PGA Statement on Atrocity-Crimes Committed in the Context of the Aggression Against Ukraine

05 April, 2022

New York, The Hague

In the face of the shocking evidence of massive violations of International Humanitarian Law in Bucha and other locations in Ukraine, Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) joins the forceful statement issued today in Kyiv by the Euromaidan SOS coalition calling for the President of Ukraine to sign into law Act of Parliament No. 2689, which was adopted by an overwhelming majority of the Rada in May 2021.

This Act of Parliament implements war crimes, crimes against humanity and other norms of International Criminal Law in the domestic legal order.

Members of PGA-Ukraine played a dynamic role in presenting and supporting this legislation, while the PGA Secretariat provided technical assistance upon request of the relevant committees of the Rada.

The global PGA network in 130+ countries joins the EuroMaidan SOS' demand to President Zelensky to promptly ratify the Rome Statute of the ICC, hence giving effect to Article 124 of the Ukrainian Constitution as reformed in 2016, with the active support of civil society partners under the leadership of the Center for Civil Liberties (CCL).

As the ICC and national prosecutorial authorities are developing their complementary investigations on the ground, the evidence of mass atrocities must be carefully preserved by a joint effort in which all relevant expert bodies must respectfully coordinate their interventions. This means that the territorial State, Ukraine, needs to receive all the necessary cooperation from third States, regional organizations (e.g. Europol and Eurojust as announced by the President of the European Commission) and NGOs.

In parallel to the priority efforts aimed at ending the unlawful aggression against Ukraine and promoting the immediate cessation of hostilities, the International Community must support the fight against impunity for war crimes, crimes against humanity and the crime of aggression occurring in, and against, Ukraine: Victims and their families have the right to truth, justice, and reparations.

PGA supports the leadership role played by Members of the Ukrainian Parliament in serving their communities and constituencies.

PGA's Work on Ukraine:

Ukraine and the Rome Statute

Ukraine signed the Rome Statute on 20 January 2000 but has yet to ratify it.

Parliament of Ukraine Adopts Bill to Implement International Criminal and Humanitarian Law

Verkhovna Rada (Parliament of Ukraine) adopted Bill 2689 “On amendments to certain legislative acts on the Enforcement of International Criminal and Humanitarian Law”

PGA Statement on the situation in Ukraine

PGA reaffirms that any military attack directed against Ukrainian territory would be unlawful use of force prohibited by the UN Charter and may qualify as crime of aggression attributable to the individual criminal responsibility of the leader(s).

Letter to President Zelenskyi of Ukraine Urging Decisive Action on the Rome Statute of the ICC

Leaders of PGA and its Ukrainian civil society partner, the Center for Civil Liberties (CCL), have written a letter to the President of the Republic of Ukraine urging decisive action towards Ukrainian membership of the International Criminal Court (ICC)

PGA condemns Russian Federation’s blatant violation of International law and the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of Ukraine

The Russian Federation’s decision, implemented by a decree signed by the Russian President, further represents a unilateral violation the 2014-15 Minsk Peace Agreements

PGA Firmly Condemns the Aggressive War Launched by the Russian Federation Against Ukraine

International Law provides that the use of military force in the territories of other States is lawful only if authorized under Chapter VII of the UN Charter or in self-defense against an armed attack or when the territorial State genuinely gives consent.

Foreign Affairs Committees call on the creation of an international criminal tribunal into Putin's crimes

Chairs of the Foreign Affairs Committees of the parliaments of Belgium, Czech Republic, Estonia, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Romania Slovenia, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom call for the creation of an International Crimi

Euromaidan SOS: Zelenskyi must immediately sign the law on war criminals (reg. No. 2689) in response to the Russian army’s atrocities in Bucha

In recent weeks, volunteers from Euromaidan SOS have been documenting the stories of people who were lucky enough to escape from Vorzel, Bucha, Irpin, Hostomel, Katiuzhanka, Dmytrivka, Borodyanka, Motyzhyn and other towns in the Kyiv area.

After these territories have been liberated, everyone was appalled to see the systematic and extensive nature of the war crimes and crimes against humanity inflicted upon civilians.

It should be recalled that Russia deliberately denied the International Committee of the Red Cross the opening of humanitarian corridors for safe passage of civilians. In fact, the Russian army isolated the residents of these inhabited localities, waging terror against civilians, such as extrajudicial executions, torture, rape, abductions, etc.

We support the President’s words about inevitability of criminal liability for these atrocities. However, he should follow up these words with real action. The Criminal Code of Ukraine so far imposes no liability for crimes against humanity, while its war crime provisions have been worded so poorly as to make qualification of crime almost impracticable.

Even if the International Criminal Court were solely to be relied on, it would be unable to cover the entire range of the committed international crimes, since its policy makes it focus on top officials exclusively. Therefore, thousands of perpetrators who have committed these crimes with their own hands would remain the responsibility of national investigative and judicial authorities. The International Criminal Court operates on the complementarity principle, i.e. rather than substituting for national judicial authorities, it considers cases of the gravest international crimes where the State is ‘unable’ to investigate such crimes or knowingly ‘evades’ doing it.

However, international crimes are not covered by a statute of limitations; therefore, putting off the solution to this problem domestically would entail a direct path to impunity.

The draft law (reg. No. 2689), developed at the initiative of the Centre for Civil Liberties and Human Rights Agenda Platform, is precisely intended to address the existing gap. It indeed provides the State with legal instruments to bring war criminals to justice. These amendments to the Criminal Code are all the more important in the event of successful implementation of the idea, announced by the President of Ukraine, to set up an international hybrid tribunal.

Euromaidan SOS and the civil society organisations signed below remind that the law on war criminals (reg. No. 2689) has been awaiting the Ukrainian President’s signature since June 2021. Volodymyr Zelenskyi must prove his commitment to pursue war criminals by doing a simple thing – signing this draft law immediately.

We also reiterate our call on the Ukrainian Parliament to ratify immediately the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

Appeal supported by:

Centre for Civil Liberties
Ukrainian House Crimean Centre for Business and Cultural Cooperation
Culture Against Rudeness Civil Society Organisation
Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union
Crimea SOS
Public Television Civil Society Organisation
Vox Ukraine
MART Civil Society Organisation
Regional Centre for Human Rights
Coalition for Culture Civil Society Organisation
Depths of Art Charity Foundation
Centre of Policy and Legal Reform
One Philosophy / WeAreUkraine.info
Ukraine Crisis Media Centre
ZMINA Centre for Human Rights
Transparency International Ukraine
Centre for Law Enforcement Activities Research Civil Society Organisation
Social Action Centre Civil Society Organisation
Ukrainian Guild of Directors Civil Society Organisation
UPLAN Civil Network for Public Law and Administration
Association of Relatives of Kremlin’s Political Prisoners
Almenda Centre for Civil Education
NGO “Patronus”
NGO “Docudays” and others.

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