During the last 10 months UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine has documented 81 cases of human rights violation in occupied by Russia Crimea, which affected 167 victims, including 34 women and 72 representatives of national minorities. Among such cases, arbitrary arrests and enforced disappearances, violation of fundamental freedoms of peaceful assembly, expressions, religion, association and movement. This data was presented in report of UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine between 13 September 2017 and 30 June 2018. Report is based on results of nearly 200 interviews and monitoring visits to Ukraine’s mainland.
“Our key finding is that Russian Federation has disregarded its international obligations as occupying power, violating rule of international humanitarian law. It did imposed its legislation at the peninsular and held presidential elections in March 2018. The Russian Federation did conscript Crimean men into its armed forces, 12 thousands since 2015, prosecuting those who did not want to serve. The occupying power did transferred detainees and prisoners to its territory for trial or to serve their sentence”, – was mentioned by Fiona Frazer, the Head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission to Ukraine during the presentation of the report in Ukraine Crisis Media Centre. The evidences of Fourth Geneva Convention violation are also cases of deportation of peninsular citizens and encouraging of Russian citizens to move to Crimea.
Fiona Frazer underlined that Russia is continuing to refuse Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to get access to the territory of the peninsular contrary to UN General Assembly Resolution.
Among documented violations in Crimea, 42 facts of forced disappearances for which guilty parties were not brought to responsibility, 19 cases of arbitrary arrests and detentions, violation of rights of 94 people to appropriate legal procedure, 5 criminal cases as punishment for dissent.
Particular attention should be given to conditions in detention facilities, which can be equaled to abusive treatment. “Overcrowded sells in Simferopol pretrial detention center have necessity to sleep in schedules, at times detainees denied food and water before they are being taken to court hearings, or access to necessary medicine. […] Prohibited methods are applied to people who are in custody, in particular torture with electric current and sexual abuse”, – Fiona Frazer said. Property searches and raids happen regularly, 80% of them affect Crimean Tatars. It is emphasized that activity of Mejlis is Crimea is still prohibited, despite the decision of UN International Court.
There are cases, when Russia hindered the crossing of administrative boarder between the peninsular and Ukraine’s mainland. In November 2017 Russian law enforcement seized 7 women, wives of Crimean Tatars against whom criminal charges are launched in Crimea, at the administrative boarder. Also one Crimean Tatar was arrested and tortured.
«We are continuing to urge the Russian Federation to implement the recommendations that we have issued not only in that report, but in our quarter reports about situation in Crimea. And the very key one is to ensure the investigation into human rights violations that we have documented», – Fiona Frazer emphasized.
It is said in report that Ukrainian Government must ensure human rights concerning inhabitants of Crimea with legal and diplomatic instruments. In particular, it means to ensure opportunities for internally displaced persons to use service of document execution, banking service and registration of civil status acts service.
