The Ukrainian Association of South Africa (UAZA) protesting against Russia's war in Ukraine. Photo: Lesya Karpenko - UAZA
As the 15th Brics Summit get underway at the Sandton Convention Centre, The Ukrainian Association of South Africa (UAZA) said “It’s not possible to promote human rights, peace and stability, without condemning Russian war crimes in Ukraine, military aggression and nuclear-threatening rhetoric.”
The organisation together with Amnesty International South Africa, the Helen Suzman Foundation, and its partner are holding a peaceful demonstration outside the venue where the summit is being held.
Speaking to The Citizen from Ukraine, UAZA secretary Anastasia Korpeso said the organisation is calling for an end to the invasion of Ukraine and for a crackdown on anti-war protesters in Russia to stop.
“We are calling on world leaders of the Brics summit to use their diplomatic influence to call on the Russian authorities, specifically the president of Russia Vladimir Putin, to immediately cease the act of aggression against Ukraine, remove military forces and stop the firing of missiles on civilian infrastructure and civilians.
UAZA said it had also reached out to President Cyril Ramaphosa.
“We call on President Ramaphosa to follow the pillars of the foreign policy described and to clearly condemn the Russian war against Ukraine, the violation of Ukrainian territorial integrity, the systemic violation of basic human rights to life and liberty, and the forceful deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia that the Russian president is personally responsible for.”
“This military aggression is also directly linked to increased suffering on the African continent. The rising global food scarcity and increased fuel prices are directly linked to the Russian war against Ukraine,” it said.
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Meanwhile, Amnesty International representative Sibusiso Khasa told The Citizen Russia must end its invasion of Ukraine.
He claimed the group were not allowed near the venue to voice their concerns.
“The fact they put us about 3.7km away from the conference, tells you there is an attempt to curtail freedom of speech.
“If you look at the issues right now, it means that they don’t want us to send a message directly to the leaders that are sitting there discussing other matters. We want them to prioritise human rights and this particular issue and call out Russia,” Khasa said.
Uaza said peaceful protests will also be held in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal.
While Vladimir Putin will not be appearing in person, the other four Brics nations will be under scrutiny for their stance on the war.
Russia is represented by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the summit.
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