E/CN.4/1995/91 page 32 The tragic incident in the village of Surnitsa, commune of Velingrad, where Father Petrov was gunned down on 15 April 1994 by the person referred to in the annex to your letter, is under judicial investigation and all the pertinent documents are before the competent bodies. Once the inquiry is closed, the documents will be made public. It can already be said that this is a serious crime, the motives for which will soon be discovered." Canada In a communication dated 20 October 1994, the Special Rapporteur transmitted the following comments to the Government of Canada: "According to the information received, Paul William Roberts, an English writer and expert on Islam, was reportedly stabbed at his home on 12 May 1994, the day his novel, The Palace of Fears, was published. Two days before the attack, his publishers, Random House, received two letters accusing him of blasphemy for having included quotations from the Koran in his book alongside references to sex and blasphemy. He is reported to be hiding following this attempt to kill him." Cyprus In a communication of 18 August 1994 addressed to the Government of Cyprus, the Special Rapporteur transmitted the following information: "Reports have been received of violations of the right to conscientious objection. The Special Rapporteur has been informed that the House of Representatives passed an act in January 1992, recognizing the right to be a conscientious objector and providing for ’unarmed military service’ inside or outside military camps. However, the provisions of this act allegedly do not conform to international norms, in many respects. It is not clear from the text whether service performed outside military camps is strictly civilian. It is of 42 months’ duration, which appears punitive compared to the normal 26 months of military service, particularly as conscientious objectors must complete additional service of a duration equivalent to the periods of reserve duty. Furthermore, the right of persons eligible for military service to opt for a substitute service is reportedly suspended during states of emergency or periods of general mobilization. According to some reports, in 1992, 15 conscientious objectors, who were Jehovah’s Witnesses, were imprisoned for periods of up to 15 months. In particular, Christakis Ionathan Christoforou was allegedly sentenced in November 1992 to one year’s imprisonment for having refused to do his military service. Athinakis Zinonos was reportedly sentenced to 15 months’ imprisonment in December 1992, on the same grounds. It was reportedly the second time in two years that the two men had been sentenced to imprisonment for having refused to do their military service.