Release from custody Olaolu Femi - victim of racist attack!
To President of Ukraine Mr. Viktor Yanukovych
Add your signature to the request demanding from the President of Ukraine to release a NIgerian student Olaolu Sunkanmi Femi from detention and to ensure a fair trial for him. Since November 2011 26-year old Nigerian is in prison for having the courage to confront five youths who had committed a racially motivated attack against him and his friend. A pre-determined position of the police and prosecutors led to Femi’s arrest in favor of the attackers and pressing criminal charges against him. Now Olaolu is facing a long prison term. We demand that Ukrainian leadership takes action within its powers in order to ensure soonest possible Femi’s release from custody, repeated transparent and effective investigation, and to prevent any attempts to put pressure upon the court. We are confident that these measures will be enough to establish justice.
Mr. President,
By signing this appeal we want to express the indignation at the actions of the Ukrainian authorities, in particular the Lugansk police and Lugansk prosecutor office, who violated and continue to violate rights of a citizen of Nigeria, Olaolu Sunkanmi Femi, who became the victim of a racially motivated attack committed by five youths in November, 2011.
The attack took place in Lugansk on the night of November 5, 2011. Two Nigerian students were attacked by young people who put them to the ground and were beating them while shouting racist abuse. Defending his life and the life of a friend who went unconscious, Olaolu Femi instinctively defended himself by inflicting several blows against his attackers with a broken glass bottle. The next day he was arrested according to the attackers’ statement and has already spent 11 months in pre-trial detention. As a result of the investigation which contained a number of serious irregularities, he was charged with the attempted murder of four people, and is facing life imprisonment now.
The representatives of public organizations and defenders of Olaolu Femi are alarmed by the prejudiced attitude of the investigation towards the suspect, as well as numerous violations of his rights and procedural guarantees, such as: the failure to provide a qualified interpreter during the investigation and informing the suspect about the materials of the investigation (none of the documents has been signed by Femi in a procedural language which he understands), hiding and neglecting the evidence in favor of Olaolu Femi etc. While demanding twice the extension of Femi’s arrest, the prosecutors have never provided any new evidence to support the necessity of his detention. This violates the standards of the right to liberty and personal security formulated in the European Court of Human Rights’ decisions.
Also, the fact that the relatives of the attackers are personally associated with the investigation can not be ignored as this could lead to the deliberate distortion of the case.
Police and prosecution, while covering up the persons who have committed a racist attack against the citizens of Nigeria, act contrary to the proclaimed Ukrainian government policy to develop rule of law, as well as the international obligations of Ukraine in the area of human rights.
It is still possible to prevent the irreparable consequences for Femi and for the Ukraine’s image at the world stage.
We urge you to do whatever is possible, within your authority, in order to restore the rights of Olaolu Sunkanmi Femi, in particular: to ensure his soonest possible release from custody; to conduct another - fast, transparent and effective - investigation of the incident that took place in November 5, 2011; to bring all officials, responsible for violations during the investigation, to justice - as well as to prevent any attempts to exert pressure upon the court.
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/petition/Release_from_custody_Olaolu_Femi_victim_of_racist_attack/
