Proposed foreign agent law: a "mechanism for crushing civic initiatives"

Association

Freedom House Ukraine Office, on 3rd October 2018 organised a conference entitled: "Violence, Restrictive Laws and Impunity: a Threat to Civil Society and Freedom of Association in Ukraine" . The aim of the conference was to share information about the human rights situation in Ukraine, due to the continued "high levels of physical aggression against civil society activists and journalists and the frequency of attacks [which] has been rising".

In 2018, about 50 activists and journalists have been subjected to intimidation and attacks while the perpetrators remain unpunished. According to the Human Rights Information Center, anti-corruption activists, those combating organised crime as well as environmental activists, representatives of the LGBT community and the feminist movement are suffering the most from violence. In addition, legislative initiatives that put pressure on or limit the activity of civil society organisations, following Russia’s example, are being proposed by the government.

One recent example of restrictive legislation is the proposal to register entities as "agents acting under the influence of an aggressor state". The bill proposal was announced by the "Popular Front" with the Ukrainian President encouraging members of Parliament to support the bill during his annual State of the Nation Address in Parliament on 20th September 2018. The government justified the need for such legislation to "counter Russia’s political interference, particularly in the run-up to the 2019 elections in Ukraine".

However, the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union, said that:

"[S]uch a law would create a legal mechanism for crushing civic initiatives, which is exactly what an analogous law in Russia is used for now."

Peaceful Assembly

Protesters demand an end to impunity for attacks against activists

On 27th September 2018, hundreds of Ukrainian citizens protested in Kiev, urging the authorities to investigate attacks against civil society activists and punish the perpetrators. The protest took place in front of the presidential building and demonstrators carried signs that read "Silence kills" and photos of activists who were attacked and still waiting for justice.

Similar demonstrations took place in 12 other cities. These demonstrations were triggered by the attack against the Odessa activist and head of the regional branch of the grassroots “Syla liudei” party, Oleh Mykhailiuk. Oleh was shot on 22nd September 2018 and is currently recovering from the incident.

Protest in Odessa demanding the reduction of fuel prices

On 11th October 2018, activists from the organisation AvtoevroSila organised a protest at the entrance of Odessa. By stopping cars for an hour, taking the rightmost lane and turning on the warning light, protesters denounced what they considered the high cost for fuel.

Expression

On 27th August 2018, the Pechersk District Court of Kiev approved a request from the Prosecutor-General's office to access all data from the cellphone of Natalie Sedletska, a reporter, editor, and television presenter for Schemes, an investigative journalism project of the U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's (RFE/RL) Ukrainian Service from 1st July 2016 and covering a 17-month period. An appeal court on 18th September restricted the original request so only data related to geolocation around the offices of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine in Kyiv could be shared.

These decisions were criticised by civil society organisations as an "affront to the principle of press freedom that the Ukrainian government purports to uphold," as "protecting sources is at the heart of news gathering".

As an interim measure, on 18th September 2018, the European Court of Human Rights ordered the government to ensure that the authorities did not access any data from Sedletska’s cell phone.

RFE/RL President Thomas Kent welcomed the decision as its “about the rights of journalists to protect the confidentiality of their sources and the right of the society to get free information, without censorship."