Finnish police is transporting a Chechen asylum seeker, Makhmud Dzhabrailov, to the border with Russia for deportation.

Mr Dzhabrailov is yet another case where immigration authorities in EU countries have refused protection to people who have full reason to fear for their safety in their country of origin. Mr Dzhabrailov is being deported to the very country whose authorities tortured him and threatened his family members.

Finnish police appears reluctant to wait for a statement from the UN Committee Against Torture on Mr Dzhabrailov’s case. Such a statement would automatically halt the deportation. The fact that Mr Dzhabrailov was tortured has been well documented in his asylum application. Finnish law prohibits the authorities from deporting people to countries where they may face the death penalty, torture, or other inhuman treatment.

Members of the Chechen and Ingush communities in Finland will hold a demonstration to express their indignation at the treatment of Mr Dzhabrailov today at 15:15 outside the Finnish Immigration Service and will submit an open letter to the authority:

Dear Sir/Madam,

We, representatives of the Chechen people residing in Finland, would like to draw your attention to the case of the Chechen asylum seeker, Mahmoud Dzhabrailov, who is to be deported today to Russia.

The grave and dangerous situation in which this person, a senior member of the Chechen community, finds himself today greatly worries all of the members of our community. His compatriots — both Chechen and Ingush — are well aware about the difficult fate that this man has had to face.

It has been established that he has been subjected to cruel and inhumane treatment by the Russian authorities, including kidnapping and physical torture by electric shocks.

It is also known that other relatives of Mahmoud Dzhabrailov have been persecuted by the Russian authorities and fled from Russia; his children and wife have fled to Turkey and his brother, a well-known political activist, Isa Dzhabrailov, has been granted political asylum in an EU country.

We do understand that coming up with this statement on such a short notice to the officials of the Finnish Immigration Service may not influence the outcome of his situation. However, the seriousness of the situation and the imminent threat to the life and security of a senior member of our community forbids us from being silent.

We ask the Finnish authorities to postpone the deportation at least until all due documentation has been submitted and responded to. This includes a response from the UN Committee against Torture (CAT), where the case of Mahmoud Dzhabrailov is being reviewed. Waiting for the resolution from CAT is essential and may prevent the Finnish Immigration Service from commiting an irreversible mistake that would damage its reputation in regards to the observation of human rights.

Members of the Chechen and Ingush communities in Finland

Source: Finnish-Russian Civic Forum