Ukraine

• 1. Introduction

  Starting this report, it is necessary to mention that it reviews legal research and publications in Ukraine in the sphere of human rights and covers the period from the end of 2013 to 20 September 2017. This period of time is symbolic for Ukrainians since it coincides with the time of new hopes after Euromaidan and the Revolution of Dignity.
  The report consists of four main parts: (a) relevant legal journals; (b) noteworthy human rights publications; (c) relevant doctoral theses, and (d) reports on the human rights situation issued by national bodies, NGOs and international missions/observers.

• 2. Relevant Legal Journals

  When reviewing specialized human rights journals in Ukraine, it may be surprising to find out that there are no human rights journals (yearbooks or magazines) in an academic format. At the same time, all specialized legal journals¹xThere is an official list of specialized legal journals in Ukraine, approved by Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. Available at: http://old.mon.gov.ua/ua/activity/563/perelik-naukovikh-fakhovikh-vidan/6797/ (last accessed 28 March 2018). do publish articles on human rights issues or allocate separate columns for this purpose (or devote special issues to the topic) on a regular basis. To give some examples of such editions, I note the following:
  Law of Ukraine – This is a legal journal, which was re-established in 1992 and is published in Ukrainian, English and Russian versions. In 2013, the last issues of the English and Russian versions of the journal were published. The Ukrainian version continues to be published on a quarterly basis. The journal is devoted to theoretical and practical legal issues such as:

  • General theoretical and branch-legal issues of current concern, legal practice, as well as draft law proposals and international legal practice;

  • Constitutional, legal and administrative law reforms;

  • Practices of the European Court of Human Rights, the Constitutional, Supreme, High Commercial, High Administrative Courts of Ukraine, and the High Specialized Civil and Criminal Court of Ukraine, the Courts of International Commercial Arbitration, Common Courts of Arbitration, etc.²xOfficial website of the Journal Law of Ukraine, ‘Issue Topics’, available at: https://pravoua.com.ua/en/issue-topics/ (last accessed 28 March 2018).

  There are more than twenty supplements to this legal journal, which are devoted to different branches of national and international law.
  The International Law Yearbook and Ukrainian Journal of International Law are the printed editions of the Ukrainian Association of International Law,³xOfficial website of the Ukrainian Association of International Law, available at: http://uail.com.ua/uk/ (last accessed 28 March 2018). which was established in 1993. These editions are open for publications of International and European Law (Public and Private) in Ukrainian and English languages. They cover issues pertaining to the international legal protection of human rights. The new concept and policy of the association is currently under review by its Presidential Board. This may affect the policy of the aforementioned printed editions as well.
  Kyiv-Mohyla Law and Politics Journal (KMLPJ)⁴xOfficial website of the Kyiv-Mohyla Law and Politics Journal (KMLPJ), available at: http://kmlpj.ukma.edu.ua/ (last accessed 28 March 2018). is an international, interdisciplinary and peer-reviewed online journal. It covers broad areas of law and politics, focusing mainly on jurisprudence, constitutional and international law issues, political theory and methodology, and the area of European Studies. KMLPJ is published in cooperation with the Ukrainian European Studies Association. The journal is published in English, articles in other languages are not considered for publication. The topics of referred articles cover two sections: law and politics. The law section includes two subsections: jurisprudence and constitutional law (rule of law, theory of argumentation, comparative constitutional law) and international law (international human rights, international environmental law, international business law, European law). Since September 2016, a separate section on new developments in the case law of the European Court of Human Rights has been added.
  In addition, we can find some specialized journals on the practice of the European Court of Human Rights that have been established in Ukraine in order to gain an overview of the procedures of the Court and developments in its case law, thereby facilitating the implementation of the ECtHR’s legal findings in the legal system of Ukraine. The following are the two most distributed editions.
  The first of them is the digest The European Court of Human Rights. Judicial Practice (supplement to the journal Law of Ukraine). On 1 July 2011, at the first international scientific and practical conference, ‘The Problems of Application of the European Court of Human Rights Judicial Practice in the Legal System of Ukraine’, the editorial board of the journal Law of Ukraine presented the first issue of the scientific and practical digest The European Court of Human Rights. Judicial Practice. Three issues of this digest have been published from 2011 to 2013.⁵xЄвропейський суд з прав людини. Судова практика. –– Дод. до журн. «Право України». – Вип. 1: Стаття 3 ЄКПЛ. Заборона катувань: у 3 ч. – К.: Ред.. журн. «Право України», 2011.
  Європейський суд з прав людини. Судова практика. –– Дод. до журн. «Право України». - Вип. 2: Стаття 2 ЄКПЛ. «Право на життя»: У трьох книгах. – К.: Ред.. журн. «Право України», 2011.
  Європейський суд з прав людини. Судова практика. –– Дод. до журн. «Право України». - Вип. 3: Стаття 6 ЄКПЛ. Право на справедливий суд, Книга 1: Загальні принципи і стандарти застосування статті 6 ЄКПЛ. – К.: Ред.. журн. «Право України», 2013.
  The second journal is not academic by nature but it is well distributed among scholars and legal practitioners (courts, prosecutor’s offices, justice, internal affairs, security services, penitentiary institutions, and other interested parties) – Practice of the European Court of Human Rights. Decisions. Comments. It is an addition devoted to the analysis of and comments on the judgments and decisions of the European Court of Human Rights. It was established in 2010 by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine. The journal is published in Ukrainian on a quarterly basis.

• 3. Noteworthy Human Rights Publications

  Deciding what publications should be highlighted in this subheading of the report, I came to the conclusion that I would start with a widely discussed book, which was presented to the public by its author Serhiy Holovaty⁶xSerhiy Holovaty is an individual member of Venice Commission in respect of Ukraine. See CV available at: www.venice.coe.int/WebForms/pages/?p=cv_67 (last accessed 28 March 2018). in early 2017. The book is in Ukrainian. It is titled Про людські права. Лекції,⁷xS. Holovaty, About Human Beings’ Rights. Lections, Kyiv, Duh Litera, 2016. (Головатий Сергій. Про людські права. Лекції. – К: Дух і літера, 2016. – 760 с.). and the author translates ‘людські права’ as ‘human rights’. However, certain linguistic nuances must be noted.
  It is well known that the dispute on ‘droits de l’homme vs droits humains’ exists in France. This dispute has arisen mainly due to the etymology of the word ‘homme,’ which means ‘man’⁸xAs it was declared in the ‘Declaration of the rights of man and of the citizen’ approved by the National Assembly in 1789 at the time of the French revolution. The supporters of the concept ‘droits de l’homme’ argue that the term ‘Homme’ when capitalized denotes mankind, as in everyone. The feminists retort that the capital ‘H’ is rarely used when written and cannot be distinguished at all when spoken. in English and is considered an outdated and discriminatory terminology at present.⁹x‘Remplaçons «droits de l’homme» par «droits humains»!’, 13 July 2015, available at: www.liberation.fr/societe/2015/07/13/remplacons-droits-de-l-homme-par-droits-humains_1347376 (last accessed 28 March 2018). However, for the Ukrainian language, which uses the term ‘людина,’ such argumentation is not relevant since the Ukrainian word ‘людина’ means ‘human’ (a man as well as a woman, i.e. everyone). Nevertheless, the author preferred the wording ‘людські права,’ which, in a literal translation, means ‘human beings’ rights’ in plural. This approach has a philosophical and theoretical basis, which is presented in the book. The main idea is that the words ‘human beings’ rights’ refer to the ‘internal attribute of a human being’¹⁰xHolovaty, 2016, p. 10. and are not given by someone. It is necessary to admit that such an approach met with both criticism and approval among legal scholars and practitioners. Lviv Professor Petro Rabinovich, a long-time opponent of the author, notes that the “[b]iological approach to human rights alleged by Ukrainian author S. Holovaty is completely inconsistent with the development of social sciences.” Professor Petro Rabinovich summarizes:

  [o]ne can state that the arguments of this distinguished opponent are based on natural and philosophical principles (a person is the product of Nature, which is an element of the Cosmos). Instead, my interpretation of fundamental human rights is given above relying on ambushes, on the contrary, socio-philosophical.¹¹xP. Rabinovych, ‘Biosocial Essence of Fundamental Human Rights’, Bulletin of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine, Vol. 4, No. 83, 2015, p. 15. (Рабнович П. Біосоціальна сутність основоположних людських прав // Вісник Національної академії правових наук України № 4, 83, 2015).

  In his article ‘Biosocial Essence of Fundamental Human Rights’, Professor Petro Rabinovich provides the following definition:

  Human rights are certain options of a person, that are to satisfy his needs of living and development, determined by the level of the development society and are secured by duties of other persons. The suggested interpretation of the phenomenon of human rights is made from the position of needs-oriented approach that is based on social positivism. The fundamental character of these rights consists in their ability to be the basis for securing a person’s life and self-development. Without such rights, without the use of them existence and development will not be possible. Options (of a human) – is an ontological, existential, “substantial” characteristic of its fundamental rights; and their purpose is to mediate, “instrumentalize” the satisfaction of basic needs. This is anthropological and social sense of fundamental human rights. Organic sociality phenomenon, considered objectively determined by natural sociality of human existence: rights of a person may refer only to any other entity.¹²x Ibid., p. 19.

  This discussion, in my view, contributes to the deep dispute over what human rights we may find as being truly natural. It seems that life, which is presented to human beings, is the only gift of nature that is given unconditionally, naturally and regardless of the will of the human. The other ‘options’ are caused by the will of humans and aimed at securing a person’s life and self-development. The necessity of their consolidation and protection arises when humans interact with society.
  It would be fair to separate a group of articles devoted to practical issues of human rights protection in Ukraine. A significant part of them discloses different issues related to the practice of the European Court of Human Rights. The most recent are the following articles.
  The 20th anniversary of the ratification of the ECHR by the Ukrainian Parliament was celebrated in 2017. Professor Mykola Gnatovsky, in co-authorship with Yulia Ioffe, is analysing ‘Twenty Years of the ECHR in Ukraine’.¹³xM. Gnatovsky & Y. Ioffe, ‘Twenty Years of the ECHR in Ukraine’, 18 September 2017, EJIL: talk!, available at: https://www.ejiltalk.org/twenty-years-of-the-echr-in-ukraine/ (last accessed 28 March 2018). The authors are investigating the causes that lead to a high number of applications directed against Ukraine before the ECtHR, positive changes as a result of Ukraine’s accession to the ECHR, as well as the attitude towards the ECtHR and heightened expectations.
  As it is known, the problem of the execution of judgments has a systemic nature in Ukraine. In this regard, the article of a professor from Cyprus – Kostas Paraskeva ‘Transformation of the Role of the European Court of Human Rights in the Process of Judicial Review over the Execution of Its Judgments: Problems and Perspectives’, which has been published in the Herald of the Supreme Court of Ukraine (available in Ukrainian), is rather interesting. The article seeks to analyse and discuss the developing role of the Court, which has itself assumed more responsibility for the proper execution of its own judgments by giving indications regarding general and/or individual measures, relying mostly on Article 46, and regarding the best remedy; or by clearly giving orders for reparation or issuing consequential orders included in the operative part of the judgment.¹⁴xK. Paraskeva, ‘Transformation of the Role of the European Court of Human Rights in the Process of Judicial Review Over the Execution of Its Judgments: Problems and Perspectives’, Herald of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, Vol. 7, No. 203, 2017, pp. 42-48.
  One of the very sensitive problems in Ukraine since the conflict began is the protection of the rights of internally displaced persons (IDPs). My article ‘Post-Conflict Reparation: Ukrainian Restitution Remedies for Property and Restitution Complaints before the European Court of Human Rights’ describes the proposed Ukrainian legislation on national remedies for the restitution of property damaged or destroyed during the conflicts in Eastern Ukraine and Crimea. Noting gaps in this proposed legislation, it emphasizes the need for an effective National Strategy for post-conflict reparations and a related Action Plan. The article also analyses the European Court of Human Rights’ decision in Lisnyy and Others v. Ukraine and Russia, in which the Court ruled that the applicants’ complaints about the shelling of their homes in Eastern Ukraine during the hostilities that began in April 2014 were inadmissible for want of evidence. The article concludes by examining the Lisnyy and Others v. Ukraine and Russia decision’s implications on a national remedy for the restitution of property damaged or destroyed during the ongoing hostilities.¹⁵xT. Antsupova, ‘Post-Conflict Reparation: Ukrainian Restitution Remedies for Property and Restitution Complaints before the European Court of Human Rights’, Kyiv-Mohyla Law and Politics Journal, Vol. 2, 2016, pp. 217-226.

• 4. Relevant Doctoral Theses

  In the overview of PhD theses on human rights issues, I will focus mainly on one thesis that makes a notable contribution to the discourse on the concept of racial discrimination.
  The doctoral thesis, ‘The Concept of Racial Discrimination in International Law’, for obtaining an academic degree of a Doctor of Legal Sciences (Dr. Habil.) was presented by Professor Natalia Dromina-Voloc in 2015.¹⁶xN.V. Dromina-Voloc, ‘The Concept of Racial Discrimination in International Law’. Manuscript dissertation for obtaining an academic degree of a doctor of legal sciences. Specialization 12.00.11. – International Law. – Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. – Kyiv, 2015. Available at: SSRN http://scc.univ.kiev.ua/upload/iblock/f30/aref_Dromina-Voloc%20N.V._new.pdf (last accessed 28 March 2018).
  The thesis presents the holistic international legal concept of racial discrimination, formulated through the prism of the paradigm-forming concept of fundamental equality, its genesis, philosophical basis, essence, normative definition, current status and development trends. The author argues that racial discrimination is a direct and obvious denial of fundamental equality with regard to racially categorized and equated individuals and social groups. The definition of an international anti-discrimination law as a complex branch of international law regulating international cooperation in combating discrimination is suggested in the thesis. The conceptosphere of the international anti-discrimination law is based on the key metaconcepts of ‘equality’ and ‘justice’, which have ancient origins and enduring significance. The egalitarian nature of the international anti-discrimination law evolves from the recognition of fundamental equality as a doctrinal key for perceiving discrimination as a legal concept and social phenomenon. The process of the international anti-discrimination law institutionalization is studied. The sub-branch of the international anti-discrimination law, racial antidiscrimination law, is distinguished for the purpose of this research. It includes the ‘general’ part, which is a conceptual basis for developing its categorical framework and creating a general mechanism of combating racial discrimination; and the ‘specific’ part, which contains a special international legal mechanism of protection against discrimination of certain categories of victims of racial discrimination. The author applies a dualistic approach to the interpretation of racial discrimination as a category of international law. This distinction in interpretations does not violate the conceptual integrity of the international legal category of ‘racial discrimination.’ The definition includes, first, its human rights interpretation, reflected in international human rights law in the context of the ‘right to non-discrimination’. Racial discrimination is regarded as the ‘unequal treatment of equals, and equal treatment of unequal people,’ which is done based on discriminatory grounds and/or has discriminatory consequences.
  The author argues that transformation of the moral aversion to racial discrimination into a peremptory norm influenced the development of an international legal notion of ius cogens norms and caused the general trend of international law imperativization. The latter is defined as the trend towards an increased role of imperative elements in the mechanism of international law regulation, demonstrated by certain norms acquiring the ius cogens status, as well as by extending the imperative elements of criminal jurisdictional regimes. The formation of a value-oriented ius cogens concept is analysed as an embodiment of the highest power of justice, while justice being an ethical and legal foundation of this notion. The use of the term “jus cogens delict” is suggested as a generic definition for determining a violation of the peremptory norm of international law, which includes wrongdoing committed by state and non-state actors. The retributive paradigm of international anti-discrimination law through defining racial discrimination as a ius cogens crime is formulated. It is suggested that the obligation of states to cooperate in fighting against ius cogens crimes is of erga omnes character, and it requires, inter alia: a coherent approach to establishing criminal jurisdiction, including a universal one; the realization of the principle dedere aut judicare; and the issue of exclusion of a certain category of individuals from the criminal jurisdiction of a foreign state, i.e. immunity, which has undergone significant international legal reconsideration. The author analyses private discriminating practices and the ‘due diligence standard’ as the basis of positive obligations of states in combating racial discrimination, obliging the state, at the first level, to take effective measures to protect people under their jurisdiction against discrimination. At the second level, it addresses the non-state actors – transnational corporations and other businesses, requiring them to take the necessary measures to anticipate, prevent and eliminate the discriminatory effects of their activities. The notion of ‘hate crime’, as one of the main forms of racism manifestation, is studied. The author argues that the duty of states to prevent and prosecute hate crimes under their jurisdiction has gained the status of an international erga omnes obligation of a positive character, having been deprived of the nature of a solely domestic legal requirement. The author concludes that the manifestations of racism and xenophobia in Ukraine are becoming a dangerous social disorder, which lacks immunity, and, therefore, the issue of optimization of state and public response measures against all manifestations of racial discrimination is particularly relevant.
  It is worth mentioning that ‘International Human Rights Law’ is one of the dominant areas among the international law scholars. In the time frame of this report, the PhD research can be grouped into the following topics: legal mechanisms of human rights protection¹⁷x See, for example, O. Bazov, ‘The Jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights’, 2016; S. Burma, ‘International Legal Characteristics of the Institute for Friendly Settlement in the European Court of Human Rights’, 2015; A. Zubareva, ‘International Legal Status of the UN Committee on Human Rights’, 2015; T. Kalmykov, ‘Human Rights Commissioner: Place and Functions in the System of Organs of the Council of Europe’, 2016. and protection of certain groups of human rights.¹⁸x See, for example, K. Vihrenko, ‘International Legal Regulation of Labor in the Fishing Sector’, 2015; I. Gromivchuk, ‘International Legal Protection of Human Rights in the Fight Against Terrorism’, 2014; O. Kalmykova, ‘International Legal Cooperation in the Council of Europe’s System in the Fight against Xenophobia and Racism’, 2015; U. Koruts, ‘International Legal Protection of the Right to Fair Trial in ECtHR Practice’, 2015, Y. Kruk, ‘Protection of the Right to Health in the Council of Europe’, 2015; L. Nevara, ‘Protection of Linguistic Rights in the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages’, 2014; S. Olshanetska, ‘Legal Status of Individuals Whose Freedom is Limited Due to Non-International Armed Conflict’, 2016; N. Soroka, ‘International Legal Protection of Copyrighting within the Framework of the European Union’, 2016; O. Shevchenko-Bitenska, ‘Legal Mechanisms of the Council of Europe in the Field of Protecting Children from Violence’, 2015. There are also other classifications.¹⁹x See T. Kivalova, T. Korotkyi & N. Hendel, ‘The Developments of Researches in the Field of International Law in Ukraine in 2012-2016’, Bulletin of the Southern Regional Center of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine, Vol. 10, 2017, pp. 140-141. (Розвиток досліджень у галузі міжнародного права в Україні в 2012-2016 рр. / Т. С. Ківалова, Т. Р. Короткий, Н. В. Хендель // Вісник Південного регіонального центру Національної академії правових наук України. – № 10, 2017. – С. 140-141).

• 5. Reports on the Human Rights Situation Made by National Bodies, NGOs and International Missions/Observers

  5.1. The Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation and the Human Rights Information Centre, Secretariat of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsperson), and UNDP Ukraine

  Conducted by the Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation and the Human Rights Information Centre under the initiative of the Secretariat of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsperson), and with the support of UNDP Ukraine, the survey covered more than 2,000 respondents overall in Ukraine and 100-200 representatives of different target groups to find out the perception and understanding of human rights in Ukraine.²⁰xI. Bekeshkina, T. Pechonchik & V. Yavorsky, What Ukrainians Know and Think of Human Rights: Baseline Study, Kyiv, UNDP Ukraine, 2017 (Що українці знають і думають про права людини: загальнонаціональне дослідження / [І. Бекешкіна, Т.Печончик, В.Яворський та ін.]; під заг. ред. Т. Печончик. – Київ, 2017. – 308 с. Available at: www.ua.undp.org/content/dam/ukraine/docs/DG/Ombudsman’s%20project/HumanRightsUa.pdf (last accessed 28 March 2018)). The key findings of the survey were presented in Kyiv on 5-6 July 2017. This data, the findings, and recommendations will be used to enable the design of more effective strategies and tactics for human rights education campaigns, developing formal and informal human rights education, and shaping evidence-based approaches and priorities in human rights donor-supported activities.²¹xUNDP Ukraine, ‘What Ukrainians Know and Think of Human Rights: UNDP in Ukraine Launches Human Rights Baseline Study, 13 July 2017, available at: www.ua.undp.org/content/ukraine/en/home/presscenter/articles/2017/07/13/what-ukrainians-know-and-think-of-human-rights-undp-in-ukraine-launches-human-rights-baseline-study-.html (last accessed 28 March 2018).

  5.2. Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union (UHHRU)

  The analytical and monitoring reports in the field of human rights are publishing by Analytical Department of UHHRU on a regular basis.²²xUHHRU Publications, available at: http://helsinki.org.ua/en/publications/ (last accessed 28 March 2018). In addition, every year UHHRU prepares and publishes human rights organizations’ report ‘Human Rights in Ukraine’. The report is a universal document, which is used by domestic and international organizations to assess the human rights situation in Ukraine. It has been published annually, starting from 2004. All the annual reports are published in English.²³xA. Buschenko (Ed.), 2016 Annual Report, Kyiv, Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union, 2017.

  5.3. Council of Europe Office in Ukraine

  Under the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine 2015-2017, there are several projects. One of them relates to a very specific human rights issue – strengthening the human rights protection of internally displaced persons in Ukraine. The project publications are worth mentioning.²⁴xCouncil of Europe, ‘Strengthening the Human Rights Protection of Internally Displaced Persons in Ukraine’, Project Publications, available at: www.coe.int/en/web/kyiv/idps#{“19353888”:[0]} (last accessed 28 March 2018). An important baseline analytic report has been published in Ukrainian and its English versions published in 2016 are entitled ‘Enhancing the National Legal Framework in Ukraine for Protecting the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons’.²⁵xCouncil of Europe, Enhancing the National Legal Framework in Ukraine for Protecting the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons, June 2016, available at: https://rm.coe.int/16806a49d7 (last visited 28 March 2018).

  5.4. Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)

  A series of publications produced by the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine within its project ‘Safeguarding Human Rights through Courts’, implemented with financial support of the Government of Canada. The publications present international and Ukrainian national standards, best practice and tools in the sphere of justice and human rights protection. In 2015-2017, the following research studies were published:

  • Research on Gender Discrimination in Professional Environment of Advocates and Judges in Ukraine: Report on the Findings, 2017 (available in English);

  • Application of the Case Law of the European Court of Human Rights When Administering Justice: Scientific and Methodological Handbook for Judges, 2016 (available in Ukrainian);

  • The Right to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly: Theory and Practice (available in Ukrainian), 2016 (available in Ukrainian);

  • European Court of Human Rights, European Convention on Human Rights and Individual Applications: Introduction, 2016 (available in Ukrainian);

  • Property Right: European Experience and Ukrainian Realities, 2016 (available in Ukrainian);

  • Human Rights Protection within Administrative Justice Current State and Perspectives for Ukraine, 2016 (available in Ukrainian);

  • Joint Guidelines on Freedom of Association, 2015 (available in five languages);

  • Gender Equality in Justice, 2016 (available in Ukrainian);

  • Methodology on Carrying Out Monitoring of Judgments on Application of the European Convention on Human Rights and the Case-Law of the European Court of Human Rights by Judges in Ukraine, 2017 (available in English).²⁶xPublications on human rights protection within ‘Safeguarding Human Rights through Courts’ Project. Available at: www.osce.org/project-coordinator-in-ukraine/235331 (last accessed 28 March 2018).

  5.5. UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission

  In March 2014, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights deployed to Ukraine a Human Rights Monitoring Mission to evaluate and report on the human rights situation and to provide support to the Government of Ukraine in the promotion and protection of human rights.
  The Mission covers human rights development in the entire country, with human rights monitors based in Kyiv, Donetsk, Odesa, Kharkiv and Lviv. As part of its work, the Mission prepares monthly reports describing the human rights situation and makes recommendations. These reports are public and available in English with unofficial translations into the Ukrainian and Russian languages.
  Nineteen human rights monitoring reports have been produced in 2014-2017. The 19th report was presented in the middle of September 2017.²⁷xUN Reports on Human Rights Situation in Ukraine, available at: www.un.org.ua/en/publications-and-reports/un-in-ukraine-publications/3592-un-reports-on-human-rights-situation-in-ukraine (last accessed 28 March 2018).

• 6. Summary

  It is important to sum up by saying that ongoing transformations and cultural and political processes in Ukraine cause constant frictions and renegotiations in the different spheres of social life and public policy.
  Against this background, the legal research studies of the period under review were conditioned by objective factors; for example, the ongoing reforms against the backdrop of European integration, human rights in the annexed Autonomous Republic of Crimea and in the East of Ukraine.

Noten

• 1 There is an official list of specialized legal journals in Ukraine, approved by Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. Available at: http://old.mon.gov.ua/ua/activity/563/perelik-naukovikh-fakhovikh-vidan/6797/ (last accessed 28 March 2018).

• 2 Official website of the Journal Law of Ukraine, ‘Issue Topics’, available at: https://pravoua.com.ua/en/issue-topics/ (last accessed 28 March 2018).

• 3 Official website of the Ukrainian Association of International Law, available at: http://uail.com.ua/uk/ (last accessed 28 March 2018).

• 4 Official website of the Kyiv-Mohyla Law and Politics Journal (KMLPJ), available at: http://kmlpj.ukma.edu.ua/ (last accessed 28 March 2018).

• 5 Європейський суд з прав людини. Судова практика. –– Дод. до журн. «Право України». – Вип. 1: Стаття 3 ЄКПЛ. Заборона катувань: у 3 ч. – К.: Ред.. журн. «Право України», 2011.
  Європейський суд з прав людини. Судова практика. –– Дод. до журн. «Право України». - Вип. 2: Стаття 2 ЄКПЛ. «Право на життя»: У трьох книгах. – К.: Ред.. журн. «Право України», 2011.
  Європейський суд з прав людини. Судова практика. –– Дод. до журн. «Право України». - Вип. 3: Стаття 6 ЄКПЛ. Право на справедливий суд, Книга 1: Загальні принципи і стандарти застосування статті 6 ЄКПЛ. – К.: Ред.. журн. «Право України», 2013.

• 6 Serhiy Holovaty is an individual member of Venice Commission in respect of Ukraine. See CV available at: www.venice.coe.int/WebForms/pages/?p=cv_67 (last accessed 28 March 2018).

• 7 S. Holovaty, About Human Beings’ Rights. Lections, Kyiv, Duh Litera, 2016. (Головатий Сергій. Про людські права. Лекції. – К: Дух і літера, 2016. – 760 с.).

• 8 As it was declared in the ‘Declaration of the rights of man and of the citizen’ approved by the National Assembly in 1789 at the time of the French revolution. The supporters of the concept ‘droits de l’homme’ argue that the term ‘Homme’ when capitalized denotes mankind, as in everyone. The feminists retort that the capital ‘H’ is rarely used when written and cannot be distinguished at all when spoken.

• 9 ‘Remplaçons «droits de l’homme» par «droits humains»!’, 13 July 2015, available at: www.liberation.fr/societe/2015/07/13/remplacons-droits-de-l-homme-par-droits-humains_1347376 (last accessed 28 March 2018).

• 10 Holovaty, 2016, p. 10.

• 11 P. Rabinovych, ‘Biosocial Essence of Fundamental Human Rights’, Bulletin of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine, Vol. 4, No. 83, 2015, p. 15. (Рабнович П. Біосоціальна сутність основоположних людських прав // Вісник Національної академії правових наук України № 4, 83, 2015).

• 12 Ibid., p. 19.

• 13 M. Gnatovsky & Y. Ioffe, ‘Twenty Years of the ECHR in Ukraine’, 18 September 2017, EJIL: talk!, available at: https://www.ejiltalk.org/twenty-years-of-the-echr-in-ukraine/ (last accessed 28 March 2018).

• 14 K. Paraskeva, ‘Transformation of the Role of the European Court of Human Rights in the Process of Judicial Review Over the Execution of Its Judgments: Problems and Perspectives’, Herald of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, Vol. 7, No. 203, 2017, pp. 42-48.

• 15 T. Antsupova, ‘Post-Conflict Reparation: Ukrainian Restitution Remedies for Property and Restitution Complaints before the European Court of Human Rights’, Kyiv-Mohyla Law and Politics Journal, Vol. 2, 2016, pp. 217-226.

• 16 N.V. Dromina-Voloc, ‘The Concept of Racial Discrimination in International Law’. Manuscript dissertation for obtaining an academic degree of a doctor of legal sciences. Specialization 12.00.11. – International Law. – Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. – Kyiv, 2015. Available at: SSRN http://scc.univ.kiev.ua/upload/iblock/f30/aref_Dromina-Voloc%20N.V._new.pdf (last accessed 28 March 2018).

• 17 See, for example, O. Bazov, ‘The Jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights’, 2016; S. Burma, ‘International Legal Characteristics of the Institute for Friendly Settlement in the European Court of Human Rights’, 2015; A. Zubareva, ‘International Legal Status of the UN Committee on Human Rights’, 2015; T. Kalmykov, ‘Human Rights Commissioner: Place and Functions in the System of Organs of the Council of Europe’, 2016.

• 18 See, for example, K. Vihrenko, ‘International Legal Regulation of Labor in the Fishing Sector’, 2015; I. Gromivchuk, ‘International Legal Protection of Human Rights in the Fight Against Terrorism’, 2014; O. Kalmykova, ‘International Legal Cooperation in the Council of Europe’s System in the Fight against Xenophobia and Racism’, 2015; U. Koruts, ‘International Legal Protection of the Right to Fair Trial in ECtHR Practice’, 2015, Y. Kruk, ‘Protection of the Right to Health in the Council of Europe’, 2015; L. Nevara, ‘Protection of Linguistic Rights in the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages’, 2014; S. Olshanetska, ‘Legal Status of Individuals Whose Freedom is Limited Due to Non-International Armed Conflict’, 2016; N. Soroka, ‘International Legal Protection of Copyrighting within the Framework of the European Union’, 2016; O. Shevchenko-Bitenska, ‘Legal Mechanisms of the Council of Europe in the Field of Protecting Children from Violence’, 2015.

• 19 See T. Kivalova, T. Korotkyi & N. Hendel, ‘The Developments of Researches in the Field of International Law in Ukraine in 2012-2016’, Bulletin of the Southern Regional Center of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine, Vol. 10, 2017, pp. 140-141. (Розвиток досліджень у галузі міжнародного права в Україні в 2012-2016 рр. / Т. С. Ківалова, Т. Р. Короткий, Н. В. Хендель // Вісник Південного регіонального центру Національної академії правових наук України. – № 10, 2017. – С. 140-141).

• 20 I. Bekeshkina, T. Pechonchik & V. Yavorsky, What Ukrainians Know and Think of Human Rights: Baseline Study, Kyiv, UNDP Ukraine, 2017 (Що українці знають і думають про права людини: загальнонаціональне дослідження / [І. Бекешкіна, Т.Печончик, В.Яворський та ін.]; під заг. ред. Т. Печончик. – Київ, 2017. – 308 с. Available at: www.ua.undp.org/content/dam/ukraine/docs/DG/Ombudsman’s%20project/HumanRightsUa.pdf (last accessed 28 March 2018)).

• 21 UNDP Ukraine, ‘What Ukrainians Know and Think of Human Rights: UNDP in Ukraine Launches Human Rights Baseline Study, 13 July 2017, available at: www.ua.undp.org/content/ukraine/en/home/presscenter/articles/2017/07/13/what-ukrainians-know-and-think-of-human-rights-undp-in-ukraine-launches-human-rights-baseline-study-.html (last accessed 28 March 2018).

• 22 UHHRU Publications, available at: http://helsinki.org.ua/en/publications/ (last accessed 28 March 2018).

• 23 A. Buschenko (Ed.), 2016 Annual Report, Kyiv, Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union, 2017.

• 24 Council of Europe, ‘Strengthening the Human Rights Protection of Internally Displaced Persons in Ukraine’, Project Publications, available at: www.coe.int/en/web/kyiv/idps#{“19353888”:[0]} (last accessed 28 March 2018).

• 25 Council of Europe, Enhancing the National Legal Framework in Ukraine for Protecting the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons, June 2016, available at: https://rm.coe.int/16806a49d7 (last visited 28 March 2018).

• 26 Publications on human rights protection within ‘Safeguarding Human Rights through Courts’ Project. Available at: www.osce.org/project-coordinator-in-ukraine/235331 (last accessed 28 March 2018).

• 27 UN Reports on Human Rights Situation in Ukraine, available at: www.un.org.ua/en/publications-and-reports/un-in-ukraine-publications/3592-un-reports-on-human-rights-situation-in-ukraine (last accessed 28 March 2018).