Report of the appeal hearing of the case of Evgeniy Zhovtis on 20 October 2009

Report of a Mission of Observers to observe the appeal trial hearing of Evgeniy Zhovtis, a lawyer and one of Kazakhstan’s leading human rights defenders.
The ICJ decided to send a Mission of Observers to observe the appeal trial hearing of Evgeniy Zhovtis, a lawyer and one of Kazakhstan’s leading human rights defenders, having received reports that his initial trial had failed to meet international fair trial standards. Mr. Zhovtis was convicted for unintentional manslaughter following a car accident in July 2009. The present Report gives an account of the process, in which Evgeniy Zhovtis himself was not allowed to participate. It describes the conduct of the trial and makes legal assessment of certain particularly problematic issues. The report does not aim to replace the court minutes, which were not kept in this case, but rather gives an overall assessment of the hearing as well as some events taking place outside the courtroom. The legal analysis is based on internationally recognised standards relating to fair trial guarantees, including the jurisprudence of major human rights bodies. The observers would like to express their gratitude to all the parties to the proceedings who facilitated the observation process.