Amnesty International report cites police brutality in Ukraine (10/09/05)

Amnesty International report cites police brutality in Ukraine

by Yana Sedova
Kyiv Press Bureau

KYIV - Tetiana Doroshenko spent 10 hours at a Symferopol police station as a possible witness to a crime, separated from her sick 18-month-old son.

Police told Ms. Doroshenko she could reunite with her son only if she testified against the suspects.

Despite the fact that the child had a high fever, he reportedly remained in the police station without food or water the whole day until he and his mother were finally released.

"The (Ukrainian) police continue to use torture in order to get confessions," said Heather McGill, a researcher at Amnesty International's International Secretariat in London. "Sometimes the police resorts to violence and psychological pressure in order to get testimony from witnesses."

Amnesty International Ukraine on September 27 released its annual report titled "Time for Action: Torture and Ill-Treatment in Police Detention."

Despite a wide range of human rights abuses in Ukraine, Amnesty International focused this year's report on police brutality and abuse. Amnesty International Ukraine could not provide statistics because so many cases go unreported, Ms. McGill said.

However, tens of thousands cases of police-induced trauma occur every year in Ukraine, estimated Arkadii Buschenko, legal expert for the Kharkiv Human Rights Group.

The Kharkiv Group received about 200 reports on torture last year and provided legal support in 60 cases. At present, about 30 appeals are at the European Court for Human Rights.

Despite the fact that Ukraine signed an optional protocol to the U.N. Convention Against Torture on September 24, little has been done to combat torture in Ukraine, Ms. McGill said. The protocol demands that the Ukrainian government create a list of detention venues so that they could be monitored periodically, Mr. Buschenko said.

Ukrainian law enforcement officers still extract confessions and testimony from detainees through force, which courts willingly accept as evidence, officials said.

Torture victims don't sue lawbreakers because they do not trust law enforcement authorities and don't believe anyone will be punished, Ms. McGill explained. "We believe there is impunity for those who torture and beat victims," she said. "Victims and lawyers told us how difficult it is to lodge complaints and what efforts one should make to complete the case."

Ukrainian prosecutors often refuse to open abuse cases, forcing victims to appeal such decisions in court and prove they were under torture. "Our task is to make the government become a defendant," Mr. Buschenko stated.

Even when investigations are carried out, they do not meet international standards of promptness, thoroughness, independence and impartiality, Amnesty International reported.

Law enforcement officers accused of torture often get minimal sentences, the report said.

Sometimes orders by higher authorities to fire those who are guilty are ignored by local police, which is what happened in Mykhailo Koval's case.

In August 2001, local police demanded that Mr. Koval hand over a $1,000 drill belonging to his son, Dmytro Bryk.

When he refused to do so, officers brought him and his son to the police station and put them in separate rooms.

Mr. Koval was beaten on the head and chest with a gun and a plastic bottle filled with water. He got a concussion, a broken rib and cuts. Officers also beat Mr. Bryk's ears with their palms, causing a burst eardrum, and also thrust their fingers into his eyes and ears.

A medical examination later ascertained that he suffered bruising and a concussion.

"They broke your soul," Mr. Koval said to his son after he came back home. "I will try to cure you. These people will face trial."

However, officers who tortured them still have their positions.

Not a single police officer has been convicted of torture so far, Mr. Buschenko said, and not one has received a prison sentence. Courts often intentionally delay criminal cases that involve policemen to derail prosecutions, Mr. Buschenko added.

At a meeting this year with Internal Affairs Minister Yurii Lutsenko and Procurator General Sviatoslav Piskun, Amnesty International representatives managed to find out that there are four torture incidents under investigation at the moment.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko has even addressed the issue. "I ask you to make sure that within six months nobody will be able to use the word 'torture,' " Mr. Yushchenko said at a July meeting with Ministry of Internal Affairs officials and police officers. Any case of torture that comes to light should force the resignation of any policemen, he said.

However, human rights officials said one problem is the values of police and society. "Many policemen openly justify torture," said Mr. Buschenko. "Many members of society also justify it."

Top law enforcement officials need to move through the system and find mechanisms to ensure accountability, Ms. McGill said.

"Policemen are unable to investigate because of lack of professionalism," Mr. Buschenko said. "I can't say that the practice of torture changed after the new government arrived. I don't see this."

Among the most notorious acts police commit is detaining suspects without registering them, he said.

In violation of Ukrainian law, investigators also don't inform relatives about the police detention and often keep suspects at police stations for hours or even days.

"A person could be severely mutilated for three hours and forced to confess," Mr. Buschenko said.

Still, there are measures that could help to prevent torture and ill treatment, experts said. "You can agree to the accusations (to avoid torture), but demand registration and a lawyer," advised Andrii Pavlyshyn, the chair of Amnesty International Ukraine.

Ukrainian human rights advocates are pressing for medical examinations before and after detention, which could prevent offenders from saying a detainee already had medical problems.

However, the victims of torture are not so optimistic.

"You have to decide all by yourself whether to confess or sign anything," said Vasyl Kolesnikov, a victim of torture. "If you only want to take care of your health and your life - then sign."

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