Tymoshenko's defense team to appeal to CoE Committee of Ministers
The defense team of former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko intends to complain to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe about the reluctance of the High Specialized Court of Ukraine to send the ex-premier's appeal against her sentence to the Supreme Court.
"For three days already, on the eve of the Independence Day, the Ukrainian state, as represented by the High Specialized Court, has been violating the European Convention on Human Rights, the Ukrainian Constitution and the Criminal Procedure Code. We will notify the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe about the current situation," Vlasenko said at a briefing in Kharkiv on Thursday.
He quoted Part 2 of Article 400-18 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine dated 1960, according to which the High Specialized Court of Ukraine for Civil and Criminal Cases has 15 days from the date of a receipt of an appeal to decide on its admission or non-admission to the Supreme Court.
Vlasenko said that Tymoshenko's appeal was filed on August 1, and even taking into account three days taken to correct the defects pointed out by the court, the time given to the court to decide on sending the case to the Supreme Court expired on August 19.
"On yesterday evening the defense team was officially informed that the case was under consideration. This looks surreal and insane, as the law clearly states that the very existence of the European Court's ruling is a reason enough to transfer the case to the Supreme Court. End of story. We do not understand what is there to study for 15 days... We believe that the Ukrainian government has officially refused to execute the ruling of the European Court of Human Rights, since the High Specialized Court did not respond to the appeal of Yulia Tymoshenko within the deadlines... The defense team will inform the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe about this today and will ask it to use all its powers, in particular those stipulated by Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights, to issue instructions compulsory for execution, including those related to general measures and additional individual measures," Vlasenko said.
He also noted that the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe should consider this appeal within reasonable timeframe.
As reported, on August 1, Tymoshenko's defense team appeal to the Supreme Court of Ukraine through the Higher Specialized Court, asking it to review and overturn her seven-year prison sentence in the gas contract case.
