Section: Human Rights Watch (USA)
Crimea: Persecution of Crimean Tatars Intensifies
Expand Law enforcement officials during a search in Bakhchysarai, Crimea on January 26, 2017 @ 2017 Anton Naumlyik RFE/RL (Berlin) – Russian authorities in Crimea have intensified persecution of Crimean Tatars, under various pretexts and with the apparent goal of completely silencing dissent on the peninsula, Human Rights Watch said today....
Crimea: Crimean Tatar Leader Convicted on Spurious Charges
(Kyiv) – A Russian court in Crimea on September 27, 2017, convicted a prominent Crimean Tatar leader on bogus separatism charges following an unfair trial, Human Rights Watch said today. The court imposed a two-year prison sentence and banned Ilmi Umerov, the Crimean Tatar leader, from involvement in public activities, which includes contact with...
Ukraine: Respect Human Rights and the Rule of Law
Human Rights Watch welcomes the Office of the High Commissioner’s periodic reports on the human rights situation in Ukraine. We value its excellent work in the country. We share the High Commissioner’s concerns over the impact repeated ceasefire violations in eastern Ukraine have on civilians’ lives. The use by all sides to the...
Ukraine: NGOs need EU help
Ukraine is moving to undo a March 2017 law that imposed an excessive burden on anti-corruption activists to publicly report their income and assets. That’s good. But it will instead require NGOs to prepare extensive, onerous public reports about their funding and financial activities – which is bad. The European Union, and governments...
Ukraine: Woman Detained, Held Incommunicado, Tortured
(Berlin) – Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) arbitrarily detained a Ukrainian woman, held her incommunicado, and tortured her, Human Rights Watch said today. The authorities charged the woman, Daria Mastikasheva, with treason, and a court in Dnipro has ordered her pretrial detention pending investigation. Mastikasheva, 29, a Ukrainian...
Crimea: Baseless Conviction of Crimean Tatar Leader
Expand Akhtem Chiygoz speaks to then Tatar deputy of the Ukraine’s parliament, Mustafa Jemilev. © 2006 Reuters (Kyiv) – A Russian court in Crimea on September 11, 2017, found a prominent Crimean Tatar leader guilty on charges of organizing “mass riots” following an unfair trial, Human Right Watch said today. The court sentenced the Crimean...
Ukraine: Drop Bills That Hamper Independent Groups
Expand Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko attends a news conference in Tallinn, Estonia on January 23, 2017. © 2017 Reuters (Kyiv) – The Ukrainian government should drop draft legislation to require nongovernmental groups in Ukraine to file detailed public online reports about their funding and employees, Human Rights Watch said today....
Ukraine: Foreign Journalists Barred or Expelled
Expand Ukraine’s state security service (SBU) chief Vasily Gritsak speaks during a news conference in Kiev, Ukraine, June 6, 2016. © 2017 REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko (Kyiv) – Ukrainian authorities have detained and expelled several foreign journalists in recent weeks, most recently Russian reporter Anna Kurbatova, Human Rights Watch said...
A New Low for Russian Authorities in Crimea
Expand Server Karametov, 76 year old Crimean Tatar, after his arbitrary arrest in August 2017. © 2017 Private Just when you think the situation cannot get any worse for Crimean Tatars in Crimea, it does. Yesterday, a court in Simferopol sentenced Server Karametov, a 76-year old Crimean Tatar, to 10 days in jail for …read more Source: Human...
Ukraine: Who Killed Journalist Pavel Sheremet?
Expand Journalist Pavel Sheremet talks on the air at a radio station in Kiev, Ukraine on October 11, 2015. © 2016 Reuters Pavel Sheremet, a leading journalist, was killed in central Kyiv one year ago today when a bomb planted in his car exploded. We still don’t know who did it and why. Sheremet …read more Source: Human Rights...