Communist Party banned in Ukraine by Kyiv court
Ukraine came under fire from Amnesty International Thursday after a Kyiv court banned the national Communist Party, the latest move to break from the country’s Soviet past more than two decades after independence.
Yesterday’s banning of the Communist Party in Ukraine is a flagrant violation of freedom of expression and association and should be immediately overturned, said Amnesty International.
“The banning of the Communist Party in Ukraine sets a very risky precedent”.
Ukraine adopted controversial “decommunisation” laws in May, which outlawed the display of Soviet symbols and prohibited the use of the word “communist”.
In its latest attempt to separate itself from Russian Federation and its political ideologies, Ukraine has taken steps to outright ban the Communist party there, according to multiple reports.
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The Ukrainian authorities previously sought to ban the Communist Party previous year.
The Communist party has spoken out against Kyiv’s military campaign against separatists in eastern Ukraine, calling it a war against its own people. In 2015 a spate of politically motivated killings remain unresolved and journalists and media known for criticising the current government have been harassed. “In fact, it does exactly the opposite by following the same style of draconian measures used to stifle dissent”, said John Dalhuisen.
“Expressing your opinion without fear of prosecution, particularly if that opinion is contrary to the views held by those in position of power, was one of the principles behind the EuroMaidan protests”.
Ukrainian Communist Party head Petro Symonenko called the decision “illegal”, adding that he meant to appeal the ruling to the European Court of Human Rights.