Ukraine notified the Secretariat of the Council of Europe about changes to the list of exceptions to its obligations under the CoE documents, including the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR).
As is known, Ukraine, as a member state of the Council of Europe, is obliged to comply with the Convention of Human Rights standards; in case of violation, individuals or organizations can file a claim against Ukraine in the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. However, the ECHR gives member states the right to declare a reasoned deviation from implementing certain obligations due to special circumstances, including military aggression.
In a letter dated 4 April 2024, which until recently was not reported by the media, Ukraine informed Strasbourg that in future its territory would not be subject to the obligations of the Ukrainian government to comply with Articles 8 (the right to respect for private and family life), 10 (freedom speech) and 11 (freedom of assembly and association), Article 2 of Protocol 4 (the right to free movement of people), as well as three articles from the first Protocol – No. 1 (protection of private property), No. 2 (right to education), No. 3 ( right to freedom of elections).
That is, Ukraine, as a civilized country and a member of the European community of nations, informs the Council of Europe of the temporary, war-forced suspension of the implementation of some of its human rights obligations. Which, of course, is very unpleasant, disgusting, painful…
Muscovy, without telling anyone anything, has simply been spitting on all human rights for 25 years. There is not a single article from the second chapter of the Constitution of the Russian Federation – “The Rights and Freedoms of Man and Citizen” – that over the years has not been trampled on under the boots of the Chekists and Musros. Muscovites simply ignored all the declarations, pacts and conventions on human rights all these 25 years, finally staging a barbaric war of aggression against Ukraine and full-fledged political terror within the country.
Although all the same, naturally, the Moscow trolls will hiss and mock this apparent suspension of Ukraine’s obligations. Shout something like: “Bravo! This is a new brilliant victory for the lost freedom and democracy! A new stage of the great Revolution of Gidnost! But do Ukrainian citizens still have any rights? If so, this is a legitimate concern. Kyiv cannot win with freedom of thought, this is already clear! And with other rights too. They must also be abolished until complete victory.” How they already mock that in Ukraine, they say, there are no elections, but in their totalitarian state, they supposedly exist…
A state that does not respect human rights is a dictatorship. Will Ukraine become a dictatorship?
Unfortunately, it turned out that dictatorships in the modern world are more effective than democracies. The war in Ukraine showed this clearly. The West, with all its enormous military and economic power, turned out to be unable to produce as many artillery shells for Ukraine as Muscovy produces. More precisely, it is capable, but this requires more time, discussions and approvals. The second economy in the world is China, a totalitarian dictatorship of the Communist Party. Muscovy and Iran exist well under sanctions; they even observe economic growth. But if similar sanctions were imposed, for example, on Italy, Germany, or France, it is doubtful that they would withstand it as well as Iran or Muscovy.
Or remember how the Muscovites simply kicked the French and Americans out of Africa! The French, to whom half of Africa belonged for centuries and who, even after granting independence to the former colonies, did not lose their influence there, found themselves simply squeezed out of their former colonies by “Wagner” – where has this been seen?… The Americans also fled from Niger and immediately evacuated their military base as soon as the Wagnerites entered there – just not to engage in battle with them! This is once again the sad topic of the superiority of modern dictatorships over democracies in terms of efficiency in achieving their goals…
Maybe, for the sake of victory over the enemy, for the sake of the highest value – the preservation of an independent Ukraine – Ukraine needs a dictatorship? We need an end to the mess that still exists at the front and the rear – and how can we achieve it differently?
In any case, the retreat from rights and freedoms in Ukraine lies entirely on the conscience (assuming that they have one) of the Muscovites – the aggressors and murderers who attacked Ukraine. For all the problems and troubles of Ukraine – from the death of its children to the suspension of rights and freedoms in it – only the Muscovite aggressor is to blame, and no one else. If there are any shortcomings and problems in Ukraine regarding rights and freedoms, then the blame for this does not lie with the Maidan, and not with Zelensky, and not with Ukrainians in general, as the sarcastic, mocking Muscovite trolls squeal. No, the blame for EVERYTHING, absolutely for ALL the problems of Ukraine, present and future, lies solely and exclusively with the Muscovites who attacked Ukraine!…
“Everything for the front, everything for victory!” – the enemy’s old slogan best reflects the situation in today’s Ukraine. There are problems at the front, the Muscovites are moving forward, capturing one settlement after another. Even rights and freedoms can be temporarily sacrificed if this is necessary to defeat a fierce enemy that threatens the very existence of the country. We need an effective path to victory, no matter how unpleasant and disgusting it may be. Tyrannies are precisely effective, this is their strength – and willy-nilly they have to adapt to the effectiveness of the enemy to defeat him. One can only hope that this will not lead to political terror, imprisonment for words, for criticizing the authorities, etc., as is happening in Muscovy. That abuses of power will not be too open and total. That war, contrary to the proverb, will not write them off.
You can take a breath: if Ukraine beat the enemy, maintaining democracy, rights and freedoms of citizens for more than two years of a full-scale invasion, now, having formally suspended them, Ukraine will certainly defeat the enemy! Muscovites expelled the French from Africa – Ukrainians will expel Muscovites from Ukraine! Increasing efficiency at the front and in the rear to the level of modern dictatorships such as China or Iran practically guarantees Ukraine victory over this entire Russian-Chinese-Iranian-North Korean axis of evil. And the acceptance of the Muscovite surrender on the ruins of the Moscow Kremlin…
Democracy, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, protection of property and everything that is now forcedly suspended all human rights and freedoms, will inevitably be restored in full after victory. They’re not going anywhere. Simply because the national character of Ukrainians excludes any dictatorship. Only the occupiers installed dictatorship in Ukraine, and these dictatorships were maintained only by bayonets. Any government that tries to impose something like this in peacetime will be swept away by a popular uprising, another Maidan.
Glory to Ukraine!
Boris Stomakhin
