James and Joseph are brothers and citizens of Ruskraine. They were, on a number of occasions, arrested and detained without any charges being made only because they were the members of a prominent family under the previous government of that country.

At the beginning of February 2022 tensions escalated in Ruskraine and army forces from the neighbouring Belrusine invaded Ruskraine. The Belrusine forces were aware of James and Joseph's familial background and they were detained in prison Geist. In March 2022 James was transferred with some 20 other detainees (but excluding Joseph) to the "Special Unit" of the prison. In May 2022, poor detention conditions in the Special Unit (lack of proper food and water, constant beatings, overcrowding and intense cold) led to a riot. At the end of May 2022 the Belrusine forces stormed the Special Unit, killing large numbers of detainees. Meanwhile, for several days, the detainees in the remainder of the prison, including Joseph, could hear the gunfire and the screams of detainees being killed.

John has neither heard of nor seen his brother since the above events. Because of this Joseph has strong reasons to believe that his brother was killed in the apparent massacre. The Belrusinian authorities have not given Joseph's family ay information on the fate or whereabouts of James. All they are told is that the state is now controlled by Belrusine and they should not question their authority. James is left with this excruciatingly painful uncertainty of not knowing whether or not his brother is alive.

Ruskraine is a Contracting party to both the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and its First Optional Protocol.

You are the attorney representing Joseph. You are asked communicate on his behalf.