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Title: Ukraine Human Rights Practices, 1995
Author: U.S. Department of State
Date: March 1996
UKRAINE
Over the past year, Ukraine continued to make progress in the
development of a democratic society based on the rule of law. A
president and parliament elected for 4-year terms share responsibility
for governance. In practice, the Presidency has become stronger than
the Parliament in the 4 years of independence, and the division of power
has become the most contested issue in drafting a new constitution.
Judges are beginning to assert their independence and their right to be
free from improper interference, but the court system remains woefully
underfunded, understaffed, and overworked.
Ukraine took steps toward replacing the anachronistic 1978 Constitution
of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic. The document was partly
superseded by a June 8 constitutional accord between President Leonid
Kuchma and Parliament (Rada) that increased the President's control over
cabinet appointments and executive branch operations, but it remains in
force pending adoption of a new constitution. Under the constitutional
accord, the President can appoint executive branch officials without
Rada confirmation. Both major branches of government committed
themselves to presenting a new constitution to the voters by the spring
of 1996. Government and parliamentary leaders heralded the agreement as
a demonstration of their determination to resolve internal differences
by democratic, peaceful means.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), the Ministry of Internal Affairs
(MVS), and the Ministry of Defense all have equal status and report to
the President through the Cabinet. The chairmen of these institutions
sit on the Cabinet of Ministers and simultaneously chair the Cabinet's
executive committees responsible for each of their ministries. The
armed forces have remained largely outside of politics. Since mid-1994,
Ukraine has had a civilian Defense Minister. The SBU has the power to
affect the political process through criminal investigations against
politicians and influential businessmen. Members of the security forces
committed human rights abuses.
The economy is in the midst of a painful transition from rigid central
planning to a market-based system. According to official statistics
about half of the workforce is formally employed in manufacturing, with
the balance divided between services and agriculture, though in reality
many industrial enterprises have reduced or stopped production, forcing
many out of work. Exports are diversified and include metals,
chemicals, sugar, and semi-finished goods. Annual per capita income is
approximately $1,200. President Kuchma's economic reform program,
initiated in the fall of 1994, achieved partial macroeconomic
stabilization. Hyperinflation was curtailed, and the private sector
grew impressively, even if this growth was not fully reflected in
official government statistics. The private sector now represents a
substantial portion of the economy. However, Ukraine remains a country
in economic crisis. Industrial output continued to decline, which led
to pressure to slow the reform process and relax the government's tight
fiscal policy.
Overall, Ukraine continued to make significant progress toward building
a law-based civil society. Reports of human rights violations, already
low in 1994, decreased in 1995. However, problems remain in the
unreformed legal and prison systems, occasional government attempts to
control the press, beatings by police and prison officials, limits on
freedom of association, restrictions on foreign religious organizations,
societal anti-Semitism, some discrimination against women, and ethnic
tensions in the Crimea. While progress has been made toward ensuring
the independence of the judiciary, the Soviet tradition of political
interference in judicial decisions continues to affect the judicial
process.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom
from:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
There were no known political killings by government agents, but the
line between politically motivated killing and criminal activities has
become difficult to distinguish. The Government's inability to stem the
economic decline and check the growth of violent, organized criminal
activity had major repercussions. Politicians increasingly became the
victims--whether through kidnapings or killings--of organized criminal
groups, aided sometimes, either actively or passively, by corrupt
officials. The number of contract killings, often targeted against
managers of state-owned enterprises, increased in 1995. In a 2-month
period three directors of metallurgy plants were assassinated. No
suspects have been identified. Politicians were also targeted because
of their influence over state-owned enterprises.
The pervasiveness of organized crime and its undermining of governmental
authority was particularly serious in the Crimean peninsula. The
central Government in Kiev lacks institutional control and Crimean
authorities are widely alleged to be compromised by ties to organized
criminal elements. In one case, "mafia" thugs beat to death two Crimean
Tatar market vendors, sparking rioting and a confrontation between
Tatars and Ministry of Internal Affairs troops, during which two more
Tatars were killed. No suspects were prosecuted.
Combating the growth of organized crime and official corruption is a key
government objective. A presidential commission, headed by a deputy
prime minister, coordinates the activities of law-enforcement agencies.
The Government is also considering the creation of a National Bureau of
Investigation to handle the investigation and prosecution of high-
profile cases. There have also been signs of internal reform designed
to root out corruption. The top levels of the Ministry of Internal
Affairs have been purged and, according to the Ministry, 2,400 police
officers were punished for infractions of the law or regulations. After
being convicted of crimes, 419 police officers were imprisoned--a
significant increase over last year.
b. Disappearance
There were no reports of politically motivated disappearances.
The January 1994 disappearance of Mikhaylo Boychyshyn, a prominent
leader of the Popular Movement of Ukraine (RUKH), remains unsolved.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment
The Constitution prohibits torture; however, police and prison officials
regularly beat detainees and prisoners. There is no effective mechanism
for registering complaints about mistreatment or for obtaining redress.
The Government made no known efforts during the year to end the practice
or to punish officials who committed such abuses.
Conditions of pretrial detention routinely fail to meet basic human
rights standards. Inmates are sometimes held in "investigative
isolation" for extended periods and subject to intimidation and
mistreatment by jail guards. Overcrowding is common in blocks for
prisoners who have been charged with a crime and are awaiting trial or
are in investigative detention.
Prison conditions for convicted inmates appear to comply fully with
minimum international standards and the Government permits visits by
human rights monitors.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
The law provides that police authorities may detain a person suspected
of a crime for 3 days without a warrant. A prosecutor must issue an
arrest order if the period of detention exceeds 3 days. The maximum
period of detention after charges have been filed is 1 1/2 years. The
law permits citizens to appeal the legality of an arrest either to the
court or to the prosecutor. As citizens gain a better understanding of
their rights under a 1992 law, they are increasingly filing appeals with
the courts. The authorities have dismissed some prosecutors for not
adhering to legal guidelines.
A law in effect from July 1994 through June 1995, permitted "preventive"
detention of persons for up to 30 days without the filing of charges.
The measure was instituted as a means to combat organized crime.
According to data obtained by the Rada Commission on Law and Order,
however, a majority of the people detained under the decree were never
charged and only 5 percent were members of organized crime groups. The
Rada refused the President's request to extend the terms of the decree.
By law, a judge must initiate a trial within 3 weeks from the time
charges are filed. But this limit is not always met by the overloaded
court system, where months may pass before a defendant is finally
brought to court. According to official statistics for the first
quarter of 1995, out of 9,784 persons detained, 554 were released
without charges being filed. By law, detainees are permitted access to
a defense attorney, who is provided without charge to the indigent, from
the moment of detention or the filing of charges, whichever comes first.
However, it has been credibly alleged that individuals held under
preventive detention frequently have been denied timely access to
counsel. In addition, there are insufficient numbers of defense
attorneys to protect suspects from unlawful, interminable imprisonment
and deplorable conditions. Furthermore, there is no public defender
system for indigents to replace the previous method of providing
attorneys from the state system. There is no attorney-client privilege.
The prisoner may talk to a lawyer only in the presence of the person who
made the arrest. To protect the defendant, each investigative file must
contain a document signed by the defendant and his counsel attesting
that the defendant's rights were explained to him in the presence of an
attorney. An appeals court may dismiss a conviction or order a new
trial if this document is missing. As defendants became aware of their
rights, they increasingly insisted on observance of these procedures.
However, many still were not aware, and hence did not take advantage, of
these procedures. Defense attorneys' fees also were prohibitively
expensive for many defendants.
Exile as a punishment no longer exists in the law and the Government
observes this prohibition.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The criminal justice system generally follows the former Soviet model.
Several modifications have been made, including a December 1991 law
modifying the system of prosecution and a June 1992 law, not yet
implemented, authorizing the creation of a constitutional court. The
leadership of both the executive and legislative branches has formally
supported the establishment of an independent judiciary. However, the
judiciary remains subject to outside pressures and further major
structural reforms are required. Ambitious judicial reform proposals
have been discussed at various times since independence. Further
consideration of these reforms, however, is on hold pending completion
of a new constitution.
Under the constitutional accord, the President and the Rada pledged to
appoint a constitutional court to interpret the ever-growing body of law
and mediate disputes between the executive and legislative branches. By
year's end (6 months after the accord was signed), the court had still
not been appointed, perpetuating the disequilibrium in the balance of
powers. The court's absence was felt immediately following the
completion of the constitutional accord when the Rada and the President
came into conflict over the rules for dismissing the Prosecutor General.
The court system is divided into courts of general jurisdiction and
arbitration, or commercial, courts. The courts of general jurisdiction
are divided into criminal and civil sections. The courts are organized
on three levels: rayon courts (district, also known as people's
courts); oblast (regional) courts; and the Supreme Court. Cases are
decided by judges who sit singly, or in groups of three for more serious
cases. All may act as the court of first instance depending on the
nature and seriousness of the crime. A case heard in the first instance
by the Supreme Court, therefore, may not be appealed or reviewed. There
are no clear rules to determine which court first hears a case. As a
rule, military tribunals handle cases involving military personnel only.
Prosecutors, like the courts, are organized into offices at the rayon,
oblast, and republic levels. They are ultimately responsible to the
Prosecutor General, appointed by the Rada and President. Prosecutors
and defense attorneys by law have equal status before the courts. In
practice, however, prosecutors still are very influential because court
proceedings are not conducted in an adversarial manner. The prosecutor
directs all investigations of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the
SBU, or he may use the investigative resources of his office.
Oblast and Supreme Court judges may not be members of political parties
and must have at least 5 years of legal experience. The Rada selects
judges on the basis of recommendations from the Ministry of Justice,
based in part on examination results. The Prosecutor General and his
deputy are nominated by the President and confirmed by the Rada.
Regional and district prosecutors are appointed by the Prosecutor
General. Many current judges and prosecutors were appointed in Soviet
times when political influence pervaded the criminal justice system. It
is unclear how free the judiciary is from influence and intimidation by
the executive branch of government.
Particularly at the regional level, judges, prosecutors, and other court
officials appear to remain closely attuned to local government
interests. Organized crime elements also have influenced court
decisions.
While the defendant is presumed innocent, conviction rates have not
changed from the Soviet era. Nearly 99 percent of completed cases
result in convictions. Judges frequently send cases unlikely to end in
convictions back to the prosecutor for "additional investigation." Such
cases may then be dropped or closed, occasionally without informing the
court or the defendant. It is commonly believed that suspects
frequently bribe court officials to drop charges before cases go to
trial. Consequently, conviction rates are a somewhat misleading
statistic.
There were no reports of political prisoners. Lawyers for former
parliamentary aide Viktor Bozhenar, arrested in March, and former member
of Parliament Leopold Taburianskiy, arrested in August (both on
corruption charges), alleged that their clients were victims of
political repression.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
Correspondence
Search warrants issued by prosecutors, not judges, are required and
utilized in most cases. The SBU may, however, conduct intrusive
surveillance and searches without a warrant on national security
grounds. Human rights observers report receiving no complaints of
invasion of privacy by the SBU. According to the SBU charter, persons
subject to surveillance must be informed after a month's time. The
Prosecutor General's office has oversight responsibility over the SBU,
but the extent to which it utilizes that authority to monitor SBU
activities and to curb excesses by security officials is unknown.
The remnants of Soviet control mechanisms survive in many guises.
Militia personnel have the right to stop vehicles arbitrarily and need
no probable cause to initiate extensive document checks and inspection
of all parts of the vehicle and its contents. This has become a great
source of and inducement to corruption in the militia: citizens who
often have committed no violation, or only a minor one, prefer to pay a
bribe to avoid time-consuming inspections.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
A 1991 law provides for freedom of speech and the print media.
Criticism of the Government is tolerated. The broadcast media remain
under state ownership and are managed by the State
Committee on Television and Radio (Derzhteleradio). Under current
legislation, private and foreign companies are entitled to establish and
operate transmission facilities, provided that they obtain a license
from the National Council on Television and Radio. Russian state
television (the "Ostankino" channel) continues to broadcast on Ukraine's
airwaves under an agreement with Derzhteleradio. The National Council
and Derzhteleradio also permit private media companies access to the
airwaves under contract and have agreed in principle to refrain from
influencing programming content. In practice, however, isolated cases
of censorship and attempted censorship of reporting on internal
political developments have occurred.
The print media demonstrate a tendency towards self-censorship on
matters sensitive to the Government. The executive branch, through the
Ministry of Press and Information, subsidizes the operations of some
large-circulation publications. Independent newspapers have also been
established which are free to function on a purely commercial basis.
There are concerns, however, that the dependence of commercial
structures on government patronage inhibits their criticism of the
Government. At the local and regional levels, editorial independence is
even more circumscribed by these factors. Foreign-owned newspapers are
permitted.
In November 1994, President Kuchma abolished a government committee for
the protection of state secrets that had enjoyed broadly defined powers
over all media. The committee was absorbed into the Ministry of Press
and Information, where it is now the "Main Department for the Protection
of State Secrets." According to journalists, this department has not
interfered with the practice of their craft. A local court, however,
ordered the closure of the newspaper Oppositsiya that had published
scatological and sexual caricatures of the President and members of his
staff. Officials involved with the case claimed the presidential
administration initiated the action and prescribed the penalty.
Oppositsiya was the first newspaper to be forced to close in Ukraine
since independence.
Reporting on organized crime and its connections with the Government is
becoming increasingly bold, particularly with regard to crime.
Reporting on this topic is not risk free and journalists contend that
they have been subject to threats--including the threat of arrest--for
aggressively reporting on official corruption.
While the major universities are state-owned, they now operate
ostensibly under full autonomy. Academic freedom within universities,
however, is an underdeveloped and poorly understood concept. University
administrators are traditionally conservative establishment figures in
Ukraine and possess the power to silence professors with whom they
disagree by denying the possibility to publish or more directly by
withholding pay or housing benefits. This atmosphere tends to limit the
free spirit of inquiry. Several private and religiously affiliated
universities have been founded (or refounded) in Ukraine since
independence, and all operate without any reported interference or
harassment by the State.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
The Law on Public Assembly of 1989 stipulates that organizations must
apply for permission to the respective local administration 10 days
before a planned demonstration. Participants in demonstrations are
prohibited by law from instigating violence or ethnic conflict and from
calling for the violent overthrow of the constitutional order.
Demonstrations may not interfere with traffic, take place near the Rada
when it is in session, or otherwise hinder public order. In Kiev
officials routinely granted permits, unlicensed demonstrations were
common, and occurred without police interference, even at the Rada when
it was in session.
On July 18, elite MVS troops used excessive force in breaking up a
funeral ceremony for the patriarch of one of the competing Orthodox
churches. Several dozen people, including pensioners, were injured
during the incident. President Kuchma expressed "great regret" for the
violence, and the Minister of Internal Affairs suspended three high-
ranking officers involved in the incident and initiated a government
inquiry. President Kuchma condemned the conduct of the troops (see
Section 2.c.).
The 1992 law on public organizations prohibits the State from financing
political parties and other public organizations. According to the law,
political parties may not receive funds from abroad or maintain accounts
in foreign banks. The law prohibits the establishment of organizations
advocating the violent overthrow of the Government and constitutional
order or undermining Ukraine's state security by collaborating with
other states. It bars political parties from having administrative or
organizational structures abroad. The law prohibits police authorities,
members of the armed forces, and executive branch officials from joining
political parties, but many such persons nonetheless publicly associate
themselves with specific parties.
In late 1994, an ultra-nationalist organization, the Ukrainian National
Assembly (UNA), after repeated unsuccessful attempts was registered by
the Ministry of Justice as a political party. In the wake of
increasingly provocative behavior by UNA members, culminating in a
violent clash with police during the Patriarch's funeral, the Justice
Ministry revoked the UNA's registration. The Ministry contended that
the UNA had provided false information in its original application for
registration and had subsequently advocated fascism, violence, ethnic
intolerance, and the forcible overthrow of the constitutional order. In
addition, the group was accused of criminal activities including
assault, illegal possession of firearms, paramilitary training, and
involvement in foreign wars (in Chechnya and Abkhazia). The Ministry
also concluded that the UNA was indistinguishable from its paramilitary
wing, UNSO (Ukrainian People's Self-Defense), which does not enjoy legal
status. Under the law, political parties may be dissolved only by a
court decision. The Ministry has said that UNA has been deregistered
not dissolved, and is free to appeal the decision in court.
Freedom of association is circumscribed by an onerous registration
requirement that lends itself to abuse and bureaucratic manipulation.
Groups must be registered with the Government to pursue almost any
purpose, whether commercial, political, or philanthropic. The
Ministries of Justice, Economy, and Foreign Economic Relations, and the
Councils on Religion and Broadcasting, among others, all have
registration functions which they have used at one time or another to
prevent citizens from exercising their right of free association for
purposes of which the Government does not approve.
Not being registered has several important disadvantages, for example,
unregistered groups are prohibited from having bank accounts, acquiring
property, or entering into contracts. Furthermore, the registration law
gives the Government an unlimited right to inspect the activities of all
registered groups. According to this law, a registered group must: (1)
keep the Government apprised of all its activities, including
notification of any meetings; (2) make its meetings open to all persons
at all times, regardless of whether or not they are members; and (3)
upon request, present its registration documents to any government
official, including the prosecutor's office, and be ready to prove that
it is in compliance with the purposes of the group as set out in its
registration documents. A change in a group's purposes necessitates
reregistration. A registered group may not duplicate any function or
service that the Government is supposed to provide. For example, human
rights lawyers who wish to represent prisoners are prohibited from
establishing an association to do so, according to the Ministry of
Justice, because the Government is supposed to provide lawyers for the
accused.
In addition, the registration law has been used to prevent the issuance
of visas to foreign missionaries (see Section 2.c.). Some human rights
groups, despite having requested and been denied registration,
nevertheless operate, but always with the risk of being prosecuted.
c. Freedom of Religion
There is no official state religion. The 1991 Law on Freedom of
Conscience and Religion provides for the separation of church and state
and permits religious organizations to establish places of worship and
train clergy. Religious organizations are required to register with
local authorities and with the Government's Council for Religious
Affairs, a process that generally lasts about 1 month. The State has
not interfered with the registration of minority religions requested by
Ukrainian citizens.
The ongoing dispute among three competing churches claiming the mantle
"Ukrainian Orthodox Church" was aggravated in July because of a
controversy over where to bury the deceased patriarch of one of the
churches, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Kiev Patriarchy. Following the
patriarch's funeral, police attacked some mourners after an attempt was
made to inter the patriarch in the pavement outside St. Sophia's
Cathedral, a state-owned museum contested among the three Orthodox
churches. The Kiev Patriarchy accused the Government of favoring the
rival Moscow Patriarchy, while the Government accused the Kiev
Patriarchy of inviting participation in the funeral by UNA-UNSO
activists in paramilitary uniforms. Initial reports indicated that UNA-
UNSO members threw rocks and paving stones at the police in front of St.
Sophia's, but it was clear (as President Kuchma himself stated) that the
police used excessive and unjustified force to disperse the gathering.
Subsequently, President Kuchma reaffirmed Ukraine's commitment to
religious tolerance, proclaimed the state's neutrality in
interconfessional disputes (which center largely on property and
politics, not canonical differences) and called on all sides to settle
their disagreements in a civilized fashion.
An amendment of the 1991 law, passed by the Rada on December 23, 1993,
has been used to restrict the activities of nonnative religious
organizations. It requires that members of the clergy, religious
preachers, teachers, other representatives of foreign organizations who
are foreign citizens and come to visit temporarily in Ukraine may preach
religious doctrines, administer religious ordinances, or practice other
canonical activities "only in those religious organizations which
invited them to Ukraine and with official approval of the governmental
body that registered the statutes and the articles of the pertinent
religious organization."
Citing a desire to preserve Ukrainian culture, some government officials
have argued that restrictions on the activities of foreign religious
organizations are appropriate. In late 1994, the Government disbanded
the Council on Religious Affairs, which had been frequently cited as
obstructionist, and transferred its functions to the Ministry for
Nationalities, Migration and Religious Denominations. Nonetheless, the
treatment of foreign-based religious organizations still appears to be
negatively prejudiced. Local governments, including in the capital city
of Kiev, have set up bureaucratic roadblocks to the issuance of visas to
non-Ukrainian Mormon missionaries wishing to proselytize in Ukraine.
City officials also prevented Seventh-Day Adventists from holding a
convention for their coreligionists. Many suspect that the Ukrainian
Orthodox Church exerts influence on government behavior towards foreign
religious organizations.
On December 14, a Kiev court sentenced the leaders of the "White
Brotherhood" religious cult to 7 years in prison for their involvement
in the 1993 occupation of St. Sophia's cathedral in Kiev (see 1993
report). Among the charges they were convicted of was "practice of a
nonregistered religion".
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel,
Emigration, and Repatriation
Freedom of movement within the country is not restricted by law, but the
requirements to register at the workplace and place of residence
determine eligibility for social benefits. People who move to other
regions for work in the private economy, for instance, may not be
eligible for registration and therefore may be denied formal access to
free medical care and other services guaranteed by the State.
While Ukraine continues to assure the right of return for all those it
considers citizens, in practice this assurance does not include the
right of return for all Ukrainian "nationals." The ambiguity of
Ukraine's citizenship law regarding the acquisition of Ukrainian
citizenship allows authorities to exclude undesirable nationals from
repatriation. Persons born in Ukraine and living in Ukraine at the time
of independence are considered citizens. Dual citizenship is not
recognized.
Ukrainians who wish to travel abroad are able to do so freely. Exit
visas are not required. On rare occasions, the Government may deny
passports to individuals with access to state secrets, but a denial can
be appealed. However, the Government has not supported a foreign-funded
program to facilitate the travel of some emigrants who qualify for
resettlement abroad as refugees.
During the first years of independence, the Government supported an
extensive assistance program for the resettlement of returnees. It
provided resources for the return not only of Ukrainians living in
Russia and elsewhere but also of Tatars to Crimea and of Volga Germans
to southern Ukraine. By the end of 1995, some 260,000 Crimean Tatars
had returned from exile to the peninsula, mainly from Central Asia. The
Crimean Tatar leadership has complained that their community has not
received adequate assistance in resettling and that an onerous process
of acquiring citizenship has excluded many Crimean Tatars from
participating in elections and from the right to take part in
privatization of land and state assets (see Section 5).
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to
Change Their Government
This right was exercised in 1994, when citizens elected a new President,
Leonid Kuchma, over the incumbent, Leonid Kravchuk, and elected a new
Parliament representing a wide range of parties and ideologies. Because
the current election law requires a minimum of 50 percent voter turnout
for elections to be valid, following the December 10 elections, 28 seats
out of 450 remained unfilled. A new election law now under
consideration would relax this requirement for the next parliamentary
elections, currently scheduled for 1998.
The President, elected for a 4-year term, nominates the Prime Minister
and members of the Cabinet. Day-to-day government operations are the
responsibility of the Prime Minister and the Cabinet of Ministers.
Women are well represented in politics and at the levels of local and
oblast governments. However, they are less well represented at the
higher levels of government. There were 16 women in Parliament at
year's end although some seats had not been filled yet. One woman has
cabinet rank. The provincial governors are all men.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights
The Government allowed local and international human rights groups to
operate freely although some groups have been denied formal government
registration, making it harder for them to obtain accreditation to
official events and more difficult to register bank accounts and other
financial aspects of their organization. The Union of Councils for
Soviet Jewry, for example, has an active office in Kiev, staffed with
local human rights monitors. The Government also welcomed visits by
foreign human rights organizations.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion, Disability,
Language, or Social Status
The Constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, sex, and
other grounds. The Government has not taken steps to effectively
enforce prohibitions on discrimination on the basis of race, sex, and
other grounds. The Lviv newspaper For a Free Ukraine routinely
publishes anti-Semitic diatribes but has not been prosecuted under the
law forbidding the sowing of interethnic hatred. Prosecutions for
sexual harassment or discrimination are unheard of. Human rights
experts also note that the authorities frequent harassment of dark-
skinned young men is based on stereotypes that people from the Caucusus
are involved in criminal activity.
Women
While comprehensive information measuring the extent of violence against
women is not readily available, survey results suggest the problem is
pervasive. A poll of 600 women conducted by a women's organization in
Kharkiv indicated that 10 to 15 percent had been raped and over 25
percent subjected to physical abuse over the course of their lifetimes.
Separate statistics on prosecutions for wife beating or on average
sentences are not available. When violence occurs, government officials
have acknowledged the authorities often exert pressure on women to drop
charges against their husbands to preserve the family. The low official
incidence of reported crimes against women is mirrored by the lack of
media attention to the subject and the low priority that most women's
groups place on the issue.
Labor law provides for equal rights for men and women, including equal
pay for equal work, a principle that is generally followed. However,
women are much more likely to be laid off than men, and it is estimated
that women represent 90 percent of all new unemployment. Moreover, a
glass ceiling has prevented women from attaining top managerial
positions in government, state and private industry. Many women,
however, are taking advantage of the growing opportunities in the
private sector to establish small businesses. Educational opportunities
for women have generally been equal to those enjoyed by men and they
remain so.
Children
The Government is publicly committed to the defense of children's
rights. Because of the deepening economic crisis, however, it has taken
few specific steps to further a children's rights agenda. There is no
pattern of familial or societal abuse of children.
People with Disabilities
The law prohibits discrimination based on disability, but, especially
with the economic crisis, the Government has no programs targeted at
increasing opportunities for the disabled. The law requires public
facilities for the disabled, but implementation is poor.
Religious Minorities
Jews, the second largest minority in the country, have expanded
opportunities to pursue their religious and cultural activities, but
anti-Semitic incidents continue to occur. The national Government has
protected the rights of the Jewish community and speaks out against
anti-Semitism. However, nongovernmental manifestations of anti-Semitism
continue, exemplified by the growth of UNA/UNSO, an ultra-nationalist
extremist group which in March organized a rally in Lviv protesting the
activities of the "Jewish mafia." A threatening letter in the name of
UNSO was later sent to Lviv Jews warning them to quit Ukraine or face
violent reprisals. Anti-Semitic articles continue to appear in some
local newspapers, especially in western Ukraine and Kharkiv. Jewish
cemeteries have been desecrated. After refusing for several years, the
Lviv Oblast authorities granted a request by the local Jewish community
to erect a monument at the site of a World War II German concentration
camp. The Government made a major effort to ensure that pilgrims of the
Bratslav Hasidic Jewish sect were able to visit the tomb of their
founding rabbi in the city of Uman on the occasion of the Jewish new
year.
National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities
With some important exceptions, there are only isolated cases of ethnic
discrimination in Ukraine. The 1991 Law on National Minorities played
an instrumental role in preventing ethnic strife by allowing individual
citizens to use their respective national languages in conducting
personal business and by allowing minority groups to establish their own
schools. Russian speakers, who predominate in eastern Ukraine,
complained about the increased use of Ukrainian in schools and in the
media. They claimed that their children are disadvantaged when taking
academic entrance examinations since all applicants are required to take
a Ukrainian-language test. Many regional councils in eastern Ukraine
have conferred "official" status on the Russian language, although
Ukrainian remains the sole state language according to national
legislation.
There is no evidence of serious ethnic tension, with the exception of
two areas. In some parts of western Ukraine, the small Russian minority
and Jewish groups credibly accuse some local Ukrainian ultranationalists
of fostering ethnic hatred and printing anti-Semitic tracts. They also
charge that local authorities in western Ukraine have not taken action
against those who foment ethnic hatred. In Crimea, the Ukrainian and
Tatar minorities credibly complain of discrimination by the Russian
majority and are demanding that Ukrainian and the Crimean Tatar language
be given equal treatment to Russian. Interethnic tension in Crimea,
aggravated by pervasive organized crime problems, erupted into violence
in June, leaving four Tatars dead. The Crimean Government, pleading
insufficient funds, has refused requests from the Tatar community to
assist them in reestablishing their cultural heritage through Tatar-
language publications and educational institutions. The central
Government is working with OSCE on these issues.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
Soviet law, or pertinent parts of the Constitution, continue to regulate
the activities of trade unions. The 1992 law on citizens' organizations
(which includes trade unions) stipulates noninterference by public
authorities in the activities of these organizations, which have the
right to establish and join federations and to affiliate with
international organizations on a voluntary basis. In principle, all
workers and civil servants (including members of the armed forces) are
free to form unions. In practice, the Government discourages certain
categories of workers (e.g., nuclear power plant employees) from doing
so.
The successor to the Soviet trade unions, known as the Federation of
Trade Unions (FPU), has begun to work independently of the Government
and has been vocal in opposing draft legislation that would restrict the
right to strike. As during the Soviet era, most FPU affiliates follow
management's instructions. Enterprise managers are free to join the
FPU. The FPU has no official or legal relationship with any political
party.
Independent unions now provide an alternative to the official unions in
most sectors of the economy. Some, such as the Independent Miners'
Union of Ukraine (NPHU), and unions representing pilots, civil air
traffic controllers, locomotive engineers, and aviation ground crews
have formed an umbrella organization, the Free Trade Unions of Ukraine
(VPU). Other federations of independent unions are also being created.
The Law on Labor Conflict Resolution guarantees the right to strike to
all but members of the armed forces, civil, and security services, and
employees of "continuing process plants" (e.g., metallurgical
factories). The law prohibits strikes that "may infringe on the basic
needs of the population" (e.g., rail and air transportation). Strikes
based on political demands are also illegal. The Government has relied
on the courts to deal with strikes it considers illegal, and the courts
have not always ruled in favor of the Government.
There are no official restrictions on the right of unions to affiliate
with international trade union bodies; the NPHU is a member of the
International Miners' Union.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
The law on enterprises states that joint worker-management commissions
should resolve issues concerning wages, working conditions, and the
rights and duties of management at the enterprise level, a system that
is not clearly defined. Overlapping spheres of responsibility
frequently impede the collective bargaining process. The Government, in
agreement with trade unions, establishes wages in each industrial sector
and invites all unions to participate in the negotiations. The law on
labor conflict resolution set up another entity, the National Mediation
and Reconciliation Service, to mitigate labor-management disputes that
cannot be resolved at the enterprise level. The President appoints the
head of this service. It has not been active in the past year.
The manner in which the collective bargaining law is applied prejudices
the bargaining process against the independent trade unions and favors
the official unions (affiliates of the FPU). It provides for dues to be
taken from the pay of every worker in a collective enterprise and paid
to the official union. The union, on behalf of the enterprise,
administers the social welfare benefits (including huge pension benefit
funds) of workers paid by an enterprise.
Most workers are never informed that they are not obligated to join the
official union. Renouncing membership in the official union and joining
an independent union can be bureaucratically onerous and is typically
discouraged by management. The collective bargaining law prohibits
antiunion discrimination. Disputes under the law are supposed to be
resolved by the courts. There have been cases in which such disputes
have not been resolved in a fair and equitable manner.
There are no export processing zones.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
The Constitution prohibits compulsory labor, and it is not known to
exist.
d. Minimum Age for Employment of Children
The minimum employment age is 17. In certain nonhazardous industries,
however, enterprises may negotiate with the Government to hire employees
between 14 and 17 years of age, with the consent of one parent. School
attendance is compulsory to the age of 15, a regulation vigorously
enforced by the Ministry of Education.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
In 1992 the Government established a national minimum wage which, along
with pensions and other benefits, is supposed to be indexed to
inflation. In reality the minimum wage has not been changed and remains
at $.30 per month (60,000 coupons) although no employee actually earns
wages that low. The official poverty line is now $27 per month (4.1
million coupons) and it is estimated that some 50 percent of the
population now lives in poverty. Inflation was reduced significantly to
an annual rate of about 170 percent (down from around 500 percent in
1994).
The Labor Code provides for a maximum 40-hour workweek, a 24-hour day of
rest per week, and at least 15 days of paid vacation per year.
Stagnation in some industries (e.g., defense) significantly reduced the
workweek for some categories of workers.
The Constitution and other laws contain occupational safety and health
standards, but these are frequently ignored in practice. Lax safety
standards caused many serious mine accidents, resulting in 358 deaths in
1994. The Labor Ministry is currently rewriting the Mine Safety Law,
and the independent unions frequently agitate for tighter enforcement of
safety laws. In theory, workers have the legal right to remove
themselves from dangerous work situations without jeopardizing continued
employment. In reality, however, independent trade unionists report
that asserting this right would result in retaliation or perhaps
dismissal by management.
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[end of document]
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