English  |  Français  |  Español
 
OMCT LogoOMCT logo
Make a donationRSSOMCT on FacebookOMCT on TwitterOMCT BlogHomeAbout OMCTActivitiesCATOMCT NetworkOMCT EuropeContactsMake a donation
  • Urgent campaigns
  • Assistance to victims
  • Human rights defenders
  • ESCR
  • Rights of the child
  • Violence against women
  • Monitoring protection mechanisms
 Save as PDF Print version
Human rights defenders / Links / Russian Federation / 2015 / December

Russian Federation: Olga and the paradox of fighting torture: Revealing legal dysfunctionality, building trust

December 1st, Nizhny Novgorod (Russian Federation) – Olga Sadovskaya does not shout, or carry banners in the streets; nor does she complain about the threats and insulting graffiti she regularly finds painted on the fence around her house.

 

This sober 36-year-old lawyer, who practices yoga in her spare time, has put her legal skills and intellectual rigor in the service of the cause of righting abuses and fighting torture in her home country, Russia, by keeping it on the top of the political agenda.

 

As Deputy Director of the Committee Against Torture, the award-winning human rights organization providing psychosocial and legal assistance to victims, she focuses on winning legal victories in torture cases by thorough investigative groundwork, sophisticated medical reports and legal expertise. 


“Everyone should care about torture because anyone could be the next victim,” Olga says. “If torture is condoned or indeed widespread, it means that the State’s legal system is not working properly, not only when torture is involved, but at all levels.”

 

Torture works like a litmus test. If it is accompanied by impunity, the legal system is dysfunctional. “There is no guarantee that the law will work properly in ordinary, day-to-day situations, as when someone asks for a bank loan, sues for damages, needs her child to be protected from abuse or her mother to be provided with anaesthesia”, she explains.

 

The work pays off. In the 13 years she has been with the Committee, she and her colleagues have filed 84 complaints at the European Court of Human Rights, managed to put more than 100 police officers in jail for torture, with clients receiving almost 46 million roubles (700,000 USD) in compensation, and several lives being saved by evacuation from Chechnya.

 

Olga describes her work as a constant challenge given the Russian Government’s attempts to close down independent human rights organizations.  For lack of substantive arguments, the Government accuses the Committee – partially funded by international donors, as most NGOs – of being a foreign agent, in order to prevent it from accessing funds that allow it to function.

 

This is a commonly used tactic against human rights activists. Rather than simply banning an NGO, some States block its access to external funding by a variety of restrictive measures – legal, administrative or practical – which bein, less obvious, are less likely to draw international condemnation.

 

Although, as a result, the Committee might run out of money within three months, Olga keeps ploughing through her cases with unwavering faith that her work is about restoring trust in the State.

 

– by Lori Brumat in Geneva


To know more about the "10 December, 10 Defenders" campaign, click here.

 

Pledge your voice, an action, or funds and help us support 10 HRD continue their fight against torture!

 

 

OMCT wishes to thank the OAK Foundation, the European Union and the Republic and Canton of Geneva for their support. Its content is the sole responsibility of OMCT and should in no way be interpreted as reflecting the view(s) of the supporting institutions.


Properties

Date: December 1, 2015
Activity: Human Rights Defenders
Type: Links
Country: Russian Federation
Subjects: Human Rights Defenders, Torture and violence

Share this

Tweet

Related articles

  • Russian Federation:  Attack on Igor Kalyapin, Head of the Joint Mobile Group (JMG) and the Committee for the Prevention of Torture, by a mob of unidentified people
    Urgent Interventions / March 23, 2016
  • Russian Federation:  Members of the Joint Mobile Group and journalists attacked in Ingushetia
    Urgent Interventions / March 14, 2016
  • Indonesia:  Meet Paul: Restoring the human rights of indigenous Papuans amid on-going conflict
    Links / December 10, 2015
  • OMCT showcases 10 torture activists ahead of Dec. 10 UN Human Rights Day, launching its 30th anniversary celebration
    Links / December 10, 2015
  • Benin:  Meet Norbert: Better protecting children to break Benin’s cycle of violence
    Links / December 8, 2015
  • Libya:  Meet Salah: Keeping hope for redress in the absence of a State, amid a civil war
    Links / December 5, 2015
  • Bolivia:  Meet Emma Bolshia who helps Bolivian victims recover from torture and its second trauma, silence
    Links / December 4, 2015
  • Tajikistan:  Meet Nigina: Towards a functioning system that leaves no room for torture
    Links / December 3, 2015
  • Congo, Democratic Republic:  Meet Justin Bahirwe: A lawyer trying to reduce Congolese’s exposure to the pervasive risk of torture
    Links / December 2, 2015
  • Afghanistan:  Meet Hassan Ali: Promoting human rights in Afghanistan for the sake of humanity
    Links / December 1, 2015
  • Turkey:  Meet Yavuz from Turkey: A life after torture spent helping other survivors
    Links / November 30, 2015

Languages

This page is available in:

English
French


You can also translate it on the fly:

Recently Viewed Articles

OMCT International Secretariat
PO Box 21, 8, rue du Vieux-Billard, CH-1211 Geneva 8, Switzerland
Tel: + 41 22 809 4939
Fax: + 41 22 809 4929
E-mail:
OMCT Europe
Rue Franklin 111
1000 Brussels
Tel. / Fax: +32 2 218 37 19
E-mail:
OMCT TUNIS
3, Rue Hassen Ibn Nooman
Cité Jardins | Tunis 1002
Tel: +216 71 791 114
Fax: +216 71 791 115
E-mail:
  • Blog
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Rss
  • Privacy Policy