UWC statement on International Human Rights Day  

It’s time for each of us to step up for human rights. There is no action that is too small:

wherever you are, you can make a difference. Together, let’s take a stand for more humanity.

 

Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein

United Nations High Commissioner

for Human Rights

 

The Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) joins the global community in marking International Human Rights Day on 10 December 2016.  

Despite the commitments of the international community on the entrenchment of human rights in every society, the world continues to witness the blatant violation of these fundamental rights of the Ukrainian people by the Russian Federation that refuses to recognize the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. 

As a result of the illegal annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation and its ongoing aggression in Eastern Ukraine, Ukrainians are denied the right to live in dignity and freedom. Moreover, dozens of Ukrainians continue to languish in Russian prisons on politically motivated charges and the Russian invasion of Crimea has led to numerous gross violations of the fundamental human rights and freedoms of Ukrainians, Crimean Tatars, Jews and other residents, who publicly oppose the occupying authorities, 

On this International Human Rights Day, we pay tribute to all those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for freedom in Ukraine and elsewhere in the world. 

We also honor all those standing bravely today in Ukraine and in other countries against a foreign aggressor.

“On 10 December, and every day, we have an obligation to be the voice of the oppressed who suffer indignities daily and to ensure that the world does not forget” stated UWC President Eugene Czolij.