International Court in Strasbourg finds Russia guilty of chronic and systematic human rights infractions.
Designated were detentions prior to proceedings in overcrowded prisons, biased verdicts against pro-Ukrainian individuals, and the transfer of detainees from Crimea to Russian prisons - all prior to the beginning of a process. According to the judges, Russia has violated multiple articles of the European Human Rights Convention.
The judges also criticized Russia for the absence of effective investigations. They claimed these practices were officially tolerated by the Russian authorities. The judgment also mentions that Russia applied Russian law on the Crimea, which contradicts International Humanitarian Law. It adds that there was a duty to respect the existing law in the occupied territory, i.e., Ukrainian law.
Currently, there are four inter-state cases between Ukraine and Russia pending at the European Court of Human Rights. In one of the cases, the Netherlands have supported Ukraine. The court has received approximately 7400 individual complaints regarding events in Crimea, Eastern Ukraine, and the Russian military operation in Ukraine.
The judges have not yet determined suitable compensation. However, they have demanded that Russia returns the detainees transferred to Russia to Crimea.
Russia annexed Crimea in March 2014 following an unrecognized referendum by Ukraine and the West, a move that was condemned by the Ukrainian government and the West. Clashes between pro-Russian militias and the Ukrainian army unfolded in Eastern Ukraine, resulting in over 14,000 deaths. In February 2022, Russia launched an invasion in Ukraine.
Russia acknowledged the European Court of Human Rights in 2022. However, the court continues to tackle the ongoing cases.
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- The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg has officially labeled Russia's treatment of pro-Ukrainian individuals as a chronic and systematic human rights violation, including detentions, biased verdicts, and transfer of detainees to Russian prisons.
- The Court's judgment also highlighted the absence of effective investigations into human rights violations in Crimea, which are reportedly tolerated by the Russian authorities, and the contradiction of applying Russian law in the Crimea territory.
- The European Court of Human Rights is currently handling four inter-state cases between Ukraine and Russia, with the support of international parties like the Netherlands, and has received around 7400 individual complaints concerning events in Crimea, Eastern Ukraine, and the Russian military operation in Ukraine.
- The Court has decided that Russia must return the detainees transferred to Russian prisons in Crimea, yet has yet to determine an appropriate compensation for the numerous human rights violations.
- Despite Russia acknowledging the European Court of Human Rights in 2022, the ongoing human rights violations in Ukraine have continued to challenge the court's efforts to uphold human rights and international law within the territory of Crimea, annexed by Russia in 2014.
