Oleksandr Shevchenko :
On September 16, 2014 the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament of Ukraine) has adopted the statement on the European choice of Ukraine which notes that by ratifying the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the European Union. Ukraine emphasizes its choice in favor of future membership of the EU. Lawmakers in Kyiv called it a ‘historic day’ Implementation of the Agreement should deepen economic and political ties with the European Union, It was the same one former President Viktor Yanukovych refused to sign last November triggering months of mass protests which culminated in his downfall in February this year. Russia then responded by seizing Crimea and inciting rebellion in the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, where a shaky ceasefire began on September 5.
Speaking before the ratification, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko praised the “heavenly 100” demonstrators who were killed during the revolution in February and the soldiers who have died fighting pro-Russian separatists in the east. He described the passage of the Association Agreement as a vindication of their sacrifice, adding: “They have died not only for their Motherland: they gave up their lives for us to take a dignified place among the European family.” President Poroshenko called the ratification a “first but very decisive step” toward bringing Ukraine fully into the European Union.
The Agreement which was simultaneously ratified in Kyiv and Strasbourg will make Ukraine compliant with EU standards in areas of human rights, security and arms control and remove trade barriers. Martin Schulz, president of the European parliament, described it as “a historic moment'” that fulfilled the “dreams of the people who fought for democracy” in Ukraine. He stressed: “The European Parliament will continue defending a united and sovereign Ukraine.”
Regarding to this Agreement Ukraine is committed to make crucial reforms in political, economic and social spheres which will ensure the development of production, economic freedom for business, guarantee the rights of national minorities and religious groups. But all these efforts of Ukrainian Government are being hampered now by ongoing aggression against our country.
Today Ukraine is a frontier where Ukrainians stand for the protection of its security and welfare as well as democracy and values in Europe. Regrettably, in the past months the situation has dramatically aggravated as the Russian Federation has moved from covert to open military incursion into the territory of Ukraine which we view as a flagrant military aggression. Despite the international community’s persistent calls for peace, the latest most dangerous and unacceptable moves of the Russian Federation reiterated its continuous defiance of international law, principles and commitments. Such actions threaten not only Ukraine and its people, but also challenge the European and global security.
Terrorists wearing Russian army uniforms shell medical cars of the Ukrainian Armed Forces which transport wounded and have relevant signs. Thus, military doctors of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were shelled from the ambush.
Russia’s regular military units occupy Ukrainian cities and villages, take locals as hostages and prevent their evacuation. Numerous facts of intolerance towards Ukrainians, their persecution and arrests of the activists by Russian Special Forces lead to further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in the ATO area.
As Ukraine’s Government repeatedly stated military use of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation against Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial inviolability and political independence constitutes a gross violation of the UN Charter, Helsinki Final Act, norms and principles of international law.
Ukraine regards these actions as a blatant act of aggression which started from the occupation and annexation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and continued with open military incursion in the East of the country. In this situation Ukraine will use all possible means to exercise its inalienable right for self-defence stipulated in Article 51 of the UN Charter.
Russian aggression against Ukraine is a serious crime against international peace and security which entails responsibility of the Russian Federation under international law and individual criminal responsibility of those who committed these crimes. We remain seriously concerned over the deteriorating situation in the area of exercise of human rights and fundamental freedoms in Ukraine’s east and in the occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea.
Illegal armed groups continued to commit killings, abductions, physical and psychological torture, ill treatment, and other serious human rights abuses and violations of international humanitarian law. While crossing the border in terrorist controlled checkpoints, Ukrainians receive documents which oblige them to receive refugee status and are directed to remote Russian areas such as Siberia and Far East. We are also concerned about wide-scale reports of Ukrainian citizens in Crimea being forced to give up their Ukrainian passports for Russian passports and reports of routine human rights abuses against Crimean Tatars and other minorities and pro-Ukrainian activists, such as killings, disappearances, detentions, and raids on private homes and businesses. These abuses are unacceptable and we call for an immediate end to such practices.
Russia has occupied and annexed Crimea in March 2014 in spite of opposition from the Tatar community, who make up 300,000 of the Crimea’s 2.4 million people as well as Ukrainians, Russians, Greeks, Bulgarians, Armenians and other nationalities who live in Crimea. As a result of the Russian aggression Crimean Tatars, who are predominantly Muslims, and ethnic Ukrainians are in a dangerously unsecure situation and have become a new focus of concern in the Crimean peninsula, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe said in a report on May 12. The OSCE started a monitoring mission to Ukraine on March 3 after tensions rose following Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
The IJNHCR retorted that Crimean Tatars fear discrimination and intimidation. Gianni Magazzeni, a senior UN human rights official, said Tatars have been threatened with limits on their rights of expression, assembly, voting, employment and travel in Crimea. Speaking to Anadolu Agency after presenting a report on human rights in Ukraine, he said: “We are concerned about number of issues that have impact on human rights in Crimea as some people cannot continue with their normal activities in Crimea.”
Illegal armed groups continued to commit killings, abductions, physical and psychological torture, ill treatment, and other serious human rights abuses and violations of international humanitarian law. The Council of Europe’s human rights commissioner, Nils Muiznieks, says pressure has increased on Tatars since the annexation, including raids on their businesses and schools. Chairman of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatars Refat Chubarov said there are all grounds to launch an international monitoring mission on human rights’ observance in Crimea.
The situation in the occupied Crimea remains very tense and alarming. According to the information provided by the Interagency coordination office, an overall number of ‘the citizens of Ukraine who moved from the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol to other regions of Ukraine is more than 17,000 people. The continued flow is attributed to increasing human rights restrictions and violations, which particularly affect Ukrainians and Crimean Tatars in the occupied Crimea.
Pro-Russian local authorities continue to conduct searches and checks in places of compact residence of the Crimean Tatars, seizing Islamic literature in the mosques. Tatars families with sons of military age do not want theirs sons to be called for service into the Russian army to fight against their own people. Every day the Russian authorities conduct unreasonable searches at the Tatar schools, mosques, homes, NGOs and mass media. They also declared that Ukrainian currency has allegedly banned in Crimea. Some days ago the Mejlis and an office of the Crimean Tatar newspaper Avdet were attacked by pro-Russian forces in the city of Simferopol demanding the Tatars to leave these buildings. Crimean Tatars are very scared, so they cannot influence the situation. “Now the Crimean Tatar people will portray the role of the evil that threatens the well-being of the rest of the population of Crimea, create the image of the enemy, and we will be actively repressed,”- stressed the head of the Crimea Fund Riza Shevkiev.
We are also concerned about wide-scale reports of Ukrainian citizens in Crimea being forced to give up their Ukrainian passports for Russian passports and reports of routine human rights abuses against Crimean Tatars and other minorities and pro-Ukrainian activists, such as killings, disappearances, detentions, and raids on private homes and businesses. These abuses are unacceptable and we call for an immediate end to such practices.
“The worsening situation in the area of human rights and fundamental freedoms of national minorities in Crimea is unacceptable. There are numerous violations of the rights of ethnic Ukrainian and Crimean Tatars living on the peninsula. Liability for violations of the Constitution and laws of Ukraine of the rights and freedoms of citizen on the temporarily occupied territory assigned to the Russian Federation”, – stated Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin. He stressed that Crimea issue remains a priority in Ukraine’s foreign and domestic policy.
In this regard we reiterate our persistent call to the authorities exercising de-facto control in Crimea to immediately stop all human rights violations in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and allow access of international observers to monitor the situation on the ground. We strongly protest over ongoing violations of the rights of the Ukrainian citizens, illegally detained by the Russian Federation. Ukraine urges Russia to back up its declarations of interest for peace by practical deeds which so far have not materialized.
We strongly condemned the so-called “elections to the State Council” which were held by the Russian Federation on September 14th in the temporarily occupied the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol. Crimea and Sevastopol were, are and will be an integral part of the sovereign Ukraine, and are the subjects of the Constitution and laws of Ukraine. These “elections” which were arranged by the Russian Federation on the territory of our country, are illegitimate, and their results with the legal and regulatory point of view – null and void and will not have any effect on the current status of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol within the internationally recognized borders Ukraine.
Ukraine urges the international community to condemn the conduct of the Russian Federation of these “elections”. We also expect that the civilized world will give a proper assessment of the illegal actions of the Russian occupying power, which continues to harassment, discrimination and repression against the Crimean Tatars, Ukrainians and other nationalities who have not resigned and will never accept the occupation of the Crimea. At present, there are a large amount of evidence and testimonies that confirm a violation by the Russian side of its international human rights obligations.
The United States, the EU and other countries declared that they do not recognize the legitimacy of the so-called regional and local elections in Crimea on September 14th and will not acknowledge their outcome. Their position on Crimea remains clear: the peninsula remains an integral part of Ukraine. They continue to condemn the Russian Federation’s occupation and purported annexation of Ukrainian territory and its violation of Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity in breach of its obligations and commitments under the UN Charter, the Helsinki Final Act, and its military basing agreements with Ukraine.
On September 17th the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs in its statement on the violating of the rights of Crimean Tatars stressed: “We condemn the raids, in which armed officials were reportedly involved, against the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People (MCTP) building, the legitimate representative body of the Crimean Tatar community living in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea the indigenous people of the peninsula, as well as the houses of some members of the MCTP on 16 September 2014. Such actions aimed at intimidating the Crimean Tatar people, who stand up for their democratic rights through peaceful means, by exerting pressure on the MCTP are unacceptable. We are confident that the international community will not remain silent against such attempts aiming to add new chapters to the painful history of the Crimean Tatar people.”
We remain seriously concerned over the deteriorating situation in the area of exercise of human rights and fundamental freedoms in Ukraine’s east and in the occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea. President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko at a session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe said “Without return of Crimea, there can be no normalization of relations with Russia.” In his inaugural address Ukrainian President stressed that “Russia occupied Crimea, which was, is and will be Ukrainian soil.”
The writer is Ambassador of Ukraine to the People’s Republic of Bangladesh (non-resident)
