Wymuszone zaginięcia w Orzecznictwie Europejskiego Trybunału Praw Człowieka - "sprawy czeczeńskie"
Enforced disappearances in the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights - the "Chechen cases"

Summary/Abstract: After a short historical introduction of the phenomenon of enforced disappearances, the author analyzes the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights in the so called Chechen cases. Enforced disappearance is one of the most serious violations of human rights, very often described as the infringement of human dignity. Enforced disappearance is not a simple violation but a multiple one which means that it infringes several human rights including many non-derogable (the right to life, freedom from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law). The characteristic feature of this crime comprises the fact that the victim is devoid of any legal protection and the authorities deny having her or him under control; thus they refuse the victim any rights, in particular a right to a fair trial. The thesis of this article is to prove that Chechen cases fulfill all the conditions to be classified as enforced disappearances. According to the Strasburg Court, the Chechen cases clearly show that enforced disappearances analyzed in those cases may violate right to life, right to freedom and security of the person, right to an effective remedy or prohibition of torture or other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.

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