 17 November 2010 the St Petersburg branch of the FMS notified the applicant that on 16 November 2010 it had discontinued its examination of his asylum application with reference to Article 2 § 1 of the Refugees Act (commission by the asylum seeker of serious non-political crimes in his home country). 49 . On 19 November 2010 the applicant appealed to the FMS against the refusal to examine his application for asylum on the merits. Relying on reports by various international organisations, he submitted that, as a person accused of membership of HT, he belonged to an identifiable group in respect of which credible sources had reported an increased risk of ill‑treatment by the Uzbek authorities. He also referred to the European Court’s findings in the Muminov case and other judgments concerning the extradition or expulsion to Uzbekistan of presumed members of HT. He therefore claimed that he was persecuted by the Uzbek authorities on account of the political and religious opinions imputed to him and stressed that the interviewing officer had limited his questioning to the circumstances of his arrival in Russia and questions as to whether he had a valid registration or a work permit, and had disregarded his submission that he had become a refugee sur place because he had become aware of his criminal prosecution in Uzbekistan only after his arrest and detention in Russia. 50. By a telegram of 19 November 2010 the applicant’s lawyer notified the Russian GPO that her client had lodged an appeal against the refusal to consider his application for asylum. 51 . On 12 January 2011 the applicant’s lawyer supplemented her client’s complaint to the FMS of 19 November 2010 with further extensive references to reports by the UN Committee against Torture, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, and information from the Russian Ministry of the Foreign Affairs. She also extensively cited the judgments of the European Court in the cases of Muminov , Ismailov and Others, Yuldashev, Abdulazhon Isakov and Karimov v. Russia. 52. On 18 February 2011 the FMS set aside the decision of 16 November 2010 and informed the applicant that his request for asylum would be examined on the merits. 53 . On 17 March 2011 the St Petersburg branch of the FMS dismissed the applicant’s request for refugee status. It reasoned that he had applied for asylum only two and a half months after his arrest with a view to extradition and that he had breached the residence regulations and submitted false information in that regard, which indicated that the charges levelled against him in Uzbekistan were not without foundation. Moreover, he was wanted by the Uzbek authorities on suspicion of participation in HT, which had been banned as an extremist organisation by the Russian Supreme Court. The decision did not mention the applicant’s arguments concerning the risk of ill-treatment. 54 . The applicant had access to a copy of that decision on 8 June 2011, following which he challenged it before the FMS. In his complaint the applicant reiterated his arguments concerning the risk of ill-treatment, with reference to materials stemming from international governmental and non‑governmental organisations and the judgments of the European Court. In particular, he stressed that he was wanted by the Uzbek authorities on account of imputed political and religious beliefs and extremist activities and thus belonged to an identifiable group particularly targeted by the authorities and ran an increased risk of ill-treatment. He also submitted that he had left Uzbekistan in 2005 of his own free will to look for a job and had at that time not been aware of his criminal prosecution, which had been initiated only in 2010. The applicant stressed that he had become aware of the substance of the accusations against him only on 29 September 2010, when some of the documents concerning the charges against him had been translated into Uzbek, and that immediately after that he had applied for refugee status. 55. In the applicant’s submission, for the duration of the examination of his appeal against the decision of 17 March 2011 the St Petersburg branch of the FMS had issued him with a residence registration [ свидетельство о регистрации ] attesting to the lawfulness of his stay in Russia. The registration address given in the document was that of the St Petersburg branch of the FMS. That address had been used in the notarially certified authority form the applicant issued for his lawyer, K. 56 . On 15 July 2011 the FMS dismissed the applicant’s complaint about the decision of 17 March 2011. It noted that, according to information from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the human rights situation in Uzbekistan was “ambiguous”. Whilst the country had ratified all major UN instruments, in 2000-2001 the Uzbek authorities had arrested hundreds of followers of HT on suspicion of their participation in several explosions in Tashkent. Moreover, the Uzbek authorities considered that members of HT had actively participated in the Andijan events of 2005. It further cited the Ministry as stating that “with a view to securing internal stability the leadership of Uzbekistan is conducting a strict policy of control over attitudes and mind frames in all segments of Uzbek society, and of suppression of all terrorist and fundamentalist religious threats, backed up by the security forces and the judicial system”. The FMS went on to note that it endorsed the findings of its regional branch as to the absence of any circumstances indicating that the applicant would be unlawfully persecuted in Uzbekistan and pointed out that he had resided unlawfully in Russia after his arrival because his registration and work permits had been forged. The decision was silent on the applicant’s arguments concerning the risk of ill‑treatment in case of his return to his home country. 57. On 9 August 2011 officials of the St Petersburg branch of the FMS seized the applicant’s residence registration document. On the same date the applicant requested them to issue him with a residence registration for the address at which he actually resided in St Petersburg, submitting that he would challenge the refusals to grant him asylum in the courts and that he would need the impugned document in order to do so. According to the applicant, his request received no reply. On the same date he complained about the refusals of the migration authorities to grant him asylum (decisions of 17 March and 15 July 2011) to the Frunzenskiy District Court of St Petersburg, giving his actual address of residence. 58. On 24 August 2011 the Frunzenskiy District Court refused to entertain the applicant’s complaint on the ground that the address given in his lawyer’s authority form and that indicated by the applicant differed and that the applicant had failed to prove that he was registered at the actual address indicated by him. 59 . On 10 September 2011 the applicant complained about the decisions refusing to grant him asylum to the Dzerzhinskiy District Court of St Petersburg (“the Dzerzhinskiy District Court“). He reiterated the arguments he had raised before the migration authorities, including his submissions concerning the risk of ill-treatment, and averred that both migration authorities in dismissing his asylum application had disregarded his detailed submissions on that matter, supported with references to European Court judgments and materials from international organisations. 60 . On 25 November 2011 the Dzerzhinskiy District Court dismissed the applicant’s complaint. It noted that, according to Article 10 § 3 of the Refugees Act, an asylum seeker was to lodge a complaint about a migration authority’s decision (a) within one month of receiving written notification of such decision, or within a month of having lodged a complaint, should he receive no written reply to it, or (b) within three months of learning of the refusal to grant him asylum. As regards the decision of 17 March 2011, the court found that the applicant had received written notification of it on 21 March 2011 and had obtained a copy of the decision not later than 8 June 2011, whilst he had lodged his complaint with the court on 10 September 2011. Accordingly, he had missed the time-limits for challenging the impugned decision before a court. Moreover, the applicant had made use of his right to challenge the decision of 17 March 2011 before the FMS. As to the decision of the FMS dated 15 July 2011, the Dzerzhinskiy District Court refused to examine the applicant’s complaint in that part on the ground that he had no valid registration in St Petersburg and that he had, accordingly, to lodge his complaint with the court having territorial jurisdiction over the FMS, which was located in Moscow. 61 . On 5 December 2011 the applicant appealed against the District Court’s decision to the St Petersburg City Court. He furnished the Court with a copy of his appeal statement and a certificate of posting showing that it was despatched to the City Court on that date. F. The applicant’s deportation to Uzbekistan 1. The applicant’s account 62 . At 7 a.m. on 21 December 2011 several individuals who introduced themselves as police officers and officials of the St Petersburg branch of the FMS burst into the flat occupied by the applicant and his family on the pretext of an identity check. The applicant immediately called his lawyer, K., and switched his mobile to conference call mode so as to enable her to participate in the conversation. The applicant and K. informed the intruders that proceedings concerning his application for refugee status were pending before the appellate court and the applicant showed them a stamped copy of his appeal statement. They also informed them that he could not be returned to Uzbekistan because the Court had applied Rule 39 in his case, which was pending before it. The applicant showed the officers a copy of the Court’s letter. The applicant’s lawyer also informed the officers that she was on her way to the flat, but at that moment the connection was cut. Despite these explanations, the applicant was handcuffed, placed in a car and taken to an unknown destination. His relatives were not allowed to follow him. 63. Upon the applicant’s lawyer’s advice, the applicant’s wife and brother immediately went to search for the applicant at several police stations and the FMS premises in the Frunzenskiy District of St Petersburg, and K. herself contacted the St Petersburg immigration detention centres but their attempts produced no results. K. also informed the head of the foundation “Right to Asylum”, Ms E.Z., and the local office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees about the applicant’s disappearance. 64 . At about 3 p.m. on the same day, the applicant’s wife informed K. that the applicant had called her from a third person’s mobile phone and had told her that he was at the premises of the St Petersburg branch of FMS, following which the phone had been taken from him and switched off and she had been unable to reach him. At about 3.10 p.m. K. called the department for refugees and forced migrants of the St Petersburg branch of the FMS, informed them of the applicant’s situation and stressed that she was looking for him. Her interlocutor, who introduced himself as E.Sh., replied that he had no information regarding the applicant, the reasons for his arrest or his whereabouts. 65. At about 8 p.m. K. and the applicant’s wife complained to the investigation department of the Frunzenskiy District of St Petersburg about the applicant’s disappearance but the latter authority refused to follow up on their complaint. 66. At about 8.40 p.m. on the same day, K. was informed that a man who was unknown to the applicant’s family had recently contacted the applicant’s relatives and told them that the applicant was at Pulkovo airport and that he would be soon put on a plane to Samarkand, Uzbekistan. The man stated that the applicant had asked him to call his relatives because the applicant “was being guarded by two Interpol officers” who would not allow him to make any phone calls. K. conveyed that information to Ms E.Z. and the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and called the duty unit of the North-Western transport prosecutor’s office, which was responsible for Pulkovo airport, where she spoke to officer A.A. She informed him of the applicant’s situation and requested him to take urgent steps to prevent her client’s unlawful transfer to Uzbekistan. A.A. promised her that he would report the situation to his superiors. 67. At about 9.30 p.m. K. was informed that the applicant had called his relatives from an unknown mobile number and had swiftly told them that he was on the plane, where he had been requested to sign some papers but had refused, and that before his transfer to the airport he had been held at the premises of the department for refugees and forced migrants of the St Petersburg branch of the FMS. The connection had suddenly been cut. 68 . According to a written statement by Ms E.Z., between 8.40 p.m. and 8.50 p.m. on 21 December 2011 K. informed her that the applicant had been taken to Pulkovo airport to be transferred to Uzbekistan. Ms E.Z. then immediately conveyed that information to Ms T.K., head of the criminal law department of the Office of the Representative of the Russian Federation at the European Court of Human Rights, and requested the latter to take urgent measures to prevent the applicant’s transfer. At about 9.40 p.m. T.K. informed Ms E.Z. that she had taken all possible steps to notify the competent authorities, including the Russian GPO, with a view to preventing the applicant’s forced transfer; however, she was not sure, given the late hour, whether this would produce any results. Meanwhile, Ms E.Z. informed the Office of the Ombudsman of Russia of the risk of the applicant’s forced transfer to Uzbekistan. At 10 p.m. Ms E.Z. contacted the transport prosecutor’s office responsible for Pulkovo airport. The on-duty officer, Mr A.A., confirmed to Ms E.Z. that the applicant’s lawyer K. had already informed him about the risk of the applicant’s forced transfer to Uzbekistan. In reply to Ms E.Z.’s request that urgent steps be taken to prevent the transfer, he informed her that he had sent an officer to verify whether the applicant had been checked in for the flight, to which Ms E.Z. immediately replied that the applicant must already be on the plane and that his unlawful transfer to Uzbekistan would be in breach of the international obligations of the Russian Federation. However, instead of taking any steps, A.A. started asking her various questions, such as whether the applicant had bought a ticket for the flight, whether a criminal case had been opened into his abduction, and so on. In her statement Ms E.Z. further submitted that immediately after her call A.A. was contacted by the Office of the Ombudsman of Russia, whose officials yet again explained to him the legal consequences of the applicant’s transfer to Uzbekistan. At 10.40 p.m. Ms E.Z. again contacted A.A. to ask him whether the applicant had been taken off the flight, to which A.A. replied in the negative. He further told her that the applicant’s name was not among the persons who had bought tickets for the flight or those who had been checked in for it and that no check had been conducted inside the plane because the airstairs had already been removed from it. A.A. disregarded Ms E.Z.’s remarks that to search for the applicant in the list of checked-in passengers was useless because in several previous cases individuals, such as Mr Abdulkhakov and Mr Dzhurayev, had been unlawfully transferred from Russia without being formally checked in. 2. Information submitted by the Government 69. On 21 December 2011 the head of the St Petersburg branch of the FMS issued a decision on the applicant’s deportation with reference to Articles 10 § 5 and 13 § 2 of the Refugees Act. The decision stated that on 25 November 2011 the Dzerzhinskiy District Court had dismissed the applicant’s complaint about the migration authorities’ refusals to grant him asylum, that that decision had become final on 6 December 2011, and that there were no legal grounds for the applicant’s stay in Russia. 70 . On 21 December 2011 officers of the FMS conducted a check at the applicant’s place of residence with a view to verifying whether he had left Russia. Having established that he had not, they took him to the premises of the St Petersburg branch of the FMS, where a decision concerning his deportation was served on him in the presence of an interpreter. In the Government’s submission, the applicant did not express the intention to challenge the deportation order against him. 71. Subsequently the applicant was taken to Pulkovo airport, where he passed through passport control and the Federal Security Service (“the FSB”) officers “stamped his passport to prove that he had crossed the State border of the Russian Federation”. The applicant was conveyed to the plane and took flight no. FV-879 from St Petersburg to Samarkand, its departure time being 8 p.m. 72. The Government presented no documents in support of their submissions, except a copy of the deportation order. G. Events in Russia and Uzbekistan following the applicant’s deportation 73. On 22 December 2011 the applicant’s lawyer, K., learnt that after the applicant’s plane had landed in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, he had immediately been brought to the Samarkand Department of the Ministry of the Interior and taken from there to Tashkent by officers of the National Security Service. 74. Subsequently, K. complained about the applicant’s transfer to Uzbekistan to the Russian GPO and the investigation department of the Frunzenskiy District of St Petersburg. 75. On 10 February 2012 the Russian GPO replied to K. that by a final decision of 8 June 2011 the Supreme Court had set aside the extradition order in respect of the applicant. On 19 August 2011 the Russian GPO had informed their Uzbek counterpart that they could not extradite the applicant. According to the information available to the Russian GPO, on 21 December 2011 the head of the St Petersburg branch of the FMS had issued a deport