European Court of Human Rights

21 January 2011

CASE OF OSHLAKOV v. RUSSIA

(Application no. 56662/09)

QUESTIONS TO THE PARTIES

1.  Do the applicant’s complaints in the present case reveal a systemic problem in the Russian law (see, mutatis mutandis, Broniowski v. Poland [GC], no. 31443/96, §§ 189-94, ECHR 2004 V) inasmuch as it does not provide for a procedure that is sufficiently accessible, precise and foreseeable in its application to prevent arbitrary detention pending extradition and through which the lawfulness of such detention could be examined by a court?

Reference is made to a number of violations found by the Court since 2007 (see, among many others, Garabayev v. Russia, no. 38411/02, §§ 85-98, ECHR 2007 VII (extracts), Nasrulloyev v. Russia, no. 656/06, §§ 72-78 and 86-90, 11 October 2007, Khodzhayev v. Russia, no. 52466/08, § 127, 12 May 2010) finding repetitive violations of Article 5 §§ 1 and 4 of the Convention on account of the lack of legal provisions governing detention pending extradition which would satisfy the “quality of law” requirements and the lack of regular review of the lawfulness of such detention.

2.  The parties are invited to comment on whether the existing failings of the Code of Criminal Procedure highlighted by the Court’s repetitive judgments mentioned above should be remedied through legislative measures so as to ensure that any detention pending extradition strictly complies with Russia’s obligations under Article 5 §§ 1 (f) and 4 of the Convention.