Concerns regarding the health of possible prisoner of conscience Valeri Pal have been heightened following reports that he had a heart attack on 24 September. He has been sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment for stealing property from his workplace at an oil-refinery in the Caspian port city of Turkmenbashi. Valeri Pal’s supporters believe the case against him was fabricated to punish him for his social activism and contacts with human rights defenders abroad and that his trial fell short of international standards for fairness.
