According to publicly available information Tamil asylum seeker (25) was the latest victim of the Lithuanian pushback policy in place for more than a year. The shocking information provided by the Red Cross spoke person indicates that the asylum seeker had one leg amputated in Vilnius hospital after crossing a Lithuanian-Belarus border with a group of another 12 persons. The remaining 12 were taken back to the border and ordered not to return.
As stated in the media, the patient had an accident resulting in open fracture of his leg while crossing the order but was only taken to the hospital three days later, only after the border officials realised that they could not cope alone. The man may lose his second leg as he suffers not only from injuries but also from frostbite. It is not clear how long he was without shoes, how long he was in wet shoes.
The inaction of the border officials is criminal. Articles 135 and 137 of the Criminal Code establish heavy penalties for serious injuries and Article 229 of the Criminal Code criminalises failure to perform the duties of the official if a person has suffered serious health damage as a result. The law also imposes strict penalties for the abandoning the victim without assistance when life is at risk. By law the asylum seeker is entitled to seek monetary damages for the damage to his health and moral damages which are hard to overestimate in this appalling situation.
ReLex
