Spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights:
Ravina Shamdasani
Location: Geneva
Subjects: (1)
Ukraine
(2)
High Commissioner's visit to the US
_________________________________
(1) Ukraine
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al
Hussein today urged all sides to halt the dangerous escalation in the fighting
in eastern Ukraine - which is proving catastrophic for civilians. He called on
States and all those with influence in the region to take measures to ensure
full compliance with the Minsk accords, which have a direct bearing on the
human rights situation in the east of the country.
Bus stops and public transport, marketplaces, schools and
kindergartens, hospitals and residential areas have become battlegrounds in the
Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine – in clear breach of international
humanitarian law which governs the conduct of armed conflicts. The death toll
now exceeds 5,358 people, and another 12,235 have been wounded since mid-April
last year. In just the three weeks up to February 1, at least 224 civilians
have been killed and 545 wounded*. Any further escalation will prove
catastrophic for the 5.2 million people living in the midst of conflict in
eastern Ukraine.
In particular, there has been a high civilian death toll
from the indiscriminate shelling of residential areas in both
Government-controlled territory and in areas controlled by the armed groups.
The High Commissioner also expressed concern about the implications
of the harsh winter months on civilians in conflict-affected areas, with
shortages of food and water and power cuts. The plight of these civilians has
been compounded by Government decisions that have resulted in further
restrictions on the freedom of movement and socio-economic isolation. The
prolongation of the conflict would make the humanitarian situation untenable
for millions of people, Zeid stressed.
The public declarations by representatives of the armed
groups, rejecting the ceasefire agreement and vowing to scale up the offensive
are extremely dangerous and deeply worrying. They add to the terrifying
predicament of the civilians who are trapped in the areas, and the total
breakdown of law and order. I urge all States with influence to work together
to ensure that parties to the conflict immediately cease hostilities and abide
by earlier ceasefire decisions.
There are also worrying developments in the Autonomous
Republic of Crimea, the status of which is prescribed by UN General Assembly
resolution 68/262, in particular with regard to multiple violations of the
rights of Crimean Tatars. Last week the premises of ATR, the only television
channel broadcasting in the Crimean Tatar language, were raided by armed,
masked men in unmarked military clothing, and the Deputy Head of the Crimean
Tatar Mejlis, Mr. Ahtem Ciygoz, was detained. He faces up to 10 years in prison
for creating “mass disturbances”.
The Human Rights Mission in Ukraine will issue its next
report on the situation in the country, including Crimea, at the beginning of
March.
* The casualty figure is a conservative estimate of the HRMU
and WHO based on available official data: casualties of the Ukrainian armed
forces as reported by the Ukrainian authorities; 298 people from flight MH-17;
and casualties reported by civil medical establishments of Donetsk and Luhansk
regions: civilians and some members of the armed groups. HRMU and WHO believe
that the actual numbers of fatalities are considerably higher.
The full press High Commissioner press release can be viewed
at:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/Media.aspx?IsMediaPage=true&LangID=E
(2) High Commissioner's visit to the US
High Commissioner Zeid today begins the first official visit
by a UN Human Rights Chief to Washington D.C. to meet senior U.S administration officials and Members of
Congress since 2007, when former High Commissioner Louise Arbour made a similar
visit.
Zeid, who took up his position as the fifth UN High
Commissioner for Human Rights last September, will hold meetings with State
Department and other U.S. Government officials, including National Security
Adviser Susan Rice, to discuss a wide range of overseas and domestic issues. He
will also meet with around eight senior members of the House of Representatives
and the Senate.
On Thursday, at 10:00 a.m., Zeid will deliver an address
entitled “Can Atrocities be Prevented? Living in the Shadow of the Holocaust”
at a public event at the U.S. Holocaust Museum in Washington. He will also attend two round-table events
with Civil Society organisations.
The visit ends on Friday, February 6, when the High
Commissioner will give a Press Conference at 10:00 a.m. at the Georgetown Law
Center, located at 600 New Jersey Ave NW, Washington, DC.
ENDS
Audio recordings of the press briefing will be made
available in the early afternoon, Geneva time, on: http://goo.gl/54O06t
Video footage will also be available early afternoon, Geneva
time, on the following website, under the "Geneva press briefings"
tab: http://webtv.un.org/media/
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