EN Official Journal of the European Union CE 84/890

(2004/C 84 E/0984)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0834/04

by Olivier Dupuis (NI) to the Commission

(15 March 2004)

Subject: Nine years' imprisonment for supplying 0,5 grams of methadone in Russia

In 2003, the Moscow journalist Ulyana Belozerova, aged 32, was sentenced under Article 228(4) of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation to nine years' imprisonment in a high-security penal colony. She was alleged to have sold 0,5 grams of methadone. The accusation against her was based solely on the testimony of a young drug addict who claimed that Mrs Belozerova had placed a package containing the substance concerned in a sandpit at a kindergarten, thereby indicating her intention to sell it. The public prosecutor stressed that, because Mrs Belozerova had intended to pass on a dose of the substance in question to another drag addict, it was legitimate to equate this act with its consequences — public endangerment with criminal intent — and consequently to define it as murder aforethought. Mrs Ulyana Belozerova, who is a drag user, is one victim among hundreds of thousands of an undifferentiated campaign against drags in Russia, which results in people's being incarcerated for years or even decades and which involves large-scale repression of drug-users, while there is no consistent and effective policy on drags.

What information does the Commission have about this case and, in general, about the phenomenon of wholesale repressive measures against drag users in Russia and the consequences of this repressive policy? Does the Commission consider it legitimate to equate with murder aforethought an act consisting of giving or even selling 0,5 grams of methadone? More generally, does the Commission agree that this case — one example among thousands — is merely a symptom of the serious malfunctioning of the judicial system and the rale of law as a whole in the Russian Federation?

Answer given by Mr Patten on behalf of the Commission

(27 April 2004)

The Commission cannot comment on the specific case in question, which is an internal Russian judicial matter. In principle, a sentence on drug trafficking depends — also in Russia — on the quantity of drugs dealt with, whether the convicted person has been a persistent offender or not, previous convictions of the perpetrator, etc. It is, nonetheless, the view of the Commission that Russia should ensure the fair, nondiscriminatory and proportional application of the law, principles which constitute essential elements of the EU/Russia partnership. This view has been underlined — and will continue to be underlined — by the Commission in its political dialogue with Russia.

The Commission is aware of the need for Russia to improve the functioning and independence of its judiciary and of ongoing Russian efforts to reform the judicial system. The Commission is closely following and actively supporting these efforts via the Tacis programme of technical assistance.

In regard to Russia's efforts to combat drug abuse, the view of the Commission is that an effective antidrugs strategy must follow a balanced approach between supply and demand reduction measures, as for example outlined in the EU Action Plan on Drags 2000-2004. Particular priority should be given to preventive measures and the medical treatment of drag addicts in order to reintegrate them into society. This policy is reflected in dialogue with third countries, including Russia.