BELARUS: IVANOU EXECUTED PENDING COMPLAINT WITH THE UN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE

May 6, 2016: A 22-year-old prisoner, Siarhei Ivanou, was executed on April 18, according to another death convict, Siarhei Khmialeuski, who reportedly shared a cell with Ivanou on death row in jail No. 1 in Minsk.
Khmialeuski reported Ivanou’s execution on 6 May during hearing of his appeal to the Supreme Court.
According to Andrei Paluda, coordinator of the campaign "Human Rights Defenders against the Death Penalty in Belarus”, Siarhei Ivanou’s relatives confirmed his death, as they were notified about the execution in early May. Ivanou was sentenced to death in March 2015 by the Rechytsa District Court on charges of murdering and raping a 19-year-old girl in August 2013.
In a statement issued on 7 May, the European Union said the execution of Siarhei Ivanou was "particularly disturbing" given the fact that his complaint was pending with the UN Human Rights Committee. (Sources: RFE/RL, 07/05/2016; BelaPAN and Hands off Cain, 08/05/2016)