The extent of the destruction caused Russia V Ukraine will be felt in the rights of future generations, its High Commissioner said today UN Human Rights Volker Türk.

“The war in Ukraine has resulted in civilian casualties and destruction on a shocking scale,” Turk said in a speech at a meeting of the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

“The rights of Ukrainians will suffer for future generations, and the impact of the war on fuel and food prices, as well as geopolitical tensions, is punishing people in all regions of the world,” he said.

“The fact that a war in Europe could again cause such damage to the whole world is a betrayal of the promises of change” made after World War II, he added.

Concern about “trends within Russia”

Turk also expressed concern about the trends observed in Russia.

He called the closure of the independent Novaya Gazeta and the banning of Moscow’s oldest human rights organization, the Helsinki Observatory, “a new sign of the end of Russian public space.”

“The constant propaganda messages in the state media feed stereotypes and incite hatred and violence,” he said.

He pointed out that more than 180 criminal cases have been opened in Russia on charges of libel against the armed forces, among those already convicted are a journalist and a deputy.

“As of December, any individual or entity that is considered ‘under foreign influence’ – a vague designation – can be called a ‘foreign agent’ and is subject to numerous restrictions,” he said.

He also referred to the law against “propaganda of non-traditional relations”, which applies to any information about sexual minorities.

^{Source: APE-MEB, AFP.}