For the first time the community prepared a systemic complex report of 21 chapters about human rights violation in Ukraine in 2004. The report is not just a statement of facts, at the end of every chapter there are recommendations to the government for improving situation with human rights and freedoms.  

It’s not a secret that one cannot be accepted to Europe (it concerns the European Union first of all) without poor situation with human rights in the country. Evaluating a country, the EU structures pay attention not so much to statements of a country, which usually boasts, as to independent reports or information on situation with human rights prepared by public organizations. The given report is a bright example of community’s work of this kind, and numerous recommendations to the government show that the situation with human rights in Ukraine is far from ideal. 

The report was represented and discussed during the second forum of human rights organizations of Ukraine “Monitoring human rights and fundamental freedoms in Ukraine” which is held in Kyiv on April 11-12. Over 150 representatives of human rights organizations from all regions of Ukraine participate in the forum, and also international human rights organizations (Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights), Helsinki committees of Russia, Belarus and Moldova, international advisors and representatives of donor organizations, diplomatic corps, partner structures from countries of Central and Eastern Europe, and foreign public activists, guests and journalists.     

The forum is organized in Ukraine for the second time, last year it was dedicated to human rights at elections and remained in public memory first of all because of the incident of flinging mayonnaise on George Soros who was a guest of the forum. Despite such a beginning, the forum of 2004 was useful and laid foundation for wide cooperation of human rights organizations. 

One of the main purposes of the forum this year is to lay foundation on keeping to rights and fundamental freedoms in the country in 2005.

RUPOR