Urgent debate of the Human Rights Council on the human rights situation in Ukraine stemming from the Russian aggression

Mr. President,
Distinguished delegates,
Ladies and gentlemen,

I am delivering this statement on behalf of the Coordination Committee of Special Procedures. As the world continue to watch with despair the disastrous impact of the military attack of the Russian Federation on Ukraine, we salute the decision of the Human Rights Council to hold this urgent debate. In the wake of the landmark decision of the General Assembly to deplore in the strongest terms the aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine in violation of Article 2 (4) of the Charter; it is now up to this Council to put human rights squarely in the response to the crisis and contribute to an immediate ceasefire, a de-escalation of tensions and a firm return to diplomacy and dialogue. My colleagues and I are ready to continue assisting this Council and the parties concerned today and in the weeks to come.

Throughout their history, the Special Procedures of the United Nations Human Rights Council have gathered, and made available to the members of the Council, persuasive evidence of the inextricable connection between armed conflict and human rights violations. That evidence convinces us of the urgent relevance of assessing this situation through that lens.

The furtherance of human rights depends on the respect of fundamental rules of international law, an order that flows from the United Nations Charter. This is no doubt the reason why, over the last few days, you have heard the human rights community coalesce around the defence of that order. Last Monday, 63 Human Rights Experts appointed by this Council and the Chairs of six of the United Nations Human Rights Treaty Bodies expressed in unison our profound outrage and distress at the aggression by the forces of the Russian Federation against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, and all people under the Ukrainian jurisdiction. This military attack, which flagrantly violates international law and strikes at the very heart of the spirit and object of the Charter, is fundamentally an attack on the order that enables our work to further human rights and their objective to promote the respect of human dignity.

Excellencies;

That human rights should be respected when armed conflict is happening in the foreground is not a theoretical construction. It is painfully concrete to the hundreds who have been killed and wounded as a result of the military attack, and their loved ones. Between 24 February morning and midnight on 1 March, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has recorded 752 civilian casualties. These include 227 killed, among them 15 children, and 525 injured, among them 28 children. Most of these casualties were caused using explosive weapons with a wide impact area, including shelling from heavy artillery and multiple launch rocket systems, and air strikes, which should not be used in populated areas. These are, I must add, only the casualties OHCHR was able to verify through our colleagues in the field who are working under very challenging circumstances; the actual toll is likely to be much higher. We condemn these grave violations of the right to life, liberty and security in the strongest term.

In this and in many other ways, the military invasion carried out by the Russian Federation has caused the people in Ukraine immense suffering and irreparable harm. The consequences of this unprovoked military attack for the protection and promotion of human rights in Ukraine will be profound and long-lasting and the catastrophic and traumatic effects of forced displacement and the destruction of vital infrastructure will last for generations, especially for children for whom the trauma may last a lifetime. A wide range of legal standards apply to armed conflict settings, including those enshrined in humanitarian, human rights, and criminal international law, as well as concrete policy agendas. These systems do not compete or exclude each other but rather coexist with the aim of protecting human dignity, and ongoing proceedings before the International Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights, as well as the announced opening of an investigation by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, clearly show this complementarity.

Our hope is that this Council will play its due role in that equation by placing and maintaining human rights at the centre of this response through a series of concrete measures.

First, by committing all efforts necessary to ensure due accountability from an evidence-based approach. You have a unique call to harness and reunite, preserve and analyse evidence of the manner in which this unprovoked attack will impact human rights, and it is to be expected that your Special Procedures will receive significant information about the way in which the human cost is to be assessed under international human rights law standards.

Second, we call on all members of the international community, especially those providing support and shelter to people fleeing the conflict, to uphold the fundamental principle of non-discrimination. In conflict, populations, communities and peoples historically subjected to discrimination suffer increased exposure to risk, as well as actual damage from that exposure. We are deeply disturbed, for example, that women and children may  be disproportionately affected by this war, like all wars, and that women and girls are most exposed to the risk of gender-based and sexual violence; that third country nationals may be subjected to discriminatory treatment as they flee the conflict and denied access to essential assistance; that existing barriers faced by persons with disabilities and older persons will be amplified; and that gender identity and sexual orientation will exacerbate the exposure to violence. Despite the intensity of this crisis, it is primordial to ensure that women are included in decision making on important processes that are important, particularly the humanitarian response as well as any political negotiation process. Similarly, all parties should allow safe and unfettered passage to destinations outside of Ukraine for all those fleeing the conflict and facilitate the rapid, safe and unhindered access to humanitarian assistance for all those in need in Ukraine without discrimination. Several of my colleagues will refer to these issues in more details in upcoming public statements.

Furthermore, businesses should be called to engage in heightened human rights due diligence, this call extending to companies in all sectors – from technology companies, to those who have factories in a conflict setting, to the financial sector, consistent with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

A third element in that human rights-based approach is that, as long as it is safe and practicable, the voices and knowledge of the Ukrainian civil society and Human Rights Defenders must be given a fundamental place.

At the same time, we echo the words of the Secretary-General to the General Assembly as we face what could become Europe’s worst humanitarian and refugee crisis in decades. According to the latest briefings by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, above one million refugees, mainly Ukrainians and third country nationals, have now fled Ukraine to neighbouring countries. Moreover, around one million people have been internally displaced within Ukraine, many of whom are beyond the reach of humanitarian assistance due to the volatile security context, threats against humanitarian workers, and restrictions imposed on their movement. And these numbers will continue to grow.

Mr. President,

This Council is also called to deal with an array of human rights challenges around the world. We trust your leadership to ensure that the current focus on the urgent situation will not detract from attention to freedoms of assembly, association, and expression in the Russian Federation. Our vigilant peers have already warned this Council on restrictions to fundamental freedoms within the Russian Federation, which are particularly alarming. Peaceful anti-war demonstrators continue to be arbitrarily arrested, with reports suggesting some 7000 people have been arrested since Thursday last week. We call for all those arrested and detained to be treated consistently with the Russian Federation’s international human rights obligations and be released without further delay. In addition, the threat posed to the environment by the armed conflict, with areas reportedly contaminated by radiation, is also a source of deep concern.

Mr. President,

We strongly urge the Russian Federation to listen to the collective voices of the international community which is now speaking unanimously and saying unequivocally that these military actions are unacceptable to all. As human rights experts, my colleagues and I urge the Russian Federation to observe and respect international law; to end hostilities immediately and unconditionally; to stop immediately all human rights violations stemming from the attack; to enable human rights defenders in Ukraine and in the Russian Federation to carry out their peaceful work; to facilitate the immediate and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance without any discrimination as to nationality, race, and ethnicity; and to restore the ability of the people in Ukraine to exercise their human rights and fundamental freedoms without military or external interference.

Thank you.