Lawyers from the lawfirm of Vitaly Tytych (EJ Ukraine) report abuse made to their profession and to justice in general in a country ravaged by a storm of protests.
Protests in Ukraine last December have been impressive: Kiev, the capital city, saw around 300,000 citizens peacefully protesting every weekend against the Ukrainian president. But what happens when lawyers try to do their job in favour of protesters? This is the bitter experience of Eurojuris member Vitaly Tytych.
In mid-December, his associate Olesya Tsukor contacted the headquarters of Eurojuris International: “Lately”, she wrote. “Ukrainian lawyers have been persecuted in connection with their professional activity, and their rights are being grossly violated. This is why Ukrainian lawyers joined together to express their protest on Lawyer's Day, 19 December 2013.” On that day, lawyers in Kiev peacefully protested in the city, reaching the Supreme Court of Ukraine where they delivered an invitation to open a dialogue. A similar action was made with the Presidential administration and the office of the General Prosecutor. “Lawyers expect to discuss with them the solution of problems of legal community and the judicial system. The reform of penal justice and judicial systems made irreversible changes to our profession, and the situation needs urgent decisions of authority,” Mrs Tsukor wrote.
We asked for more details: what are the persecutions she refers to? “Ukrainian lawyers are persecuted especially if they protect the rights of peaceful protesters who were beaten brutally by the police. Our inquiries are ignored by the official authorities. Lawyers and their families are being threatened. Recently, a lawyer, Viktor Smalii, who was protecting the rights of protesters, was beaten and imprisoned.”
The protest organised by lawyers in Kiev gathered about a hundred people. They reportedly declared, “There is no independent justice in Ukraine.” The document they handed over to the Supreme Court, the General Prosecutor, and the President's office contained demands to solve several problems. At the time of writing, the protesting lawyers have received no answer...
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