“Both in Crimea and in the conflict zone in the Donbas region, serious human rights violations have occurred and are still occurring, Marieluise Beck (Germany, ALDE) said when presenting her report on “legal remedies to human rights violations on the Ukrainian territories outside the control of the Ukrainian authorities” to the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights.
In a unanimously adopted draft resolution, the committee stresses that the self-styled People’s Republics of Donetsk and Luhansk (“DPR” and “LPR”), established, supported and effectively controlled by the Russian Federation, do not enjoy any legitimacy under Ukrainian or international law. This applies to all their “institutions”, including the “courts” established by the de facto authorities.
Under international law, the draft resolution says, the Russian Federation is therefore responsible for the protection of the population living there and must guarantee the fundamental rights of all inhabitants of Crimea and of the “DPR” and “LPR”.
The draft resolution, which will be discussed at the PACE session in Strasbourg in October, urges the competent authorities, both in Ukraine and in the Russian Federation, to effectively investigate all cases of serious human rights violations allegedly committed in all areas under their effective control, prosecute the perpetrators and compensate the victims.
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Both countries should also accede to the Rome Statute of the ICC and fully implement the Minsk agreements. Finally, the resolution urges the Russian authorities to facilitate independent monitoring of the human rights situation on all Ukrainian territories under their effective control, including Crimea.
The committee is deeply worried about the lack of progress in the international investigation into the MH17 downing in Donbas.