Ukraine

All those responsible for the deaths of more than 100 people killed during the anti-government protests in Ukraine must be brought to justice, said Amnesty International today.

The call comes as plans were announced to disband the riot police unit that were allegedly responsible for the excessive force used against protesters.

“Moves to disband the riot police must not be used to allow the perpetrators of crimes off the hook. The Ukrainian authorities must not shirk their responsibility,” said Heather McGill, Amnesty International’s Ukraine researcher.

“Each and every allegation must be investigated promptly, effectively and independently and any police officers found to be responsible must face criminal prosecution.”

Amnesty International is launching a global campaign against police impunity in Ukraine.

Hundreds of people have been wounded by police, some very seriously, during the EuroMaydan anti-government protests in Kyiv as well as in other cities in Ukraine since 21 November 2013. There have been at least four fatalities. Some protestors have been abducted by unknown assailants and tortured – one was found dead.  

Amnesty International members and their supporters will bring pressure to bear on the Ukrainian government through letter writing, petitions, public actions and lobbying.

The campaign is calling for the Ukrainian authorities to take decisive action to demonstrate that arbitrary and abusive use of force and other human rights violations will not be tolerated, and will be dealt with by disciplinary and criminal measures as appropriate.

The use of live ammunition by police in Kyiv would only increase what is already a highly volatile situation, Amnesty International said today after four protesters were killed and the government issued a statement saying that police may start using live ammunition.

The death of a man after being brutally beaten by two riot police officers is another example of pervasive police impunity in Ukraine.

“There must be no impunity for law enforcement officers who resort to abusive use of force. We have repeatedly called on the Ukrainian authorities to bring perpetrators to justice, but today’s unlawful violence by the police has led to at least one death. What else needs to happen before police officers are held accountable for human rights violations?” said Heather McGill, Amnesty International's Ukraine expert.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs has denied that it was using live ammunition but has threatened to use live rounds following the shootings.

Human rights violations against peaceful participants in the demonstrations that have rocked the Ukraine in the past month must be thoroughly investigated, said Amnesty International in a report published today. The organization is concerned that the blanket pardon of protestors arrested in the demonstrations is not used to detract from the abuses carried out by the police    

“While those accused of criminal and administrative offences during the protests have been pardoned, it does not absolve the Ukrainian authorities from their responsibility for human rights violations that have taken place over the last month,” said Heather McGill, Amnesty International’s researcher on Ukraine.

“Successive Ukrainian governments have failed to address deeply rooted systemic flaws in policing and the criminal justice system. It is of the utmost importance that the perpetrators of human rights violations must still be held to account.”

The Ukrainian authorities must make real progress toward elimination of torture and other ill-treatment by law enforcement officials in line with the country’s international obligations, Amnesty International said, ahead of the signing of the Ukraine-EU Association Agreement.

“Irrespective of the future of the Association Agreement with Ukraine, the EU must go on pushing Ukraine to comply with its international obligations. Ukraine is an important member of the European and international community. The country’s authorities have voluntarily signed up to all major international human rights agreements – the absolute ban on torture among them,” said Heather McGill, Amnesty International’s researcher on Ukraine.

The Association Agreement offers enhanced cooperation in trade, energy, banking and many other areas, and is based on common values, including “democracy and rule of law, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, [and] good governance”.

The latest violent reaction to allegations of abuse by Ukraine’s police force underlines the urgent need for the government to address public concern that the force has become little more than a criminal enterprise, Amnesty International said today.

Hundreds of residents tried to storm  Svatoshyno police station in Kyiv on Friday night. The events were triggered by reports that apolice officer had  punched a young woman in the stomach when she asked him to speak to her in Ukrainian rather than Russian. She was hospitalised with a suspected broken rib after the assault.

Demonstrators brokethrough the police station's perimeter fence before being pushed back.

The crowd chanted'Vradiyivka' in reference to protests two weeks ago when residents laid siege to Vradiyivka police station in southern Ukraine. Those angry scenes were sparked by the gang-rape of a 29 year old woman who was beaten and left for dead by three men, two of whom she has identified as local police officers.

Just days before the Ukrainian capital Kyiv was due to host its first-ever Pride march, a city court has banned the event in what Amnesty International called a shameful about-face that tramples on human rights.

Thursday’s court hearing cited this weekend’s Kyiv Day celebrations in the city centre – which coincide with the planned Pride march on 25 May – as a reason for banning the event. For the first time ever, the Kyiv city council applied to the courts for a ban of all public events not organized by them during Kyiv Day.

In their application to the court, city authorities raised the spectre of a threat of violence against the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) activists organizing the march, despite earlier police assurances that they can guarantee the protection of Pride march demonstrators.

Last year, a planned Kyiv Pride march had to be cancelled in the face of a violent threat posed by groups of extreme-right youth.