4.  The applicant, Mr Aleksandr Vasilyevich Melnik, is a Ukrainian national who was born on 17 May 1961. He is currently serving a prison sentence. 5.  In December 1999 M.O.D. (a private person) found a packet of opium (макова соломка). M.O.D., with the applicant's agreement, later hid the packet in the applicant's house with a view to its subsequent sale and the purchase of alcohol. 6.  On 28 February 2000 the captain of the Vinnytsia District of the Interior's Division on Combating the Illegal Circulation of Drugs (the “CICD”) issued a resolution authorising the purchase of opium from the applicant on the basis of information received from undisclosed sources. This resolution was approved by the Vinnytsia District prosecutor and the Head of the Vinnytsia Department of the Interior. 7.  On the same date C.I.S. (an undercover police agent operating under a pseudonym) received instructions from police officers (міліціонерів) to purchase some of the opium. He also received the sum of 12 hryvnas (UAH)[1] for that purpose. 8.  On the same date the applicant and M.O.D. were apprehended for selling drugs to C.I.S. The opium, which weighed 190 grams, was seized by the police, together with the marked money received by the applicant from C.I.S. The police prepared records of the purchase (про оперативну закупку), finding, confiscation (віднайдення та виїмки) and weighing (взвішування) of the substance and of the search of the buyer (акт огляду покупця). Statements were drawn up in the presence of two witnesses, as required by the relevant provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The applicant and M.O.D. were not placed in detention, but were released on an undertaking not to abscond. 9.  On 9 and 10 March 2000 the investigator of the Investigative Division of the Ministry of the Interior's Vinnytsia District Department (the “Division”) questioned two witnesses (V.V.M. and P.Yu.M.). They were the police officers from the CICD who had organised the purchase and subsequently arrested the applicant and M.O.D. 10.  On 24 March 2000 the Division's investigator informed the applicant that he was entitled to have a representative. The investigator relied on Articles 21, 44 and 45 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The applicant stated that he refused to be represented by a lawyer and that this decision was not related to his financial situation. 11.  On the same date the Division's investigator issued a resolution accusing the applicant of being involved in the purchase, sale and storage of narcotic substances with intent to sell, premeditated by a group of persons (Article 229-1 of the former Criminal Code). The applicant was questioned by the investigator as an accused. 12.  The applicant claims that in the course of the investigation he and his relatives requested legal representation. 13.  On 25 April 2000 the Vinnytsia District Court of the Vinnytsia region (Вінницький районний суд Вінницької області) held a preliminary hearing. It assumed jurisdiction over the case and adjourned the hearing to 22 May 2000 at the applicant's request. The applicant informed the court that he did not wish to be represented by a lawyer but wished to represent himself at the hearing. The hearing was adjourned upon M.O.D.'s request. 14.  On 22 May 2000 the court resumed its examination of the case. The participants in the hearing were the prosecutor, the applicant and M.O.D., a witness police officer from the CICD (S.V.V.) and G.A.I., the applicant's neighbour, who had witnessed the arrest and seizure of money by the police officers. 15.  During the hearing the court accepted the applicant's decision not to be represented by a lawyer. It also decided to hear the case in the absence of certain prosecution witnesses (P.Yu.M. and V.V.M.), who had been duly informed about the date and time of the hearing but did not appear before the court. The judge also informed the applicant and his co-accused that a guilty plea might be accepted by the court as a mitigating factor. 16.  On 23 May 2000, at the hearing, the applicant pleaded partly guilty to the charges against him. In particular, he stated that he considered himself guilty of storing the opium. In the course of the trial the applicant again rejected legal assistance and stated that he wished to present his own arguments for reasons unrelated to his difficult financial situation. 17.  During the hearing the applicant and his co-accused did not attempt to challenge any evidence and made no pleas, except those relating to the acknowledgment of their guilt and the mitigation of their sentence. On the same date the Vinnytsia District Court convicted the applicant of involvement in the unlawful purchase and possession of drugs, with intent to sell, premeditated by a group of persons (Article 229-1 of the former Criminal Code). It sentenced him to five years' imprisonment and ordered that his personal property be confiscated. In particular, the Vinnytsia District Court found that,
“... in the course of the hearing [the applicant] partly acknowledged his guilt ...
... in the course of the preliminary investigation witnesses [P.Yu.M.] and [V.V.M.] (police officers) explained that [C.I.S.] was to purchase [opium] at Melnik's place of residence ...
The defendant's guilt ... is also proved by other evidence, in particular the act of purchase, the record of searching the buyer, the record of the undercover purchase, the record of seizure, the record of the weighing, [and] the forensic expert's conclusion [as to the amount of dry opium poppy]...
... the court considers that the following corpus juris, envisaged by Article 229-1 of the Criminal Code..., can be found in the actions of Melnik O.V.: - the unlawful purchase [and] possession with intent to sell, premeditated by a group of persons...” 18.  On 29 May 2000 the applicant appealed against his conviction to the Vinnytsia Regional Court. In particular, he stated that he had only been storing the opium, and that his sentence should be milder, not involving a deprivation of liberty. 19.  On 12 July 2000 the Vinnytsia Regional Court, in the absence of the applicant and in the presence of a prosecutor, rejected the applicant's appeal and upheld the judgment of 23 May 2000. The judgment became final. 20.  On 24 October 2000 the Committee reviewed a petition from the applicant's wife, asking that he be assigned legal representation. On the same date the Committee appointed Mr Shulgin as the public defender (громадський захисник) to represent the applicant. 21.  On 30 October 2000 Mr Shulgin lodged complaints with the President of the Vinnytsia District Court, seeking permission to review the case file and authorisation to meet the applicant in order to prepare an appeal against the judgment. 22.  On 2 November 2000 the judge of the Vinnytsia District Court refused this application on the ground that the law did not allow for such an action by a public defender. In particular, the court informed Mr Shulgin:
“... Vinnytsia District Court informs you that your application of 30 October 2000 with regard to providing the materials of the criminal case ... and an opportunity to meet the defendant in order to represent him in supervisory proceedings cannot be allowed because, in accordance with the legislation of Ukraine, a public defender (громадський захисник) can only participate in the judicial consideration of the case and the law does not afford him a right of appeal against the verdict.
Also, Article 384 of the Code of Criminal Procedure... provides an exhaustive list of those persons who have the right to lodge protests against court verdicts, rulings or resolutions that have entered into force, and Chapter 31 of the Code of Criminal Procedure ... sets out the grounds and the procedure for [such a] supervisory review...” 23.  On 28 September 2000 the applicant was detained for the purpose of serving his sentence and placed in the Vinnytsia Temporary Detention Centre. 24.  On 29 September 2000 the applicant was transferred to Vinnytsia Prison No. 1, where he stayed from 29 September to 18 October 2000. 25.  On arrival at Vinnytsia Prison No. 1 the applicant was examined by doctors from the prison's medical unit and found to be generally healthy. 26.  On 2 October 2000 the applicant underwent a chest X-Ray examination. This examination found no signs of illness. 27.  Between 29 September and 18 October 2000, the applicant lodged no complaints or applications with the prison administration for dispatch to third persons. 28.  At some time between 18 October and 31 October 2000, the applicant was transferred from Vinnytsia Prison No. 1 to Arbuzynsk Penitentiary No. 316/83 in the Mykolayiv Region (“Penitentiary No. 316/83”). 29.  On 31 October 2000 the applicant arrived at Penitentiary No. 316/83. However, he did not undergo the mandatory medical examination for possible tuberculosis. 30.  The applicant was detained in Penitentiary No. 316/83 from 31 October 2000 to 23 April 2001. He was accommodated in dormitory no. 10. He had a separate bed and essential furniture, and was provided with clothes and linen. There were 32 other inmates in the dormitory, which had natural ventilation, large glass windows and electricity. 31.  During the applicant's stay there, he had two visits from relatives: one from his brother on 7 December 2000 and one from his wife on 8 December 2000. 32.  Between October 2000 and April 2001, the administration of the Penitentiary recorded no correspondence from the applicant. Furthermore, there was no record of a request from the applicant's representative to meet the applicant among the entries in the prison's register of citizens' complaints for 2000-2001. 33.  On 13 April 2001, for the first time, the applicant applied to a doctor in Penitentiary No. 316/83, complaining that he was experiencing shortness of breath and was coughing up phlegm. On the same date he was examined and an X-ray was taken. Following this examination, a doctor from the Arbuzynsk Central District Hospital diagnosed the applicant as suffering from pneumonia and suspected lung cancer. Another chest X-ray was ordered to establish a final diagnosis. 34.  On 14 April 2001 a further chest X-ray was taken. A radiologist at the Arbuzynsk Central District Hospital concluded that the applicant was suffering from lung cancer. 35.  On 19 April 2001 the applicant was transferred to the Hospital of Daryivska Penitentiary No. 10 for further medical examinations and treatment. Between 19 April and 22 June 2001, the applicant received treatment and underwent further clinical examinations. The final diagnosis was tuberculosis in its early stages. 36.  On 23 April 2001 the applicant was transferred to Snigurivska Penitentiary No. 5 in the Mykolayiv Region (“Penitentiary No. 5”; an interregional tuberculosis hospital for convicts), where the diagnosis of tuberculosis was confirmed. 37.  From 26 June 2001 the applicant underwent in-patient treatment at Penitentiary No. 5. The Government claimed that he received all the medication prescribed by the recommendations of the Ministry of Public Health. 38.  On 4 June 2002, owing to an improvement in his state of health, the applicant was transferred to outpatient treatment. From 11 August 2003 onwards, the applicant received regular outpatient treatment in order to prevent a relapse. However, the lengthy treatment for tuberculosis led to side-effects, such as sight impairment (погіршення зору) and dizziness. 39.  Since 12 March 2004 the applicant has been detained at Penitentiary No. 5, with a diagnosis of clinically cured tuberculosis. 40.  According to the register of correspondence of Penitentiary No. 5, the applicant sent a letter to his wife on 12 November 2002. No other correspondence was sent by him. 41.  On 20 December 2001 the applicant received a 24-hour visit from his brother. 42.  The Government alleged that, in the course of serving his sentence, the applicant received no visits from lawyers or public defenders, and did not submit any applications concerning such visits.