Human rights lawyer argues Putin’s war seeks impunity and global order change, demanding justice for victims.
🔗 Read the article on hotnews.ro
[This is an automatically generated summary, for reference only]
Oleksandra Matviiciuk, a human rights lawyer and leader of the Ukrainian Centre for Civil Liberties, argues that Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine is not just about eliminating Ukraine but also about establishing impunity and replacing the existing international order with one dictated by powerful states. She asserts that if Putin escapes punishment, it will embolden other authoritarian leaders globally. Matviiciuk notes that her organization has documented over 89,000 instances of Russian war crimes against Ukrainians, which she views as only the tip of the iceberg, emphasizing that their goal is to seek justice for all victims and see Putin tried in The Hague. She characterizes the conflict as genocidal, aimed at erasing Ukrainian identity and reestablishing a Russian empire. She warns against territorial concessions, stating that occupation involves forced disappearances, torture, and denial of identity, not just border issues. Matviiciuk contends that Russia’s aggression is a war between two systems: authoritarianism and democracy. Furthermore, she dismisses the idea that occupying small towns like Avdiivka or Bahmut justifies the entire war, arguing Putin seeks to conquer and destroy the whole country as part of his historical ambition to restore the Russian empire. She stresses that international mechanisms are failing because the current world order is collapsing under the weight of such aggression. Finally, she concludes by stating that while ordinary life in Ukraine has been destroyed by constant uncertainty and fear, the Ukrainian people have demonstrated extraordinary strength and power in their fight for freedom and human dignity.
