An open appeal by a citizen of Ukraine Peshko A.V.

An open appeal by a citizen of Ukraine Peshko A.V.

An open appeal by a citizen of Ukraine, a public figure,
Academician and Vice-President of the Academy of Economic Sciences of Ukraine
Pesha Anatoly Volodymyrovych to the Prime Minister of Ukraine
Groysman Volodymyr Borisovich, Minister of Finance of Ukraine
Danylyuk Oleksandra Alexandrovich, Head of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine
Victor Nazarenko,
acting Head of the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine
Myroslav Vasilievich Sold.

Regarding the violation of human rights at the administrative border with the territory of the occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea

Arriving at the checkpoint “Kalanchak” from the territory of the Crimea at 9:30 am on May 25, 2017, I was forced to stand in a queue at the checkpoint “Kalanchak” until 18:00. In this queue at the Ukrainian border there were also about 400 cars. In these cars there were people like the elderly, and those who were already in the 70 to 80 years. Also, there were a lot of teenagers in the car, juveniles and infants, and even children with cerebral palsy. In total there were about 1,200 people. I am convinced that this situation is not only a gross violation of human rights, but it is a superhuman abuse over the citizens of Ukraine!

I would like to draw the attention of the leaders of the Ukrainian customs, the heads of the Border Guard Service of Ukraine, the Minister of Finance of Ukraine, who manages the work of the State Customs Service of Ukraine, other Ministers, the Prime Minister of Ukraine, the President of Ukraine, all deputies of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, 3 of the Constitution of Ukraine, the establishment and guarantee of human rights and freedoms is the main duty of the state, and, consequently, the state has no right to restrict the rights and freedoms of citizens, namely: the right to free development of their personality (Article 23 of the Constitution of Ukraine) the right to life (Article 27 of the Constitution of Ukraine), the right to respect for dignity (Article 28 of the Constitution of Ukraine), the right to liberty and personal integrity (Article 29 of the Constitution of Ukraine), the right to inviolability of housing (Article 30 of the Constitution of Ukraine ), the right to the secret of correspondence, telephone conversations, telegrams affine and other correspondence (Article 31 of the Constitution of Ukraine), the right to non-interference in his personal and family life (Article 32 of the Constitution of Ukraine), the right to freedom of movement, free choice of place of residence, the right to freely leave the territory of Ukraine (Article 33 of the Constitution of Ukraine ), the right to freedom of thought and speech, to the free expression of his views and convictions (Article 34 of the Constitution of Ukraine), the right to freedom of opinion and religion (Article 35 of the Constitution of Ukraine)!

Taking into account all the above, I would like to warn employees of the customs and border services of Ukraine, as well as profile ministries, the Minister of Finance of Ukraine, the Minister of Defense of Ukraine, the head of the Security Service of Ukraine, that they are also citizens of Ukraine who also reside in the territory of Ukraine and who must also comply all the requirements of the Constitution of Ukraine (the Basic Law of our state)!

Any regulations, decisions of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, instructions of the ministries and departments of Ukraine, which are in conflict with the basic provisions of the Constitution of Ukraine and violate the rights and freedoms of Ukrainian citizens, are illegal and must not be executed by any of the citizens of Ukraine. And in the event that anyone, regardless of the requirements of the Constitution of Ukraine, based on subordinate acts of ministries and departments, will prevent Ukrainian citizens from ensuring their rights and freedoms – either civil servants or anyone who violates the Basic Law of Ukraine, will be brought to administrative or criminal responsibility, depending on the severitycrime associated with violation of the Constitution of Ukraine.

I believe that the incident that occurred in my presence at the checkpoint “Kalanchak” on May 25, 2017, which I mentioned above to you, is a gross violation of Articles 27, 28, 29, 33, 34 of the Constitution of Ukraine!

Based on the above, I as a taxpayer, as a citizen of Ukraine, as a person whose rights were violated by the artificial creation of a queue at the border and the unfitness of the border guards and customs officers, should bring to justice the leadership and employees of the Kherson regional customs and border services, namely, the deputy chairmen of the Kherson regional the border guard service (since the head was at that time suspended from performing the relevant duties).

My repeated request to assist citizens of Ukraine in moving through the border and customs post at the checkpoint “Kalanchak” deputy heads of the regional customs service cynically ignored, and also ignored the appeals of all citizens who were next to me, and this, I would remind, there were hundreds of Ukrainian citizens. The people were terribly indignant and annoyed by the behavior of civil servants of Ukraine and the highest leadership of Ukraine in general, and demanded the immediate arrival of the leadership of the State Customs Service of Ukraine, the Minister of Finance of Ukraine, in order to see with their own eyes, in what conditions the Ukrainian citizens are kept at the checkpoint “Kalanchak “Kherson region, where there is no drinking water, nor even primitive conditions for personal hygiene and natural needs. People asked that the room they called “a toilet” was visited by either the head of the border service, or the head of the customs service, or the higher authorities of Ukraine, so that they would perceive at the authorities the attitude of the Ukrainian state to the Ukrainians!

You, the leaders of Ukraine, should understand that not people are your servants or slaves, and you are servants of the people, and we keep you at the expense of those taxes that have recently been stripped from the people along with the skin!

We, the Ukrainians, demand that the services of the state, that is, all the leadership of the border and customs services, respond to us – the Ukrainians: who allowed them to treat such people to their people, who keep them at the expense of their taxes ?!

According to the border guards, it became known that the 9-hour queue was due to the lack of the Internet, resulting in the database “hung”. Also, from the words of the latter became known information that at the checkpoint of the Kherson region, namely the checkpoint “Chaplinka” and checkpoint “Kalanchak”, the Internet is systematically having problems, because there they use the services of private Internet providers. The question arises: why such a structure as a border guard service uses private unverified Internet providers?

I would like once again to pay particular attention to the absence of elementary conditions for staying at the border for the normal functioning of border control and the creation of appropriate conditions for those who pass it. And there is not the most elemental, even proper illumination of the territory around the checkpoint, not to mention sanitary standards, which includes at least a toilet (at this checkpoint it is such that it is not nearly possible to approach it), a desk for reviewing things (things for review are laid out on asphalt or sand), a canopy to hide from the rain and the sun (it does not exist at all for those crossing the border on motor vehicles).

According to my observations, the turn was also caused by the slow work of border control and customs inspectors. Most of them work one finger using the computer keyboard when entering data into the database. Why are such professionally unfit workers working at the border?

In the above-mentioned acts of the leadership and employees of the border guard service there is a degree of negligence (Article 367 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine) and abuse of power (Article 364 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine), excess of official powers (Article 365 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). Failure to perform or improper performance by the official of his duties due to his unfair treatment or his hidden interest (corruption), which causes substantial damage to the rights, freedoms and interests of Ukrainian citizens, interests of legal entities, public or public figures, is also seen.

I also draw your attention to the fact that in the above-mentioned actions of the leadership and employees of the border guard service there is a deliberate failure of the military official to perform the actions that she had to perform in his official duties, which caused substantial damage (Article 426 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

I demand, as citizens of Ukraine, a public figure and just a person, to bring employees and the leadership of the State Border and Customs Service of Ukraine to administrative and criminal liability.

I demand that the Minister of Finance, the heads of the border and customs services of Ukraine arrange for the crossing of the administrative border of Ukraine with the Crimea, which will meet European standards and a decent level both in terms of equipment and the quality of work of border guards and customs officers of Ukraine.

In case of not reacting or improper response to this complaint, I will be forced, as a public figure, to apply not only to the court of Ukraine, but also to the European Court of Human Rights regarding the protection of the rights and freedoms of Ukrainian citizens.

If we want to Europe, then, first of all, you need to make Europe in the territory of your own state!

June, 13, 2017 року 

On behalf and at the request of hundreds of Ukrainian citizens,

who along with me pass these “circles of hell” on checkpoint “Kalanchak”

May, 25, 2017 року

Public figure, academician and vice president of the Academy of Economic Sciences of Ukraine

Anatoly Peshko