A Threat of war -- Lauren Frantz
Russia’s invasion in Ukraine is putting a huge dent in Ukraine’s government, causing an outrage from the citizens. The country is being pulled closer into becoming Russian territory even with their efforts to try to stop it from happening. With angry citizens and a presidential election coming up, Ukraine needs to have a more stable government. Human rights are being violated because the government isn’t including the people. Because of the negative effects from Ukraine’s weak government and the conflict with Russia, the human rights of the citizens are being violated and people are furious.
The conflict between Ukraine and Russia began when President Viktor Yanukovych was ousted after months of protests. A large majority of Ukraine who speak Russian weren’t happy with the new government. If so many people aren’t happy with the government, why isn’t the Ukraine government listening? Soon after, Crimea was annexed by Russia, beginning a bigger crisis between Russia and Ukraine. A stable, democratic government is the best way for Ukraine’s government to be stronger in order to solve the conflict with Russia. At a conference in Munich, Secretary of State John Kerry announced that “Nowhere is the fight for a democratic, European future more important today than in Ukraine” (Stephen Brown, 2014). Odessa, a city in Ukraine, has many pro-Russians that take shelter there. However, a building was firebombed by people from the government, causing many deaths of the pro-Russians. There has been too much violence in some of the cities, especially between security forces and protesters, and several people have died. The human rights of the citizens are being violated and there are many situations that are unfair to the people of Ukraine.
The violation of human rights in Ukraine has been very unfair to the citizens. The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission is based in five cities in Ukraine. They were able to document many arising problems in Crimea including violence, torture and beatings, and even targeting killings (UN News Centre, 2014). "The human rights situation in the east of the country has worsened. There are more arms being used as well as numerous violations being committed,” (Ivan Šimonović, Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights). 127 people were killed because of the violence in the east and south Ukraine. Not only is there a lot of violence from protesters, citizens aren’t being heard by the government. The ballot asks “if voters approve establishment of sovereign and independent ‘people’s republics.’” However, this doesn’t explain what the outcome would be if people were to say yes. The government has yet to make a decision of what should happen (CBCNews, 2014). Many citizens have expressed frustration with the government, including one woman who has decided not to vote during the presidential election on May 25th. She says “I don’t agree with what is happening in the country. And I want some changes for the better. What is happening on May 25 is not honest, truthful or in our best interests. And that is why I am voting today.” About 90% of voters in a region in eastern Ukraine were in favour of sovereignty, or a self-governing state (CBCNews, 2014). The Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine has declared independence and wants join Russia.
There are many people in Ukraine that respect Russia and prefer to follow their customs and culture. Almost the entire population of eastern Ukraine speaks Russian. However, whether the established government is Russian or Ukrainian, it needs to be more stable. The people aren’t being heard, which is causing a lot of chaos with the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The human rights of the citizens are being violated because the government is being very unreasonable. The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission has been helping examine the violations of these rights, but many people need to be educated on the conflict to help make a change.
- Lauren Frantz
Kelley, M. (2014, February 19). BEFORE AND AFTER: Kiev's Independence Square. Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/before-and-after-independence-square-2014-2
The conflict between Ukraine and Russia began when President Viktor Yanukovych was ousted after months of protests. A large majority of Ukraine who speak Russian weren’t happy with the new government. If so many people aren’t happy with the government, why isn’t the Ukraine government listening? Soon after, Crimea was annexed by Russia, beginning a bigger crisis between Russia and Ukraine. A stable, democratic government is the best way for Ukraine’s government to be stronger in order to solve the conflict with Russia. At a conference in Munich, Secretary of State John Kerry announced that “Nowhere is the fight for a democratic, European future more important today than in Ukraine” (Stephen Brown, 2014). Odessa, a city in Ukraine, has many pro-Russians that take shelter there. However, a building was firebombed by people from the government, causing many deaths of the pro-Russians. There has been too much violence in some of the cities, especially between security forces and protesters, and several people have died. The human rights of the citizens are being violated and there are many situations that are unfair to the people of Ukraine.
The violation of human rights in Ukraine has been very unfair to the citizens. The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission is based in five cities in Ukraine. They were able to document many arising problems in Crimea including violence, torture and beatings, and even targeting killings (UN News Centre, 2014). "The human rights situation in the east of the country has worsened. There are more arms being used as well as numerous violations being committed,” (Ivan Šimonović, Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights). 127 people were killed because of the violence in the east and south Ukraine. Not only is there a lot of violence from protesters, citizens aren’t being heard by the government. The ballot asks “if voters approve establishment of sovereign and independent ‘people’s republics.’” However, this doesn’t explain what the outcome would be if people were to say yes. The government has yet to make a decision of what should happen (CBCNews, 2014). Many citizens have expressed frustration with the government, including one woman who has decided not to vote during the presidential election on May 25th. She says “I don’t agree with what is happening in the country. And I want some changes for the better. What is happening on May 25 is not honest, truthful or in our best interests. And that is why I am voting today.” About 90% of voters in a region in eastern Ukraine were in favour of sovereignty, or a self-governing state (CBCNews, 2014). The Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine has declared independence and wants join Russia.
There are many people in Ukraine that respect Russia and prefer to follow their customs and culture. Almost the entire population of eastern Ukraine speaks Russian. However, whether the established government is Russian or Ukrainian, it needs to be more stable. The people aren’t being heard, which is causing a lot of chaos with the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The human rights of the citizens are being violated because the government is being very unreasonable. The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission has been helping examine the violations of these rights, but many people need to be educated on the conflict to help make a change.
- Lauren Frantz
Kelley, M. (2014, February 19). BEFORE AND AFTER: Kiev's Independence Square. Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/before-and-after-independence-square-2014-2