42nd session of the Human Rights Council
Item 8
Follow-up and implementation of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action
Joint statement on human rights situation in temporarily occupied Crimea and unrestricted access for human rights monitoring mechanisms therein
Mr. President,
This statement is delivered on behalf of 41 countries.
Article 3 of the Vienna Declaration stipulates that “Effective international measures to guarantee and monitor the implementation of human rights standards should be taken in respect of people under foreign occupation, and effective legal protection against the violation of their human rights should be provided, in accordance with human rights norms and international law, particularly the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 14 August 1949, and other applicable norms of humanitarian law”.
We recall, in this regard, that the UN General Assembly in its resolution 73/263 “Situation of human rights in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, Ukraine”, urged the Russian Federation to uphold all of its obligations under applicable international law as an occupying Power and condemned all attempts by the Russian Federation to legitimize or normalize its attempted annexation of Crimea, including the automatic imposition of Russian citizenship and illegal election campaigns.
We denounce continuation of these attempts, in particular, by holding on 8 September 2019 in the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol of the so-called “local elections” to illegal institutions established by the Russian occupation administration, which constitutes another violation of international law. Results of this illegal voting are null and void.
We emphasize that anybody elected in Russian “local elections” of 8 September 2019 on the Crimean peninsula claiming to “represent” the populations of Crimea and Sevastopol will not be recognized as representative of those territories, which are Ukrainian.
Mr. President,
The Russian Federation must uphold human rights in Crimea, respect its obligations as an Occupying Power under IHL international humanitarian law, and grant full and unimpeded access to Crimea for international and regional monitoring mechanisms. We call on the Russian Federation to comply with its obligations under international law, also reaffirmed in UNGA resolutions 71/205, 72/190 and 73/263, as well as with the Order of ICJ the International Court of Justice of 19 April 2017.
We reiterate our support for the territorial integrity, political independence, unity and sovereignty of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders, which continues to be violated as a result of the ongoing temporary occupation and attempted annexation of Crimea, and call for the full respect of the rights of all residents of Crimea.
Thank you