Zoia Zamikhovska: Now Human Rights in the Crimea Are Totally Neglected

Zoia Zamikhovska, Associate at Legal Alliance Company

Ukrainian lawyer

In the context of the posed question, it is advisable to talk about the possibility of persons who remained on the peninsula of exercising rights and the possibility of enjoying the right to a fair trial, which is guaranteed by Article 6 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, for the protection in case of violation of rights.

Under international law, states are responsible for the following violations of international humanitarian law:

a) violations committed by state bodies, including by the armed forces;

b) violations committed by persons or institutions authorized by states to exercise state power;

c) violations committed by persons or groups actually acting upon the state’s instruction or under its control;

d) violations committed by individuals or groups recognized and accepted by the state as its own conduct.

On September 25th, 2017 the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights published a report "The Human Rights Situation in the Occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol (Ukraine)" (OHCHR Report), which analysed observance of human rights on the peninsula in the period from February 22nd, 2014 to September 12th, 2017

The OHCHR Report documented serious violations of civil and political rights (the right to a nationality, the right to life, right to physical and mental integrity, the right to liberty and security, the right to respect for private and family life, freedom of thought, conscience and religion, freedom of peaceful assembly, freedom of association, freedom of expression and freedom of the media), as well as economic, social and cultural rights (property rights, the right to preserve own identity, culture and traditions, the right to education in the mother tongue, the right to health).

According to article 43 of the Hague Regulations of 1907, the occupant state is obliged to comply with the legislation in force in the occupied territory if it does not pose a threat to security or does not prevent the application of the Fourth Geneva Convention. However, contrary to the aforesaid, since January 1st, 2015 the legislation of the Russian Federation has been operating on the territory of the peninsula.

An interesting consequence of this was the spread of the so-called anti-terrorist laws of the Russian Federation to the entire territory of the Crimea. Moreover, the most relevant provisions of the Criminal Code were applied to the Crimean-Tatar population supporting the Mejlis, not supporting the referendum on accession or strictly adhering to the dogmas of Islam.

As it is indicated in the OHCHR Report, the judicial and law enforcement agencies of the Russian Federation in the Crimea violated the presumption of innocence, the right to obtain information on the nature and grounds of the charges against a person urgently, the right to defend oneself or to get the assistance of an advocate of one´s choice, the right to have sufficient time to prepare for defence, the right to a trial without undue delay, the right to appeal or review, the right to be examined in an independent and impartial court and the right not to testify against oneself or not to plead guilty.

The striking example were cases of criminal prosecution with the retroactive effect of the law, which is contrary to articles 64, 65, 67 and 70 of the Fourth Geneva Convention and article 15 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. In particular, people were convicted for committing acts that took place before the extension of the legislation of the Russian Federation to the territory of the Crimea.

The last loud sentence was delivered on September 11th, 2017. It was associated with the conviction of Akhtem Chyigoz, Deputy Chairman of the Mejlis, under the legislation of the Russian Federation for a period equal to eight years of imprisonment for organizing mass protests before February 26th, 2014.

In addition, the occupation authority neglects advocate’s guarantees, which are virtually identical to the provisions of Ukrainian law. These are advocate’s secret and the prohibition of questioning an advocate as a witness on information that he learns as a result of providing legal assistance to the client.

However, this did not prevent forceful bringing of an advocate, who defended one of the deputy chairmen of the Mejli, to the Russian Federation on January 25th, 2017, to the Federal Security Service to obtain information on the case that concerned the client. The practice of unreasonable arrests and detentions is also common.

Also an increase in the maximum period of temporary detention established by law and the absence of a recorded protocol of detention took place. In many cases, individuals were not charged and did not go to trial.

From the above, a sad conclusion is being drawn that at present in the territory of the Crimean peninsula human rights are completely neglected. Persons, especially Crimean Tatars, or persons who do not publicly support the Russian Federation and the authorities of the Crimea, in fact cannot seek justice in the courts. Despite the fact that the authorities of the Crimea and the Russian Federation do not recognize the results of the published report of OHCHR, and consequently, the violations recorded therein, in the near future there are no grounds to expect changes in observance of the letter of the law on the peninsula.