UN, 14 March 2014 – United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights, Ivan Šimonovic, announced today the immediate deployment of a UN monitoring team throughout crisis-torn Ukraine to help establish the facts surrounding alleged human rights violations, including in Crimea, and serve to de-escalate tensions in the country.
Speaking via video conference from Kiev, Mr. Šimonovic told reporters in New York that during his short visit to Ukraine, he had identified chronic human rights violations; some dating from the Soviet era, and others, such as excessive use of force and arbitrary detentions, having taken place in the wake of the popular protests that erupted in the country a few months ago.
The newly deployed human rights monitoring team, which will be headed by Armen Harutyunyan, who is also the UN Regional Representative for Central Asia, will focus on current violations and, in that regard, he said “the situation is particularly troublesome in the eastern part of the country and in Crimea” he said.
- “It also seems particularly dangerous that there are rumours about large-scale human rights violations,” said Mr. Šimonovic, noting that such innuendo was stoking concerns regarding outside military intervention.
In an earlier press conference in Kiev, he said that what became clear very quickly during his discussions in Ukraine was the preponderance of competing narratives about what exactly has transpired in the country since November last year.
“Warning signs about systemic human rights violations were neglected for many years, including the concerns and recommendations of international human rights bodies,” he said.........etc.....http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=47355&Cr=ukraine&Cr1=#.UyNeZ85ql5Y
14/3/14
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- Ukraine – UN human rights monitors deployed to assess recent and ongoing violations
KIEV/GENEVA
(14 March 2014) – UN Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights Ivan
Šimonović on Friday announced the immediate deployment of a UN human
rights monitoring team throughout Ukraine to help establish the facts
surrounding human rights violations, including in Crimea, and serve to
de-escalate tensions in the country.
“What became clear very quickly during our discussions
in Ukraine was the preponderance of competing narratives about what
exactly has transpired in the country since November last year,”
Šimonović told a press conference in Kiev on the ninth day of his
mission to the country.
“Without an independent, objective establishment of the
facts and circumstances surrounding alleged human rights violations,
there is a serious risk that these competing narratives could be
manipulated for political ends, leading to divisiveness and incitement
to hatred. The UN team, as an impartial player, will serve to establish
the facts, thus helping prevent such manipulation and de-escalate
tensions.”
Šimonović, the UN’s most senior human rights official in
New York, said that chronic human rights violations were clearly among
the major reasons for the unrest in Ukraine in recent months.
“Warning signs about systemic human rights violations
were neglected for many years, including the concerns and
recommendations of international human rights bodies,” he said. “There
are serious concerns about the weakness of rule of law institutions,
lack of accountability and ensuing impunity for human rights violations.
Reports of torture and ill-treatment are also numerous.”
In the context of the recent protests in Kiev and
elsewhere, Šimonović expressed deep concern about allegations of gross
violations, such as excessive use of force and extra-judicial killings,
including by snipers, torture, disappearances and arbitrary detentions.
- “I have personally met with one victim of a brutal beating whose scars, both physical and mental, were clearly visible,” he said. “The perpetrators of human rights violations against that individual and all other victims must be promptly brought to justice, whatever their background, status or affiliation, following independent, impartial and thorough investigations.”
Šimonović stressed that accountability was of utmost
importance, not only for the victims of violations but also to restore
the faith of the whole of Ukrainian society in its Government and
institutions........etc............http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=14372&LangID=E
14/3/14
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Ο τίτλος είναι όπως τον έχει η επίσημη σελίδα των Ηνωμένων Εθνών. Αν δεν είναι τυφλοί, που δεν είναι, οι αξιωματούχοι αυτοί των Ηνωμένων Εθνών (και ο αρχηγός τους) , θα είναι μανιώδεις, παρανοϊκοί διαστρεβλωτές της πραγματικότητας. Το τι έγινε στο Κίεβο και το τι γίνεται στην Κριμαία φαίνεται από πολλές πλευρές.
ReplyDeleteSituation in Crimea calm, not as it being pictured abroad - Deputy of Belgian parliament...
DeleteThe situation in Crimea is calm, Deputy of the Belgian parliament Frank Creelman, who arrived to monitor the referendum to be held on March 16, said on Saturday.
The situation is quite normal and calm, there are many pro-Russian people among residents and many law enforcement officers are at streets, Creelman said.
Nevertheless, everything is very calm and absolutely not the way it is being pictures abroad, he said. Creelman said he intended to monitor the referendum on the status of Crimea not just in Simferopol but in relatively small Crimean settlements as well.
The Belgian politician said that, of course, he would observe the referendum in Simferopol but would also go to smaller towns in order to monitor the transparency of the referendum there as well.
Voice of Russia, Interfax
Read more: http://voiceofrussia.com/news/2014_03_15/Situation-in-Crimea-calm-not-as-it-being-pictured-abroad-Deputy-of-Belgian-parliament-2603/
15/3/14
The Ukrainian Defence Ministry will spend biggest part of Western aid on National Guard ...
ReplyDeleteUkraine will spend the biggest part of the Western financial aid to create its National Guard, a highly-placed source in the Ukrainian Defence Ministry said on Saturday, March 15.
“But Kiev has no intention to finance the Army and the Navy which are in shambles,” he said.
The official noted that by so doing the Ukrainian authorities show the priority of the National Guard over the Armed Forces. “The high status of the National Guard coupled with its right to oversee the activities of army commanders will substantially degrade the authority of the Army and Navy by giving them a secondary role. The government of Ukraine is avoiding issues of reliable national defence by putting all bets on the suppression of internal political dissidence,” he said.
On March 13, the Ukrainian parliament passed a law authorising the creation of the National Guard. It will incorporate the Interior Troops and will consist of about 60,000 personnel. Its commander will be approved by the national parliament.
On March 12, a source in the Ukrainian government said that apart from the Interior Troops the National Guard would also enlist some of the Maidan protesters.
http://en.itar-tass.com/world/723704
15/3/14
Ukraine, Russia agree brief Crimea truce: Kiev....
ReplyDeleteUkraine's defence minister said Sunday his forces in Crimea had reached a temporary truce with Russia aimed at easing tensions surrounding the Black Sea peninsula's high-stakes secession referendum.
Russian troops seized the Ukrainian region at the start of the month with the help of pro-Kremlin militias in response of last month's fall in Kiev of a Moscow-backed regime.
The Russian forces have encircled Ukraine's military bases in Crimea and kept its naval ships from going out to sea.
But Defence Minister Igor Tenyukh told a government meeting in Kiev that a temporary agreement had been reached that would help the encircled Ukrainian soldiers replenish their supplies.
"Agreements have already been reached between our commanders... on there being no attempts to blockade our military installations until March 21," Interfax news agency quoted Tenyukh as saying.
"We have reached this truce, and I think it will remain in place until March 21." Tenyukh said that Ukraine's troops in Crimea remained on full combat alert but that the situation on the ground was calm.
"For now, the situation concerning our military installations... has normalised," the defence minister said.
Ukrainian officials on Friday accused Russian forces of moving outside Crimea for the first time by seizing a town on a spit off the northeast coast of the peninsula called Strilkove.
Tenyukh did not mention the episode in his reported remarks.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/ukraine-russia-agree-brief-crimea-truce-kiev.aspx?pageID=238&nID=63648&NewsCatID=353
16/3/14
West using UN Human Rights to pressure dissenting countries – Russia...
ReplyDeleteThe West is trying to use the UN Human Rights Committee in its own interests to put pressure on dissenting countries using hypocritical accusations that undermine the organization's credibility, a commentary by the Russian Foreign Ministry in connection with the 25th session of the Council in Geneva reads.
"Western delegations continue their attempts to use the Human Rights Committee in their unilateral interests in order to exert pressure on some dissenting states with the help of hypocritical accusations of human rights’ violations. Such approaches undermined the credibility of the Council and did not contribute to real improvement of the human rights situation at the local level,". Despite this, the Russian Foreign Ministry notes, during the last session, the Council managed to reach joint decisions on many important issues for promoting and protecting human rights.
"The Russian delegation has actively participated in the search for mutually acceptable solutions, pursued a balanced and constructive line aimed at the de-politicization of the human rights sphere and strengthening the Council’s capacity for promoting equitable and mutually respectful cooperation," the message says.......Read more: http://voiceofrussia.com/news/2014_03_29/West-using-UN-Human-Rights-Committee-to-pressure-dissenting-countries-Russia-7415/
29/3/14