The Kyiv Environmental and Cultural Centre is calling on the Verkhovna Rada to reject the draft law on hunting in nature reserves

The Ministry of Internal Affairs has provided yet another extraordinary response regarding its officers’ activities during the measures taken in Kharkiv to crush peaceful efforts to stop unlawful tree-felling in Gorky Park

The notorious events around the building of a road through Kharkiv’s Gorky Park and violent dispersal of protest against the destruction of century-old trees are to be discussed by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe

The Internet publication Glavnoye has published a letter from Thomas Hammerberg, Council of Europe Human Rights Commissioner, expressing concern regarding the “dispersal of protests” over the destruction of a part of Kharkiv’s Gorky Park.

The Kyiv District Administrative Court has accepted the civil suit brought by Environment – People – Law [EPL] against the Ministry for Environmental Protection regarding the latter’s official website

With the tree-felling in Kharkiv and methods used, Ukraine will not draw nearer to the European Union. This warning was heard by Bundestag Deputy from the Greens, Viola von Kramon

Mr Callen expresses surprise that despite repeated assurances to UEFA, the construction of the contentious road is continuing and the media are continuing to erroneously link this with Kharkiv’s preparations for Euro-2012

Nina Karpacheva says that the information she has received suggests that there were numerous violations of civic rights with regard to protection of life and health, personal security, the right to information, freedom of views and of expression, and safety regulations

Mr Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu was responding to an appeal from “Zeleny Front” [“Green Front”] regarding the illegal tree-felling and construction work in Gorky Park and behaviour of the Kharkiv authorities

This is the first visit by a representative of foreign human rights and environmental organizations who came to see with his own eyes what is happening. Michele Curto is the President of the international human rights network FLARE

Their letter asserts that neither the police who beat and/or unlawfully detained defenders of Gorky Park nor the unidentified individuals in black with badges saying “Municipal Security” who also used force against peaceful protesters committed any offence.

The workmen have not been stopped. This Death road is continuing to be built despite the rules of road construction, commonsense and basically everything. Over human remains

The First Deputy Chair of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Justice Issues states that the construction workers do not have the necessary documents for the building of a road through Kharkiv’s Gorky Park

The Prosecutor is to be asked to check the City Council’s documents, to find out why two copies of the same “original” City Council decision have different content

It also stated that over the results of an unscheduled check of the park by the Kharkiv Regional State Environmental Inspectorate, material had been sent to the Prosecutor

As reported already, on 2 July human remains were found in Kharkiv’s Gorky Park at the site where workmen are carrying out the illegal instructions of the Kharkiv authorities. Deadlines outweigh the law and fundamental human decency and the remains are being dug back

Barbed wire is being erected along where the illegal tree felling is continuing, including, it would seem, on an area where human remains were uncovered a week ago

Around midday the police attempted to disperse people who had formed a chain, sitting on the ground to stop the bulldozers

On 1 July, Zeleny Front sent another letter to Michael Platini thanking UEFA for its concern and warning them that the local and national authorities are disregarding UEFA’s opinion and stubbornly continuing to destroy the Park to further their business plans.

On Friday, 2 July, human remains were found at the site where in spite of legitimate protest, including from the Verkhovna Rada Committee on the Environment, and the clear illegality of their actions, the Kharkiv authorities are continuing to fell trees in Gorky Park