*Tribunal (from the Latin tribunal - promotion for a magistrate, "chair") is the name of special courts in some countries (e.g., administrative, constitutional, military) or special international judicial bodies. In Ukraine, there were military tribunals, which were renamed military courts in 1993 and liquidated in 2010. Military courts (tribunals) are a separate legal system that applies to military personnel and, in some cases, to civilians whose activities are closely related to the armed forces. During the 10 years of war, military justice has not been restored. Military courts successfully operate in almost 40 countries, including: Great Britain, the United States, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Sweden, Canada, Spain, Israel, and Poland.
Introduction
Guided by the Constitution of Ukraine, namely Article 1, which states that Ukraine is a sovereign and independent, democratic, social, legal state;
Article 3, which states that a person, his or her life and health, honor and dignity, inviolability and security are recognized in Ukraine as the highest social value, and that the establishment and maintenance of human rights and freedoms is the main duty of the state;
Article 5 that the people are the bearer of sovereignty and the only source of power in Ukraine, the people exercise power directly and through state authorities and local self-government bodies, and no one may usurp state power;
Article 8 stipulates that the principle of the rule of law is recognized and operates in Ukraine, the Constitution of Ukraine has the highest legal force, laws and other regulatory legal acts are adopted on the basis of the Constitution of Ukraine and must comply with it, the norms of the Constitution of Ukraine are norms of direct effect, and recourse to court to protect constitutional rights and freedoms of a person and citizen directly on the basis of the Constitution of Ukraine is guaranteed;
Article 55 stipulates that everyone has the right, after exhausting all national legal remedies, to seek protection of his or her rights and freedoms from the relevant international judicial institutions or from the relevant bodies of international organizations of which Ukraine is a member or participant.
Everyone has the right to protect his or her rights and freedoms from violations and unlawful encroachments by any means not prohibited by law.
Article 64 stipulates that constitutional rights and freedoms of a person and citizen may not be restricted, except as provided by the Constitution of Ukraine, in the conditions of martial law or a state of emergency, certain restrictions on rights and freedoms may be established, specifying the duration of these restrictions, and the rights and freedoms provided for in Articles 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 40, 47, 51, 52, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63 of this Constitution may not be restricted.
Call for an open investigation, trial and punishment for violations of the rights and freedoms of persons liable for military service, military personnel, veterans, families of the dead, missing, captured defenders, and imprisoned military personnel
The NGO Ukrainian Film Institute calls on the society, civic, human rights organizations and state authorities to openly and comprehensively investigate, prosecute and punish, in accordance with the laws of Ukraine, any individuals, officials of any local, municipal and state organizations and authorities of Ukraine, military structures that have violated the constitutional rights and freedoms of persons liable for military service, military personnel, veterans, families of the dead, missing, captured military personnel, as well as military prisoners during the Anti-Terrorist Operation in eastern Ukraine (2014-2018), the Joint Forces Operation (2018-2022) and during Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and martial law throughout Ukraine (since February 24, 2022).
Investigations and proceedings in courts of all instances should be without statute of limitations
Realizing that it will take a long time to investigate some criminal offenses and punish the perpetrators due to possible resistance of suspects, fear of witnesses and victims, temporary lack of evidence, overload of investigative bodies and courts in considering such cases, we call on civil society to fight for that the laws of Ukraine be amended to ensure that crimes against the constitutional rights and freedoms of persons liable for military service, military personnel, veterans, families of the dead, missing, captured defenders, and imprisoned military personnel are investigated and tried in courts of any instance without a statute of limitations.
Protection of rights and freedoms in relevant international judicial institutions and international organizations
We call for the protection of the rights and freedoms of persons liable for military service, military personnel, veterans, families of the fallen, missing, captured defenders, and imprisoned military personnel to be sought from the relevant international judicial institutions or the relevant bodies of international organizations of which Ukraine is a member or participant after exhausting all national legal remedies.
An open and comprehensive investigation, trial, verdict and punishment should address the following:
1. Violation of the rights and freedoms of persons liable for military service during mobilization activities
Violation of the rights and freedoms of persons liable for military service during mobilization activities on the territory of Ukraine: illegal, without a court decision, restriction of liberty during the issuance of draft notices, clarification of personal data in territorial centers for recruitment and social support (TCR and SS) and military medical commissions (MMC); torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of persons liable for military service; actions or omissions by members of the MMC, medical and social examination commission (MSEC), TCR and SS that led to the mobilization of persons unfit for military service or certain types of service, as well as any other violations and restrictions of rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution during and after martial law.
2. Violation of the rights and freedoms of military personnel
Violation of the rights and freedoms of servicemen during the ATO, JFO and Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine: Torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of servicemen by their comrades or commanders, arbitrary or reckless deprivation of life of some servicemen by others, inaction of senior commanders regarding the facts of such crimes; illegal restriction of the freedom of servicemen; lack of or refusal to provide independent professional legal assistance to servicemen under investigation or trial; absence or refusal to provide medical care to servicemen, actions or inaction of medical personnel of any health care facilities that led to deterioration or disability of servicemen, improper rehabilitation and problems with prosthetics; forcing to comply with clearly criminal orders or instructions, as well as punishment for refusal to comply with them; systematic actions or omissions by the command to delay, incompletely provide or not provide financial and logistical support to servicemen; actions or omissions by the MMC, MSEC, representatives of any other medical institutions whose decisions forced servicemen with injuries or illnesses incompatible with military service to continue to serve in the Armed Forces and other units; keeping in an indefinite status without adequate financial and logistical support limitedly fit servicemen who, due to health problems, cannot fulfill combat orders, as well as any other violations and restrictions of the rights and freedoms of servicemen guaranteed by the Constitution during and after martial law.
3. Violation of veterans' rights
Violation of the rights of veterans of the ATO, JFO and the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war: actions or omissions of representatives of any state bodies and military structures that prevent demobilized servicemen from obtaining the status of a veteran and/or combatant, receiving proper financial support for the entire period of service; refusal to provide medical care and/or proper treatment; refusal or obstruction, delay in establishing a valid diagnosis in the military medical commission or the medical social examination commission; refusal or obstruction in establishing a veteran's disability; any discrimination against veterans in society, as well as any other violations and restrictions on the rights of veterans.
4. Violation of the rights of families and relatives of fallen defenders, missing and captured servicemen
Violation of the rights of families and relatives of fallen defenders, missing and captured servicemen of the ATO, JFO and the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war: unjustified concealment of information about the details of the death, disappearance, or capture of servicemen; refusal or delay in granting the status of a family of a fallen defender to those relatives who are eligible; violation of the right to receive a one-time financial assistance to the families of fallen defenders, as well as any other violations and restrictions on the rights of families and relatives of fallen defenders, missing or captured servicemen guaranteed by the Constitution during and after martial law.
5. Violation of the rights and freedoms of persons liable for military service and military personnel suspected of committing a crime and detained, as well as those already serving a sentence in prison
Violations of the rights and freedoms of persons liable for military service and military personnel suspected of committing a crime and detained, as well as those already serving a sentence in prison: Torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of prisoners; lack of or restricted access to medical care and/or treatment; loss of health or disability in custody; lack of or denial of independent professional legal assistance, representation of the prisoner's interests during the investigation and in court; unmotivated delay in the investigation and detention of a suspect; lack of proper sanitary and hygienic conditions for detainees, as well as any other violations and restrictions on the rights and freedoms of prisoners guaranteed by the Constitution during and after martial law.
Creating a media human rights campaign
To help achieve these goals and ensure fairness in defending the rights and freedoms of persons liable for military service, military personnel, veterans, families of the fallen, missing, captured defenders, and imprisoned servicemen, the Ukrainian Film Institute announces the creation of a media human rights campaign, which will include:
1. To produce a full-length documentary for Ukrainian and international audiences about the situation in Ukraine with violations of the rights and freedoms of Ukrainian conscripts, servicemen, veterans, families of the dead, missing, captured defenders, and imprisoned soldiers;
2. To produce a documentary series for Ukrainian and international audiences about the situation in Ukraine with violations of the rights and freedoms of Ukrainian conscripts, military personnel, veterans, families of the dead, missing, captured defenders, and imprisoned military personnel, which will cover the most high-profile cases.
3. To create a multimedia Internet platform with a presentation in various social networks on the current situation with violations of the rights and freedoms of Ukrainian persons liable for military service, military personnel, veterans, families of the dead, missing, captured defenders, and imprisoned military personnel;
to assist persons liable for military service, military personnel, veterans, families of fallen, missing, captured defenders, and imprisoned military personnel in finding lawyers, attorneys, and human rights organizations, including foreign ones, to defend their rights and freedoms;
to conduct human rights campaigns to raise public awareness of the protection of their constitutional rights and freedoms.
4. To create an archive of cases of violation and protection of the rights and freedoms of Ukrainian persons liable for military service, military personnel, veterans, families of the dead, missing, captured defenders, and imprisoned military personnel, for the purpose of their further study in the future by all those who are concerned or interested: lawyers, attorneys, journalists, filmmakers, military historians and other scholars in Ukraine and abroad.
5. Due to the risk of losing a large amount of information irrevocably, an open database of text, visual, audio and audiovisual messages in any social networks about the Russian-Ukrainian war and violations of the rights and freedoms of Ukrainian conscripts, servicemen, veterans, families of the dead, missing, captured defenders, as well as imprisoned servicemen, will be created to preserve this array of user-generated information for its further analysis, systematization, and use in investigations.
6. Launching international research on the sociology of mobilization of persons liable for military service in Ukraine and military sociology during the Russian-Ukrainian war to apply the knowledge and results in the future to improve the system of mobilization and interaction of the Armed Forces of Ukraine as a social group.
Invitation to cooperation
We invite all concerned servicemen, veterans, citizens, lawyers, advocates, human rights defenders, human rights and other civil society organizations, journalists, filmmakers, scientists, entrepreneurs, and businesses to join the Tribunal Manifesto to jointly achieve our goals.
Let us remember that the constitutional rights and freedoms of citizens must be defended in the same way as the statehood, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.
The Ukrainian Film Institute