Women who are kept in the cellars in the «Lugansk People's Republic» ("LNR") are particularly vulnerable category. In the condotions of improvised prisons, they are often forced to stay in cells with male inmates. And as the guards are mostly men, the detained women often become targets of sexual harassment.
One of the divisions of "LNR" – the KGB "Smersh" – arrenged their a headquarters in the centre of Lugansk, not far from the regional administration. There were barracks, weapons warehouses, premises for interrogation, and large cellars. Dozens of people detained in these cellars were tortured. Women were among those prisoners.
Witnesses who were captured by the KGB "Smersh" in the summer of 2014, told about 38-year-old woman from Krasnodon, who was detained for drug offenses. She was placed in a cell with men. She was forced to ease herself in the bucket in front of them, and she was very ashamed to do so. Men tried to comfort her, saying that everybody understands a situation, but she struggled to endure. When she could not stand any longer, she pulled a skirt on her head to somehow simulate privacy.
Once a militant broke into the chamber and started to shout: "What a jackass had put a woman with men? The Hague Convention is violated! Put her in a separate chamber immediately!"
Indeed, they moved a woman to another cell – but there was also a male prisoner. In a little while she was moved back.
Also this woman was taken for interrogations. The inmates asked her what had been happening during those interrogations, but she never told. She only said that they threatened ner with guns and knives. Then the gunman, who regularly interrogated the woman, took her with him to the fighting line.
The witness also told about other women, who were kept in the basement. He saw two young girls, who were accused of working for the one of the Ukrainian political parties. He said, they were half-dressed in night gowns. The guards threatened them with knives and promised to cut away the skin from their hands. The girls were kept in a separate cell. At nights, there were screaming amd crying heard from their cell.
Photo: Suspilne On September 15, human rights activists held campaigned near the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine requesting adopton of the...
Photo: Suspilne
On September 15, human rights activists held campaigned near the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine requesting adopton of the bill No. 2698 "On amendments to certain legislative acts of Ukraine concerning the implementation of international criminal and humanitarian law."
The adoption of this draft law would harmonize Ukrainian criminal legislation with the norms of international criminal and humanitarian law. Ukrainian law enforcement officers would be able to correctly qualify crimes committed during the war in the East of Ukraine. The bill would make it impossible to amnesty people who have committed war crimes. Also, these cases cannot simply be closed by the statute of limitations.
The bill on war criminals No. 2689 was registered in the Verkhovna Rada in December 2019.
Former prisoners of war and representatives of public organizations took part in the action. Center for Civil Liberties, the Izolyatsia art fund and the Arts & Rights project were the organizers of the event.
53% of Ukrainians believe that only those persons whose guilt in war and other serious crimes will be proven in court should be pros...
53% of Ukrainians believe that only those persons whose guilt in war and other serious crimes will be proven in court should be prosecuted for cooperation with the authorities of the so-called “L/DPR.” This is evidenced by the results of a survey conducted by the Kiev International Institute of Sociology with the support of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Ukraine and in cooperation with the ZMINA Center for Human Rights.
In the course of the poll, Ukrainians were asked who should be prosecuted for cooperation with the authorities of the so-called “DPR” / “LPR”.
Half of the respondents, namely 53%, believe that it should be only those whose guilt in war and other serious crimes will be proven in court.
22% say that everyone who held leadership positions in the so-called “DPR” / “LPR” should be prosecuted .
7% believe that all residents of the occupied territories who somehow cooperated with the local authorities.
Another 3% believe that no one should be responsible.
Recently, on September, 4 human rights defenders organized a discussion in Pokrovsk "Are we ready for reconciliation?"
More than 100 mercenaries from more than 30 countries are fighting on the side of illegal armed groups in Donbass. Deputy Prosecutor...
More than 100 mercenaries from more than 30 countries are fighting on the side of illegal armed groups in Donbass. Deputy Prosecutor General Gunduz Mammadov mentioned this in an interview for Radio Liberty.
“The Office of the Prosecutor General registered criminal proceedings on the facts of the participation of more than 100 foreign citizens in the illegal armed formations of the Russian Federation in the armed conflict in Donbas against Ukraine. The geography of the countries of origin of mercenaries is very diverse and comprises more than 30 states, including France, the Czech Republic and even Chile. The largest number of them are from Spain and Serbia - 27 people, Moldova - 26, France - 20,” - said Mammadov.
According to the Office of the Prosecutor General, citizens of Bulgaria, Armenia, Italy, Spain, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Moldova, the Netherlands, Germany, and others, participated in the illegal armed groups in Donbas as well.
Mercenraies took part in various units, in particular, the so-called 14th territorial defense battalion "Prizrak", 11th separate motorized rifle regiment "Vostok", 7th separate motorized rifle brigade "Chistyakovskaya", 1st separate motorized rifle brigade "Slavyanskaya", separate reconnaissance battalion "Sparta," a separate assault battalion" Somalia ", illegal armed formations" Rusichi "," Wolf`s Hundred "," Bryanka USSR "and others.
Previously, in Kazakhstan, Yevgenii Shcherbak was sentenced to 4.5 years in prison for mercenarism as part of the illegal armed formation in Donbas after the Russian Federation refused to grant him asylum.
The Secretariat of the Coalition «Justice for Peace in Donbas»
