From the editors

This report focuses on the human rights situation in Ukraine in 2009-2010. It contains a “Civic Assessment of government policy in the area of human rights” and an in-depth analysis of specific aspects of the human rights situation during the period in question. The scope of both of the above has been considerably expanded since the previous years’ reports.

The Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union and the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group would like to gratefully acknowledge the enormous help offered us in creating this Human Rights Organizations Report. First and foremost we wish to thank:

The organizations which kindly provided material for this report:

The All-Ukrainian Public Organization «Committee of Voters of Ukraine»
The All-Ukrainian Human Rights movement «Gidnist’» [«Dignity»]
The All-Ukrainian Public organization «Sluzhba Zakhistu Ditey» [«Child Defense Service»]
The Association of HIV-infected «Chas Zhittia» [«Time Life»] (Mykolaev)
The Association of Ukrainian Monitors on Human Rights Observation in the Police Activities
The Bureau of Environmental Investigations (Lviv)
The Center for Law and Political Research «SiM» (Lviv)
The Center for Political and Legal Reform (Kyiv)
The Chernihiv Women’s Human Rights Center
The Charity Foundation «Medicine and Law» (Lviv)
The Civil Methodical Center «Vsesvit» [«Universe»] (Kharkiv)
The Civil Network «Opora» [«Reliance»]
The Civic Advocacy Center (Lviv)
The Civic Organization «Donetsk Memorial»
The Civic Organization «Helsinki Initiative-XXI» (Chortkiv, Ternopil region)
The Civic Organization «Social Action» (Kyiv)
The Civic Environmental and Humanitarian Association «Zeleny Svit» [«Green World»]
The Congress of National Communities of Ukraine
The Crimean Republican Foundation «Svyt Krymu» [«World of the Crimea»]
The Donetsk Regional Branch of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine
The Human Rights Center «Postup» [«Progress»] (Luhansk)
The Institute of Legal Research and Strategies (Kharkiv)
The Institute of Mass Information (Kyiv)
The Institute of Religious Freedom (Kyiv)
The International Association “Environment – People – Law” [EPL] (Lviv)
The International HIV/AIDS Alliance in Ukraine
The International Women’s Human Rights Center «La Strada – Ukraine»
The Kharkiv Regional Fund «Civil Alternative»
The Kharkiv Institute of Social Research
The Kharkiv Regional Branch of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine
The Kherson Regional Charity and Health Foundation
The Kherson Regional Branch of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine
The Luhansk Regional Branch of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine
The Odessa Regional Branch of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine
The Public Committee for the Protection of Constitutional Rights and Civil Liberties (Luhansk)
The Religious Information Service of Ukraine (RISU)
The «Respublica» Institute for Economic and Social Issues (Kyiv)
The Rivny Regional Branch of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine
The Sevastopol Human Rights Protection Group
The Sumy Regional Branch of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine
The Telekrytyka (Kyiv)
The Ukrainian Independent Center of Political Research

The authors and co-authors of particular units, as well as the researchers of material used here:

Taras Antoshevsky; Valentina Badyra; Oleksandr Bakhov; Volodymyr Batchaev; Yuri Belousov; Dementiy Belyy; Oleh Bereziuk; Natalia Bochkor; Tetiana Bordunis; Anatoly Boyko; Oleksandr Bukalov; Maksim Butkevych; Volodymyr Chemerys; Andriy Chernousov; Andriy Dydenko; Maryana Evsiukova; Leonid Gema; Yevhen Grigorenko; Marina Hovorukhina; Olha Kalashnyk; Denis Kobzin; Mykola Kozirev; Ludmyla Kovalchuk; Roman Kuybida; Andriy Kristenko; Maryna Legenka; Kateryna Levchenko; Oleh Levitskiy; Viacheslav Lichachev, Oleh Martynenko; Aygul Mukanova; Oksana Nesterenko; Yevhen Novitsky; Irina Ogorodniichuk; Oleksansr Pavlychenko; Volodymyr Ponomarenko; Vadim Pyvovarov; Andriy Rakhansky; Kostiantin Reutsky; Vsevolod Rechytsky; Roman Romanov; Inna Savchuk; Irina Seniuta; Ihor Skalko; Victoria Siumar; Maksim Shcherbatyuk; Serhiy Shvets; Oleksandr Stepanenko; Oleksiy Svetykov, Mykhaylo Tarakhkalo; Tetiana Taturevych; Serhiy Tkachenko; Gennadiy Tokarev; Ruslan Topolevsky; Maksim Vasin; Irina Yakovets; Maria Yasenovska; Volodymyr Yavorsky; Viacheslav Yakubenko; Tetiana Yatskyv and Boris Zakharov.

This report would not have been possible without the support and assistance of Oleksiy Babych, Volodymyr Derkachov, Maria Dmytryeva; Irayida Fesenko, Les Herasymchuk, Iryna Kuchynska, Oleh Myroshnychenko, Vitaliy Novykov; Darya Rublinetsky, Oleksandr Savransky, Victor Stoliarenko, Vitaly Svyatsky, Marina Visotska and Ludmila Yelcheva.

We would like also to express our gratitude to the National Endowment for Democracy (USA), who provided financial assistance for the preparation of this Report.

Arkadiy Bushchenko, Yevgeniy Zakharov