15.09.2010

UHHRU demands swift and independent investigation of the assault on Dementiy Bily

The Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union is outraged over the brutal beating of Dementiy Bily, journalist and Head of the Kherson Regional Branch of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine (which is a member of UHHRU).

10.09.2010

The Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union and Kharkiv Human Rights Group demand that the Security Service of Ukraine stops its persecution of historians

At 7.30 a.m. on 8 September on his arrival in Kyiv by train from Lviv, Ruslan Zabily, historian and Director of the National Memorial Museum of Victims of the Occupation Regimes “Tyurma na Lonskoho” in Lviv was detained by six (!) officers of the Security Service [SBU] and taken to the SBU building on Volodymyrska St.

08.09.2010

The Government is wrong: public consultation is required

The Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union has initiated an Appeal open for endorsement by civic organizations, over the secretive drawing up by the Ministry of Justice of a draft law on the creation of National Preventive Mechanisms against torture [NPM].

02.08.2010

Appeal to Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs over Russia’s ban on human rights defender

The Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union [UHHRU] and Kharkiv Human Rights Group [KHPG] would ask you to defend the freedom of movement of well-known human rights activist, former dissident and prisoner of conscience, member of the Ukrainian Helsinki Group from 1978, member of the UHHRU Supervisory Council and KHPG Coordinator for Historical Research, Vasyl Ovsiyenko.

18.07.2010

Call on the President to veto the Law “On the Judicial System and Status of Judges”

Open appeal to the President of Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovych, calling on him to veto the Law “On the Judicial System and Status of Judges”

04.06.2010

UHHRU calls on the President to Veto the Bill on Personal Data Protection

The Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union would ask the President of Ukraine to use his power of veto on the bill “On Personal Data Protection”, adopted by the Verkhovna Rada on 1 June 2010.

04.06.2010

UHHRU: The Police are carrying out unlawful instructions

The Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union has issued an open appeal in which it expresses concern over recent action by the Police. Recent events with the crushing of civic protest in Kharkiv demonstrate a serious worsening in the country’s human rights situation. They arouse great concern due to the wide-scale nature of unlawful actions by the local authorities and police which risk going unpunished.

31.05.2010

Where is the draft law on peaceful assembly?

The Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union has addressed an open appeal to the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada and Head of the Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights asking for Draft Law No. 2450 “On the procedure for organizing and holding peaceful gatherings” to be made public.

28.05.2010

UHHRU expresses concern over events in Kharkiv and treatment of protesters

The Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union has addressed an open appeal to the Prosecutor General, O. Medvedko, the Minister for the Environment, V. Boiko and the Minister for Regional Policy and Construction V. Yatsubi.

26.04.2010

Human rights concerns expressed on President’s 50th day in office

The Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union and Kharkiv Human Rights Group have published an open letter to President Yanukovych expressing their concern over a worsening in the human rights situation during the 50 days since he was elected President.

13.04.2010

The introduction of named rail tickets is an unwarranted restriction of freedom

The Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union has initiated an appeal by civic organizations against plans to reintroduce named railway tickets. The undersigned civic organizations are against the introduction of named railway tickets. The Ministry of Internal Affairs [MIA] has recently announced its intention to again have passport details added to railway tickets. The police claim that this is needed to fight crime.

01.04.2010

UHHRU: On the lack of response from the Minister of Internal Affairs to the President’s criticism

On 29 March the President’s website published a report by the Press Service on the President’s meeting with the Minister of Internal Affairs during which the President described as “ill-considered” the decision to reduce the part of the MIA office dealing with human rights. The President stressed that measures on defending human rights needed to be extended, not reduced (http://www.president.gov.ua/news/16811.html)

01.04.2010

We look forward to hearing from you

The Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union has sent its Open Appeal regarding Government Policy on Human Rights to the President and Prime Minister, and eagerly awaits their response. The appeal which we publish again below was endorsed by 250 organizations and individuals. UHHRU wishes to thank all of those who have in this way demonstrated their concern for human rights in the country.

19.03.2010

Press Release: Human rights in Ukraine after the presidential elections: problem issues

After the elections, the new President and government inherited systemic problems in the human rights sphere, the lack of a strong and independent judiciary and respect for the justice system; the lack of openness in providing information, transparency and accountability of the authorities to the public; widespread and flagrant violations of the right to a fair trial, to protection from torture and other forms of unlawful force, from unwarranted detentions; to protection of the right to information, the right to be elected, as well as the poverty of a significant percentage of the population. With only a few exceptions, there was no holistic and systematic policy on improving the human rights situation.

18.03.2010

The Minister of Internal Affairs has come out against protecting human rights

On 17 March 2010 we learned that the Minister of Internal Affairs Anatoly Mohylev has the firm intention of dissolving the Department for Monitoring Human Rights in the Work of Internal Affairs Bodies. We are convinced that such actions by the new leadership are unwarranted, weaken national mechanisms for protecting human rights and demonstrate his priorities which do not include ensuring that the police respect human rights. The folding of the work of human rights institutions created in recent years arouses outrage among civic organizations.

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