BRUSSELS – The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe calls on the Ukrainian authorities to complete the investigation into the murder of Georgiy Gongadze in terms of identifying the instigators and organizers.
This is noted in the decision of the Committee of Ministers, adopted on Dec. 3 in the course of the meeting on supervision of the execution of judgments of the European Court.
“The deputies are recalling that this case concerns different issues linked to the protection of the safety of journalists and other media actors, following the failure to protect a journalist whose life was threatened and the lack of effective investigation into his subsequent disappearance and killing,” the report says.
The committee noted with concern that 20 years after Gongadze’s abduction and murder, proceedings have not yet concluded and no tangible progress has been achieved either in the conclusion of the cassation proceedings related to Pukach, one of the murder perpetrators, or in the criminal investigation into the instigation and organization of the murder.
The committee called upon the Ukrainian authorities to provide information as soon as possible on the outcome of the cassation proceedings concerning the sentence imposed on Pukach, and expressed their expectation that these proceedings be rapidly completed as they have already been pending for three years before the Supreme Court.
“It strongly urged the authorities to ensure the swift completion of the investigation into the instigation and organization of the murder, in accordance with Convention standards, invited them to provide detailed information as to the state and expected timeframes of the investigation, taking into account, amongst others, its transfer to the State Bureau of Investigations,” the committee stated.
“As regards general measures, the committee noted the information, including the statistical data, on the application of the criminal law provisions targeting crimes against journalists, which nevertheless does not conclusively demonstrate an improvement in the effectiveness of investigations; noted further with concern recent reports and NGO submissions on the low numbers of such investigations leading to concrete results,” the document notes.
