talk to the lawyer Oleksandra Matviichuk (Boiarka, Ukraine, 39 years old) These days it is an almost impossible mission or, in the best of cases, it can take several days to achieve. Even if one has her phone number. to power cuts in Ukrainethe usual frenetic work of the activist and her displacements, is now added the increased media attention that there is around the organization that she presides over, the Center for Civil Libertieswinner of the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize (along with the Russian Memorial and the Belarusian political activist Ales Bialiatski). An award that has emphasized the extremely difficult work that Matviichuk has been doing for the last 8 years: investigating the war crimes that are committed in your country. “It is impossible to get used to war,” says this specialist in human rights, in an interview with EL PERIÓDICO DE CATALUNYA, from the Prensa Ibérica group, which is finally held remotely a few hours before the ceremony in which she will receive the award this Saturday .
What is your job?
The Center for Civil Liberties has been documenting war crimes since the conflict began in 2014. Since after the start of the large-scale Russian invasion (last February), together with a dozen other humanitarian organizations, we have been working on the initiative ‘A court for (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’.
What is it about?
Investigators have documented the intentional destruction of residential buildings, schools and churches, deliberate attacks against hospitals and medical personnel, forced deportations of the population, murders, sexual violence and torture of civilians. (This year), in just nine months, we documented 26,000 episodes of war crimes.
Do they also work in the territories occupied by Russia? And if so, how?
For eight years, we have collected information on crimes in the occupied territories in Crimea, Donetsk and Lugansk. Our tools include the analysis of open sources and their verification, as well as the collection of documents and testimonials from people who live or have been there. This year we have continued to work on this.
What do they do with this information next?
We are collecting this information so that sooner or later all Russians responsible for these crimes, as well as Putin and the other political and military leaders, will be brought to justice.
But how can these cases be judged internationally? Do you think taking them to The Hague is an option?
The efforts of the International Criminal Court are very important, but they will be limited to a few specific cases. And, on the other hand, the (Ukrainian) judicial system is overloaded by the huge number of cases. Therefore, the problem of how to give the justice that is owed to hundreds of thousands of victims a chance is quite serious.
What solution do you propose?
I believe that, for there to be accountability, an international tribunal must be created. Because if we say that each person’s life matters, then we must back these words up with concrete actions.
In 1998, at the request of the Spanish judge Baltasar Garzón, the Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet was arrested thanks to the application of the principle of universal jurisdiction. Is it a path?
Yes, universal jurisdiction is an important tool in the complex strategy of justice. And for this reason we have called on countries to use their laws and open criminal cases. That said, this does not mean that the work of the (Ukrainian) Prosecutor General’s Office on the hundreds of thousands of cases already under investigation will be interrupted. Therefore, yes, it is an important tool, but not the only one.
Are they also working on war crimes charges against Ukrainian soldiers? How should these facts be investigated?
We are fighting a war in which we defend our right to live and build a country where all people’s rights are protected, where the government is held accountable, the courts are independent, and the police are at the service of the people. It is very important that we adhere to these values, and for this reason, these allegations of violations must be investigated. There is no point in defeating Russia and becoming Russia ourselves.
On a personal level, what has impacted you the most so far?
We work with so much human pain that for a long time I forbade myself to ask myself any questions. There are many terrifying stories. Probably the most difficult have been the cases of sexual violence against children by the Russian Army.
Can this Nobel Prize change your work?
During these eight years we worked with people who lived through hell. I personally interviewed more than 100 people who were held captive. They told me how they were beaten, raped, suffered amputations, or tortured with electric shocks to their genitals. We send dozens of reports to the UN, the OSCE, the Council of Europe, the EU. No one paid due attention to the voice of human rights defenders. However, there can be no peace in our region without justice. We must break this circle of impunity.
So what can the Nobel Peace Prize do for peace?
We have won this award in wartime. It is a huge responsibility. But also a unique opportunity to remind the world that peace, progress and human rights are interconnected. And that a State that systematically violates human rights poses a threat not only to its citizens. The example of Russia demonstrates this convincingly.