13.10.2014 the 6th observation mission concerning Nadiya Savchenko, the Ukrainian pilot jailed in the Russian Federation, has been held. The mission members Anastasiia Chornohorska (Open Dialogue Foundation) and Liliia Naumchuck (OZON Civic Monitoring) visited Russia to attend the court hearing. Natalia Paul, the 1st secretary of Ukrainian council for consulate issues, accompanied the mission.
The mission members visited the Investigation Committee of Russian Federation, but they were refused a meeting with a representative of the IC. The members of the mission have registered an appeal about their visit and left a report, prepared by the ODF, which provides evidence of Savchenko‘s innocence.
At that time, the attorneys learnt that Nadiya had already been taken to the Serbsky State Scientific Centre for Social and Forensic Psychiatry to undergo expert examination; It was published on the official website of the Investigation Committee, but attorneys were not informed of the fact. Later, it became known that Savchenko had been in Serbsky since 10.10.2014.
The court hearing concerning the appeal of attorneys regarding the stationary psychiatric expertise of Savchenko in the Serbsky State Scientific Centre for Social and Forensic Psychiatry was appointed at 4 p.m. Moscow time in the Basmanny District Court of Moscow. It was a continuation of the hearing held on 26.09.2014. At that juncture, the attorneys demanded the postponment of the hearing to allow for Savchenko`s presence at the court.
An hour before the commencement of the hearing, a crowd of journalists had already gathered near the court building. There were journalists from Russian TV channels and 2 from Ukrainian ones, namely 1+1 and Inter. Ukrainian MPs from the ‘Batkivshchyna’ party Andriy Shevchenko, Valery Dubil, Andreiy Pavlovski, Andriy Kozhemyakin, and Oleksandra Kuzhel had arrived to attend the hearing together with Mariya Savchenko, Nadiya`s mother. They were allowed to enter the court building, while journalists and others were still waiting outside. Also, the Ukrainian consul in Moscow Hennadiy Breskalenko and the 1st consulate secretary Natalia Paul were allowed to enter. The representatives of the USA and German embassies were also present at the court. Later, the court press-secretary Anna Fadeeva emerged and announced that the start of the hearing was being delayed, as the judge was engaged in other activities.
At almost 4.40 p.m., the visitors and the journalists (except operators with cameras) were allowed to enter the building. The hearing began, but only the attorneys were present; the rest were just waiting inside the building. Nadiya Savchenko was not delivered to the court. The investigator presented the response to the request made to the Serbsky State Scientific Centre for Social and Forensic Psychiatry which read that it was not reasonable to interrupt the expertise and to deliver Nadiya.
The attorney`s appeal to postpone the hearing was satisfied. The next hearing will be held on 11.11.2014, after the 30-day expert examination has been finalised. After the expert examination has been concluded, Nadiya will be permitted to attend the hearing. Meanwhile, the hearing will still have its value: If the the attorney‘s appeal is satisfied, than all the results of the expertise will not be included in the case materials. At the same time, the term of Nadiya`s detention ends on 30.10.2014, so it is expected that there will be one more court hearing regarding the prolongation of her detention prior to that date.
