On February 20, from 16:00 to 17:30 PM, the Media Center “Ukraine – Ukrinform” (8/16 Khmelnytskoho St., Kyiv) will host a discussion panel “FULL-SCALE INVASION” as part of the media marathon “10 years of Russian Aggression in Ukraine. The Path to Justice”.
The morning of February 24, 2022, changed the lives of all Ukrainian citizens. Russia attacked Ukraine from the north, south, and east. The Armed Forces of Ukraine, in several stages, pushed the enemy out of half of the newly occupied territories.
What the Russians left behind in Bucha and Irpin, Borodianka and Makariv, in Izium and neighboring villages, in Chernihiv and in Kherson, made the whole world shudder. The unprecedented scale of killings, numerous torture chambers, kidnappings, and deportations – the bloody signature of the occupiers became well recognized. The Russian forces blew up the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Station, as well their military activities in Kherson and in Crimea destroyed unique nature reserves. The occupiers looted or destroyed a number of cultural monuments, museum collections – and continue to erase the historical heritage in Crimea by conducting excavations and reconstructions.
In two years of full-scale invasion, the Russian army committed countless crimes, which contain elements of crimes against humanity, war crimes, and genocide. The Ukrainian law enforcement system is practically overwhelmed by cases, the number of which continues to grow and has long exceeded 120,000, according to the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine.
What challenges did law enforcement and civil society face two years ago – what solutions have already emerged and what solutions are still to be found? Why are the high-quality documentation and investigation of Russian crimes the basis for the future of justice, and are its outlines visible? Why is relying on the ICC alone a futile cause? What role do Ukrainian courts play? How many cases have been investigated and transfered to court, and why do war crimes trials in Ukraine receive little or no public attention?
Speakers:
- Tetiana Pechonchyk, Head of the Board of the ZMINA Human Rights Center;
- Zera Kozlieva, senior legal advisor at Truth Hounds;
- Kateryna Ohiyevska, representative of the NGO “Civilians in captivity”;
- Yurii Armash, head of the medical unit of the mechanized tank battalion of the 59th Brigade named after Y. Handziuk, who was captured and tortured;
- Vladyslav Havrylov, research historian at the ‘Where Are Our People?’ project of the PR Army NGO;
- Stanislav Petrenko, head of the Division of the Department for Combating Crimes Committed in the Context of Armed Conflict of the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine;
- Natalia Antoniuk, judge of the Supreme Court.
Moderator: Roman Romanov, Director of the Human Rights and Justice Program, International Renaissance Foundation.
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Organizer of the media marathon: “Ukraine. 5 AM” Coalition.
The event will be held within the framework of the project “United on the path to justice: documenting serious international crimes during the Russian armed aggression in Ukraine” implemented by the Regional Center for Human Rights with the financial support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
FOR YOUR INFORMATION: “Ukraine. 5 AM” Coalition was launched on February 25, 2022, the day after Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Today, the Coalition brings together 38 non-governmental organizations and four individual experts. They have joined forces to systematically document war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during Russian armed aggression against Ukraine. The Coalition is also involved in protecting the victims of the Russian-Ukrainian war in existing national and international justice mechanisms. All of this is aimed at achieving justice by holding the top leadership of the Russian Federation accountable for the crime of aggression against Ukraine.