24 June 2024

More than 50% of Ukrainians understand the word “justice” to mean bringing to justice those who committed the most serious crimes

Ukrainian society has a strong demand for justice and punishment of all those responsible for serious crimes against our people. Despite the ongoing hostilities, Ukraine is making great efforts to ensure that both international and Ukrainian courts hold fair trials against the occupiers. 

Experts, prosecutors and judges discussed the issues of justice during and after the war during the panel discussion “Justice for Crimea: Lessons from the Past for Justice for the Future” at the 3rd International Forum of the International Crimea Platform Expert Network. 

Ihor Ponochovnyi, Head of the Prosecutor’s Office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol, stressed that the Ukrainian prosecutor’s office continues to work and bring cases against the occupiers who commit crimes against the state of Ukraine and war crimes to court. Since the full-scale invasion, the prosecutor’s office has already delivered more than 200 verdicts in Crimea alone. 

Mykola Mazur, a judge of the Supreme Court, noted that the Ukrainian judiciary has been transformed since 2014, taking into account the challenges of the occupation of part of the territory and the unwillingness of Ukrainians occupied by Russia to lose contact with Ukraine. Now, he said, Ukrainian courts face an equally important task – to consider all cases related to war crimes in a high-quality and impartial manner. 

“International criminal tribunals consider only the most high-profile war crimes. The bulk of such cases should be considered by national judges. It is the Ukrainian courts that will bear the greatest burden in considering these cases. It is very important to ensure the quality of justice, despite the large number of cases,” said Mykola Mazur, a judge of the Supreme Court.