U.S. citizen agitates for his incarcerated stepson


Source: Kyiv Post, print edition, June 9th, 2005, page 1

by Yulianna Vilkos

Whatever illusions U.S citizen Joe Hendershott had about human rights in Ukraine evaporated when he saw how the country’s justice system treated a member of his own family.

Last week, Hendershott’s Ukrainian stepson was sentenced to four years in prison – a verdict that followed a months-long process that he alleges was marred by corruption and violation of the detainee’s human and constitutional rights.

Jail time

It all started last December for Hendershott, who lives in Evpatoria with his Ukrainian wife of four years.  That’s when his 18-year-old stepson Artur Zheludkov was arrested outside Mykolaiv after getting into a fight with a taxi driver.  The altercation was over a fare, which Hendershott said his stepson refused to pay.  The driver was left with a lacerated throat.

Zheludkov was taken to the Mykolaiv central police department, where the cops, according to Hendershott, “hung him from a broom stick, placed a gas mask on his head and beat him until he told them what they wanted to hear.”

Hendershott claims the police also got from Zheludkov the PIN code for his credit card; shortly after, he says, money was taken out on the card without Zheludkov’s authorization.

Hendershott said a police detective prevented him and his wife from seeing Artur for almost a month after the detention – in order, Hendershott alleges, to let the signs of torture fade away.

When the court hearings started, Hendershott alleges that he and his wife were advised by their lawyer to bribe the judge and prosecutor to secure a better verdict.  Artur was convicted of assault and attempted robbery.

“We ended up giving a little more than $3,000, and it turned out to be only enough to get him four years in prison,” Hendershott said.

Under duress

But according to Hendershott, the court’s ruling is invalid anyway, because the confession was obtained under duress.

“Even if he admitted the crime to the police, it cannot be accepted as evidence, because it was gained under torture,” Hendershott said, referring to the International Covenant Against Torture, signed by Ukraine 20 years ago.  After such a violation of a detainee’s rights, there could be no trial and no admission of any evidence, Hendershott said.

Hendershott says he has no other option but to protest.  He says he is determined to bring international attention to the case, to free his stepson and punish those responsible for breaking the law and violating international conventions on human rights.

“I am quite serious [that] this case will gain the attention of interested parties in Ukraine, Europe, and the U.S.,” Hendershott says.

“We want our son to be freed immediately and the people who committed the crime against him should go to jail,” he says.

Yury Krasnikov, a police detective at Mykolaiv central police department who dealt with the case, denied Hendershott’s accusations.

“Police never beat the arrested unless they resist,” Krasnikov said.  He also dismissed allegations of theft and guessed that Hendershott is making his accusations because “parents want to rescue their child.”

“In cases like this, it is practically impossible to reverse the verdict.,” Krasnikov noted.  “It’s only because the guy is an American that he can possibly make a fuss out of it.”

Valentyna Valkova, a lawyer for Zheludkov, refused to comment on the case over the phone.

Widespread problem

Meanwhile, human rights advocates say the torture of detainees remains a widespread practice in the country.  They maintain it will take years to eliminate the problems that infect all levels of the law enforcement hierarchy.

Yevgeniy Zakharov, head of the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, which investigates cases of torture and ill-treatment from all over Ukraine, says there has been no noticeable progress in fighting the problem since the government of President Viktor Yushchenko took office in January.

“We continue to receive information about the systematic violation of human rights of the arrested, including torture by police officers who need confessions from detainees,” Zakharov said.

“The only difference is that the punishers are more careful now.  If earlier they tormented a victim openly, now they are putting masks on or covering the victim’s face,” he said.

Zakharov says that people are often afraid to report such cases, fearing even worse abuse.  This makes calculating even rough statistics practically impossible.

Still, the Group’s Center for Professional Protection Against Tortute has opened more than 40 criminal cases against law enforcement officers since its foundation in 2003, Zakharov said.

Some response

Hendershott’s appeals are already getting responses from human rights activists and international organizations, like Amnesty International, which is looking into the case.

U.S. citizen Terry Hallman, a Kharkiv-based human rights advocate who has been contacting local anti-corruption committees regarding the case, says that for him helping Artur is “a matter of principle.”

Hallman has been keeping an eye on corruption in Ukraine since last year, when he halted his economic development project in Crimea because he was not willing to spend money on bribes for corrupt officials.  He decided to wait for better times and felt like this could be the right moment to invest.  But learning about Artur’s case may make him wait more.

“I see it not as Artur being on trial, but as Ukraine being on trial,” said Hallman.

“I want to check if it’s really possible to obtain justice in this country now.  After all, the Orange Revolution was all about justice and anti-corruption, wasn’t it?” he asked.

 

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Re: US citizen agitates/Artur's case
Submitted by Terry Hallman on Sun, 2005-06-19 16:19.

I'm posting this to provide a general, public roadmap about what to do in cases such as Artur's.  I've talked with numerous well-intended Ukrainian citizens in the course of pursuing Artur's case.  It seems that quite a few Ukrainians care deeply about Artur's case and the issues it raises, but no one is entirely sure about what to do.  In this transitional period within Ukraine, many good people are trying to figure out and understand what to do in the course of justice and human rights, convinced that now, in New Ukraine, these sorts of issues really do matter and really can be resolved.  At the same time, there seems to be little practical experience in such matters.


Amnesty International is interested in Artur's case, and provides the following guidelines:

  • All remedies within Ukrainian government must be pursued first, even if they prove to be useless.
  • Those remedies include the following three main offices:
    • Ukraine's Prosecutor General
    • Ukraine's Ministry of Interior
    • Ukraine's ombudsman.  According to two entirely independent assessments, this appears to be the office of Viktor Musiyaka in Kyiv.

All three offices can be contacted simultaneously, either by Artur's family or by human rights advocates for his case.  If less than satisfactory response, particularly regarding allegations of torture, then Amnesty International is in position to take on the case and, if necessary, refer it to the European Court for Human Rights.  According to Amnesty International, "Amnesty International's concern in this case is the torture that he suffered in detention, we are well aware that it is a continuing problem in Ukraine."


One simple note to Ukraine and Ukrainian government: as long as this remains a continuing problem in Ukraine, Ukraine can forget about joining Europe.  This is a very simple equation, about as uncomplicated a question as Ukraine will face among the myriad of hurdles in joining European civilization.  Artur's situation cannot be ignored, and similar situations cannot continue, if Ukraine is to become a Western civilized country.  Mechanisms to bring that about are entirely internal to Ukraine, to manage these matters effectively, or not.  It is Ukraine's choice.  Freedom of choice is now a real option in Ukraine; it is up to Ukrainians to decide what to do. It would be much better if this matter is settled in Ukraine, without having to refer it to the European Court. Such a referral would surely be a setback for Ukraine's ambition to join Europe, although it is easy to understand how and why obstructionists and Kuchma-era remnants-now-opposition would like nothing more than for that to happen.


In the meantime, advocates for Artur will continue to work for his release and justice, within and without Ukraine.


Finally, for the record, I have it from a very trusted source that Nikolaev (Mykolaiv) is notorious for cases exactly like Artur's, and it will come as no surprise to anyone in Kyiv to learn the details of this matter.  The question is simply whether or not any officials within Ukraine have the time and motivation to do anything about it.


We are about to find out.

 

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US citizen agitates etc.....
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 2005-06-12 23:31.

There are probably thousnads of such cases acreoss Ukraine. I know personally of one, where the detainee was incarcerated almost four years without trial in eastern Ukraine ..(.and then mysteriously temporarily released )destroying his mother's health and resulting in her hospitalisation. Every time she travelled to see him she had to borrow money, every time she went to see him there were numerous bribes to be paid, and every time she went to see him she couldn't see him without a lawyer and so there was a lawyer to be paid ...and so on and so on.... Good honest people. I do not think this case of the young man with an American father should be singled out for specific attention just because an accident of birth gives him a non-Ukrainian parent. If this proves to be the case then it will be very very unfair and a travesty as well as tragedy for those hundreds if not thousands corruptly incarcerated and who have no voice to speak for themselves.

SW

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re: US citizen agitates etc
Submitted by Terry Hallman on Mon, 2005-06-13 02:04.

SW,
Are you saying that this case should be ignored as a matter of fairness and justice, because there are thousands of others? Justice should be distributed equally, therefore, Artur shouldn't get justice because no one else does?

What you seem to be suggesting is that corruption, rather than justice, should be distributed fairly and equally among all Ukrainians.

This case is making news not simply because Artur has an American stepfather who cares about him. It is making news because it's rather unusual that anyone would speak out and and protest, because many Ukrainians are still inclined to do exactly what you're suggesting, which is to do nothing at all because corruption is normal. Furthemore, a new government was elected in Kyiv, according to the apparent demands of millions of Ukrainians to do away with corruption. This case will demonstrate whether or not that's possible, and many of us think that now, it is. If justice is possible for Artur now in new Ukraine, it is possible for thousands of others just like him.

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Re: US citizen agitates etc.....
Submitted by Jeff.Mowatt on Mon, 2005-06-13 01:39.

SW, Be assured that it won't be a special case singled out, but a precedent for the future. This case will define the reporting and action mechanisms for all such problems and those that have taken part in exposing this case will do the same for ALL Ukrainians. Believe it!

Jeff Mowatt

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What Ukrainian wants to be subjected to this?
Submitted by sketaletz@allia... on Sun, 2005-06-12 19:34.

Its only because the guy is an American that he can possibly make a fuss out of it. says Major Yuri Krasnikov, lead MBC-Mykolaiv investigator. What a cynical statement for an MBC Major.

Rather than confronting serious allegations of torture in detention, theft by Militia, and corruption in the Mykolaiv Militia, Prokuratura and Judiciary, Krasnikov comes out with this platitude.

The head contact for the Mykolaiv MBC appears to be a Mykola Hrihorovich Kypianskii. The contact for the Criminal Investigations Unit of that Oblast seems to be a Valentin Mykolaivich Parseniuk. Kypianskii's position is on the MBC website: http://www.mik-mia.mksat.net/ as is Parseniuk's.

One of Kypianskii's jobs is to ensure that "The Program to develop a positive image for the MBC in Ukraine 2003-2007", touted on the Mykolaiv MBC site, is implemented. That program claims to foster a Militia that is transparent in its operations, and responsive to each citizen's concerns and complaints. It then lays claim to the highest level of professionalism and competence possible for the Mykolaiv Oblast MBC.

Krasnikov's statement makes a mockery of these lofty MBC aspirational goals. Kupianskii, Parseniuk, and other senior MBC managers ought to do something about it. If they don't, the Mykolaiv MBC leadership will likely wind up holding the bag--and bearing the consequences--for this one.

You'd figure that that senior level cops would understand their responsibilities within the mandates they hold. Their actions, policies and decisions should be in the best practice of their profession--its a difficult job. If that isn't enough of a motivation, they ought to realize the career risks they take with corrupt practices--they only have to look to their ex-counterparts in other oblasts to see what happens when Kyiv gets involved.

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Re: U.S. citizen agitates
Submitted by Jeff.Mowatt on Sun, 2005-06-12 09:58.

As Joe will no doubt point out, there were allegedly 4 young male passengers.

Now, as Terry says, Ukraine is on trial. The part we who support democracy from the outside must play is to raise awareness of this case and get the weight of human rights organisations around the world behind this appeal for justice.

Ukraine's new goverment is on our side, it's not just a question of goading them into action, it's also about letting all Ukrainians know that the world is watching and demanding fair play.

Ukraine's democracy depends on motivating a population who find it hard to overcome hopelessness. Let them know that this isn't just about having the right connections, that the same forces will be deployed against all injustices, that the whole world stands with them against this kind of tyranny.

Jeff

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Re: U.S. citizen agitates
Submitted by Terry Hallman on Sun, 2005-06-12 12:26.

Just caught my (British) friend Jeff's comments after posting a blog entry, words from a (British) group some folks might have heard of before.

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From Artur's Parents
Submitted by Joe and Lena (not verified) on Sat, 2005-06-11 17:34.

A few comments after reading the story.

We certainly are not surprised that Detective Krasnakov denied everything, he may be corrupt and greedy, but not that stupid.

What was failed to be mentioned is that the account that was stolen from can be easily checked, the fact that the judge, detective and lawyers DON"T do so is proof that they are hiding something.

Also, one key point we have is that we were kept from Artur for 7 weeks, not the month as reported. And WHY were we not contacted when Artur was arrested and asked that we be called? That is a major violation of the Ukrainian code.

These simple questions, and more, should be easy to answer, but everyone dodges them very easily.

It is time the officials be forced to answer the allegations, so far they have all been swept under the carpet.

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