“People’s Court” judges Vladimir Putin for the war in Ukraine

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — On Monday, a “people’s court” appeared before Russian President Vladimir Putin on trial for the crime of aggression related to his invasion of Ukraine, in a symbolic move to close a “gap in responsibility” in the absence of an international tribunal. with jurisdiction.

The court has no legal authority, but prosecutors said they would present evidence that Putin committed the crime of aggression by ordering the invasion almost a year ago, unleashing a devastating war that has left thousands dead and cities in ruins.

“This is a crime that has a place in the annals of shame. This is a crime that requires accountability,” said Drew White, a Canadian lawyer who is serving as one of the court’s prosecutors.

Although the International Criminal Court has launched an investigation into crimes committed in Ukraine, it does not have jurisdiction to prosecute Russian leaders for aggression.

However, there is increasing international pressure to set up a special tribunal to prosecute the perpetrators. In January, the European Union legislature passed a non-binding resolution urging the 27-nation bloc to work “in close cooperation with Ukraine to seek and win political support in the UN General Assembly and other international forums … to establish a special tribunal.” for the crime of aggression against Ukraine.”

The Netherlands, home to several international courts, offered to host the court.

The People’s Court is an initiative of the human rights group Cinema for Peace, the Ukrainian Center for Civil Liberties and Ben Ferenc, a 102-year-old lawyer who is the last survivor of the Nuremberg trials of high-ranking Nazi leaders after World War II.

The week of hearings began in The Hague two days after US Vice President Kamala Harris said Washington had established that Russian troops in Ukraine had committed crimes against humanity and insisted that those responsible be held accountable.

The first day of Monday also coincided with an unannounced visit to Kyiv by US President Joe Biden.

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The court is due to deliver its verdict on Friday, the anniversary of the Russian invasion.

Putin was invited to take part in the hearings, but the organizers received no response from the Russian embassy in The Hague.

Nobel Peace Prize winner Oleksandra Matviychuk of the Ukrainian Civil Liberties Organization made a statement via video link ahead of the opening of the session.

“Putin and… the political leadership and high military command that initiated, planned and started this war of aggression must be punished for this international crime,” she said.

The first witness was Ukrainian journalist Anzhela Slobodyan, who told a panel of three judges that she was in the city of Kherson when Russian troops entered, “shooting everything that moves.”

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