It is staggering to see such aggressive unwillingness to recognize the history of their own country shown by the city authorities. Kharkiv remains the only regional centre in Ukraine where the city authorities are flatly refusing to provide a site for such a Memorial

An appeal for a worldwide reading of Anna Politkovskaya’s reports on Chechnya. The journalist and critic of Putin was assassinated on October 7, 2006.

On 15 March 2007 the Ukrainian Supreme Court revoked the sentence passed down by the Sevastopol Appeal Court on the Crimean journalist, Volodymyr Lutyev and ordered that the case be sent back for a new examination in the same court, but with different judges

On 19 March a year ago, tens of thousands of people came out onto October Square to protest against the arrests that had taken place just before the elections. 1,318, as it later became known, spent that day behind bars. A year later youth activists decided to remember that date and honour those who suffered repression.

The Committee of Voters of Ukraine is pleased that the President has signed the Law on the State Register of Voters. The law was passed in February, in compliance with recommendations from the Council of Europe Venice Commission

Russian human rights defenders and public figures have addressed an appeal to President Putin, asking him to pardon the scientists Igor Sutyagin and Valentin Danilov, sentenced to 15 and 13 years respectively on charges of spying.

They believe that the draft law proposed will help in completing the return of Church property in Ukraine in accordance with Ukraine’s commitments to the Council of Europe

A year after the rigged presidential elections in Belarus which led to mass protest and repressive measures from the authorities, the opposition is adamant that it will not be cowered

It would be well worth those officials who have their own ways of “defending” our human rights taking note that civic society does not suffer from their blurred understanding of human rights.

“The case was closed due to the non-appearance of the respondent” is just one of the stages in this surreal, although unfortunately true, tale of a journalist’s efforts to stand up for his rights and those of the public to receive objective information

"When [those who persecute us] find out and see that it’s not just some inexplicable opposition supporter whom you can give the order to “squeeze”, and that it’s really a person whom others remember and who get letters from all over the world – that totally changes their attitude.”

In response to a request from the Ukrainian authorities, the Council of Europe has provided comments on the proposed amendments to the Law on Information.

Following the signing of a declaration of cooperation, those involved are full of optimism. Those observing are waiting for long overdue practical measures

Following the signing of a declaration of cooperation, those involved are full of optimism. Those observing are waiting for long overdue practical measures

In view of the unprecedented court order and atttitude of the city authorities, the civic movement “Narodna samooborona” [“People’s Self-Defence”] will hold a rally in Kharkiv on 16 March, but not on the central Freedom Square, but on “Sobornist” Square

The amendments just passed to the Criminal Procedure Code remove such crimes as murder, manslaughter, driving a person to suicide and others from the jurisdiction of the investigation bodies of the prosecutor’s office and place them with the Ministry of Internal Affairs investigation units

The unlawfulness of the decision by the Mykolaiv Regional Council was argued in the appeal court by a representative of the Regional Prosecutor and a representative of the public.

The newly created Coordination Council will prepare proposals for coordinating events run by the authorities, scientific and civic institutions to honour the memory of the Victims of Holodomor, the manmade Famine of 1932-1933

The Dzherzhynsky District Court in Kharkiv has banned any stage being set up on Freedom Square. The suit was lodged by the city authorities who demanded that Friday’s rally with Yury Lutsenko be banned.

According to the document, within a week a working group made up of 12-15 people is to be created. This will be directly responsible for preparing a package of proposals on transforming state television and radio broadcasting organizations into public broadcasting organizations