The bloody war unleashed by Putin’s Russia on the territory of Ukraine has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people, destroyed cities, and made millions of people refugees. The actions of the Putin regime and the Russian military in relation to sovereign Ukraine and the Ukrainian people are manifestations of real fascism.
UnMode – the Communities movement for Access to Justice unites human rights defenders from the community of people who use drugs, prisoners/ex-prisoners of Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia, Russia. In these terrible times, expresses support in word and deed for the heroic Ukrainian people! Our heart and our efforts are aimed at the victory of Ukraine over the aggressor! We are categorically against the Russian imperial policy, fascism and violence in any of its manifestations!
Fascism does not value life, freedom, human rights and the principles of democracy. War, in addition to obvious destruction, also carries implicit, but no less pernicious destruction – it becomes a “justification” for actions that violate human rights, trample on the principles of democracy and divide people on whatever grounds.
Our communities were vulnerable even in the times of peace as we faced daily violations of our rights, often with legalized repression. During the times of war, these communities become even more vulnerable, as there is a high risk that discrimination, repression and violations of minority rights can now be justified by “wartime laws”.
At such moments, it is more important than ever for all civil society organizations, communities and community organizations to prevent war “inside themselves” and stop attempts to normalize any manifestations of discrimination, persecution, discord and hostility towards each other.
Multi-country organizations claiming to be the voice of the community of the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region (EECA) are simply obliged to become a unifying, not a divisive force in this difficult time.
Unfortunately, Eurasian Network of People who Use Drugs (ENPUD), which has a long experience of activity in our region, could not become such a force, having embarked on the path of disunity and hostility.
On April 18, 2022, by the decision of the Management Board of the network all Russian members of ENPUD were excluded from mailing lists, and social media groups, general communication chats of ENPUD and at the same time they received notifications about the suspension of their active membership and, accordingly, the deprivation of their right to vote and make decisions in ENPUD, as well as the opportunity to occupy any position in the network.
e express our unambiguous protest against the actions of the leadership of ENPUD, represented by the members of the Board of ENPUD and the Program Coordinator of ENPUD, to exclude Russian members from the network and deprive them of the right to vote and any other powers.
We declare that the actions of the ENPUD leadership were not initiated by either members of ENPUD from Ukraine or from Russia and do not reflect the common position of the community of people who use drugs in the EECA region.
We call on all interested parties – partners, donors, international community organizations – to immediately intervene and stop the massive violation of the right to vote for the representatives of the Russian community of people who use drugs.
UnMode – the Communities Movement for Access to Justice