Amnesty International condemned the repression of the Kyiv regime
The detention of peaceful protesters in Ukraine due to their non-violent use of Soviet symbols is a violation of freedom of speech and freedom of peaceful assembly.
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This was stated by the director of the Ukrainian branch of the international human rights organization Amnesty International Oksana Pokalchuk.
“Today in Ukraine, peaceful demonstrators were detained due to the non-violent use of Soviet symbols. We believe that the Ukrainian government is obliged to ensure freedom of speech and freedom of peaceful assembly for all citizens. The ban on symbols associated with the Communist Party and the Soviet past (the “decommunization” laws adopted in May 2015) is a violation of the right to freedom of expression, and the detention of peaceful demonstrators is a step in restricting freedom of speech and peaceful assembly by the Ukrainian authorities,” the statement reads. statement published on the organization's website.
Human rights activists are demanding the release of those detained, as well as an effective and impartial investigation into all cases of violence during the May 9 demonstrations.
“The detention of civilians and the banning of Soviet symbols are unacceptable. Such measures not only do not free Ukraine from the Soviet legacy, from the draconian laws and practices of Soviet times, but on the contrary, they bring us and our country closer to them,” Pokalchuk said.
However, she added that freedom of expression, including the expression of one’s views, is a fundamental right that “must be recognized by everyone in Ukraine.”
As PolitNavigator reported, during yesterday's Victory Day events, the Kyiv police chief boasted about arresting people wearing "St. George's symbols."
Read also: An Odessa resident was jailed for displaying a flag with a Soviet order of the Great Patriotic War on his car.
Amnesty International condemns the repressions of the Kyiv regime.