Disinfo: UN are fabricating human rights violations in Crimea

Summary

Ukrainians living in Crimea accuse the United Nations of making up human rights violations on the peninsula. This claim was in response to a UN resolution adopted on November 19 condemning human rights violations in Crimea which refers to Russia as the “occupying power”. The resolution is based on myths as there are no human rights violations taking place in Crimea. According to Anastasia Gridchina, the president of the Ukrainian Community in Crimea, the “UN has never visited Crimea, has not spoken to Ukrainians or Crimean Tatars about life there and is inventing myths and stories about non-existent persecution”.

Disproof

First of all, the Ukrainian Community in Crimea is a Kremlin controlled organization, headed by members of Russia’s ruling party United Russia. The organization was established in 2016, two years after Russia annexed Crimea and its purpose is to showcase a positive life for Ukrainians on the occupied peninsula. Gridchina’s accusation that the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission did not visit Crimea is telling as the UN resolution condemns Russia for failing to provide access to Crimea for the Mission, despite the Mission’s mandate calling for such access. Claims that the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights did not speak with Crimean Tatars and victims of human rights violations are untrue. According to Fiona Fraser, the head of the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, data was collected through personal interviews and monitoring of court proceedings and trials in Crimea. Presenting the Mission’s report in Kyiv on December 12, Fraser outlined concrete examples of human rights violations against Crimean Tatars, indiscriminate arrests, detentions, torture, ill-treatment and restrictions on freedom of assembly and expression. Only in November of this year, the UN recorded 49 arrests of Crimean Tatars for holding individual peaceful protests, 10 unlawful searches and 18 raids of Crimean Tatars’ homes. Further debunking by Stopfake www.stopfake.org/en/fake-un-fabricating-human-rights-violations-in-crimea/, .

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mundo.sputniknews.com
  • Reported in: Issue 93
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 20/12/2017
  • Outlet language(s) Spanish
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Ukraine
  • Keywords: Human rights, UN, Crimean Tatars, Crimea
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Disinfo: US Ambassador urged Moldovan Parliament to pass the law against "Russian propaganda"

The US Ambassador to Moldova, James Pettit, demanded that the Parliament prohibit the broadcasting of Russian TV channels. He expressed the hope that this is “a step in the fight against disinformation”.

Dec 19, 2017
Disproof

In fact, the US ambassador did not speak about the law passed by the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova on December 7, 2017. He just called for a new Code of Television and Radio, which would fully comply with the EU standards, both with regard to foreign propaganda and internal propaganda. According the fact-checking by API, he stated that foreign propaganda is a problem in Moldova, and the United States understand the risks of Russian disinformation. But, he continued, Moldova also faces a problem of internal control over the media. This situation does not only threaten the independence of the media in Moldova, but also generates news that can be characterised as different forms of propaganda from internal sources, the ambassador said.

Disinfo: Newspaper Helsingin Sanomat is a kind of headquarters of Nato in Finland

The US and the UK want to revenge themselves on the President of Finland Sauli Niinistö and organise a hybrid war against Finland. They use their agent, newspaper Helsingin Sanomat, as an accomplice. The newspaper is a kind of headquarters of Nato to manipulate the brains of Finnish people.

Dec 18, 2017
Disproof

No evidence given. The US, UK and Finland are partners. Helsingin Sanomat is an independent Finnish newspaper and has no connection to Nato. www.britannica.com/topic/Helsingin-Sanomat, Read more for the background: yle.fi/uutiset/osasto/news/mondays_papers_intelligence_documents_leak_heavy_concert_accident_the_jobs_in_your_genes/9981816,

Disinfo: The Venice Commission published an opinion about the facts of gross discrimination of Russian language and minority languages in the Edcuation Law of Ukraine

On December 10, the Venice Commission published an opinion about the facts of gross discrimination of Russian language and minority languages in the Edcuation Law

Dec 17, 2017
Disproof

Misleading. In fact, the Venice Commission does not mention “facts of gross discrimination” but states: "However, paragraph 4 of Article 7 provides no solution for languages which are not official languages of the EU, in particular the Russian language, as the most widely used language apart from the state language. The less favourable treatment of these languages is difficult to justify and therefore raises issues of discrimination." The Venice Commission recommends in particular:  to enter, within the framework of the implementation of the new Education Law, into a new dialogue with representatives of national minorities and all interested parties on the language of education.  to ensure that the implementation of the Law does not endanger the preservation of the minorities’ cultural heritage and the continuity of minority language education in traditional schools. www.venice.coe.int/webforms/documents/?pdf=CDL-AD(2017)030-e, . Further debunking by Stopfake.org www.stopfake.org/manipulyatsiya-venetsianskaya-komissiya-priznala-diskriminatsiyu-russkogo-yazyka-v-ukraine/, .