KURT JUDGMENT OF 25 MAY 1998
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116. The Court agrees with the conclusion reached by the Commission
on this complaint and refers in this respect to the reasons which have led it
to reject the applicant’s arguments alleging a violation of Article 2 (see
paragraphs 107–09 above). In particular, the applicant has not presented any
specific evidence that her son was indeed the victim of ill-treatment in
breach of Article 3; nor has she adduced any evidence to substantiate her
claim that an officially tolerated practice of disappearances and associated
ill-treatment of detainees exists in the respondent State.
117. The Court, like the Commission, considers that the applicant’s
complaints concerning the alleged violations by the respondent State of
Article 3 in respect of her son should, like the Article 2 complaints, be dealt
with from the angle of Article 5 of the Convention.
D. Article 5
118. The applicant submitted that the disappearance of her son gave rise
to multiple violations of Article 5 of the Convention, which, to the extent
relevant, provides:
“1. Everyone has the right to liberty and security of person. No one shall be
deprived of his liberty save in the following cases and in accordance with a procedure
prescribed by law:
(a) the lawful detention of a person after conviction by a competent court;
(b) the lawful arrest or detention of a person for non-compliance with the lawful
order of a court or in order to secure the fulfilment of any obligation prescribed by
law;
(c) the lawful arrest or detention of a person effected for the purpose of bringing
him before the competent legal authority on reasonable suspicion of having committed
an offence or when it is reasonably considered necessary to prevent his committing an
offence or fleeing after having done so;
…
2. Everyone who is arrested shall be informed promptly, in a language which he
understands, of the reasons for his arrest and of any charge against him.
3. Everyone arrested or detained in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 1
(c) of this Article shall be brought promptly before a judge or other officer authorised
by law to exercise judicial power and shall be entitled to trial within a reasonable time
or to release pending trial. Release may be conditioned by guarantees to appear for
trial.
4. Everyone who is deprived of his liberty by arrest or detention shall be entitled to
take proceedings by which the lawfulness of his detention shall be decided speedily by
a court and his release ordered if the detention is not lawful.