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Liudmyla Denisova

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In this name that follows Eastern Slavic naming customs, the patronymic is Leontiyivna and the family name is Denisova.

Liudmyla Leontiivna Denisova
Людмила Леонтіївна Денісова
Denisova in 2014
3rd Ombudsman in Ukraine
In office
15 March 2018 – 31 May 2022
President
Prime Minister
Preceded byValeriya Lutkovska[1]
Succeeded byDmytro Lubinets
3rd Minister of Social Policy of Ukraine
In office
27 February 2014 – 2 December 2014[2]
President
Prime MinisterArseniy Yatsenyuk
Preceded byNatalia Korolevska
Succeeded byPavlo Rozenko[2]
In office
18 December 2007 – 11 March 2010
PresidentViktor Yanukovych
Prime MinisterYulia Tymoshenko
Preceded byMykhailo Papiev
Succeeded byVasyl Nadraha
People's Deputy of Ukraine
In office
27 November 2014[3] – 15 March 2018[4]
In office
15 December 2012[5] – 27 February 2014
In office
25 May 2006 – 18 December 2007
Personal details
Born (1960-07-06) 6 July 1960 (age 64)
Arkhangelsk, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union (now Russia)
Political partyPeople's Front
Other political
affiliations		Batkivshchyna (2005–2014)
SpouseOleksandr Ivanovych[6][7]
Children
  • Olena
  • Oleksandra[7]
Residence(s)Kyiv, Ukraine
OccupationPolitician, teacher, lawyer and economist

Liudmyla Leontiivna Denisova[a][9] (born 6 July 1960) is a Ukrainian politician. After twice serving as Minister of Social Policy of Ukraine, Denisova worked as Ombudsman for Human Rights in Ukraine from March 2018 to May 2022.[4]

Biography

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Raised by her mother Nina Ivanovna Ankudinova (born 1934) in Arkhangelsk, Denisova graduated from the Arkhangelsk Pedagogical School (1978), Leningrad State University (1989), and the Tavria Institute of Enterprise and Law in Simferopol (1995).[8]

Professional career

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Denisova was a teacher at a preschool in Arkhangelsk from 1979 to 1980.[8] For the next nine years, Denisova held different posts in the Arkhangelsk provincial law court.[8] In 1989, she moved to Ukraine and became the legal adviser of the Crimean Provincial Committee of Ukraine (1990–91).[8] From 1991 she worked in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea's Administration of the pension fund until 1998.[8]

Political career

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In 1998, Denisova became the Minister of Economy and Finances in the Crimean government.[10] In Ukraine's Autonomous Republic of Crimea, she served as Minister of Economy, Minister of Finance and head of the Treasury Department. Denisova was named Politician of the Year in 2001. In 2000, Denisova was detained for 24 hours and charged with power abuse.[11] Denisova has stated she was persecuted for refusing to sign a budget document.[11] This criminal case was soon closed.[11]

Denisova was a member of Batkivshchyna (Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc) from 2005 to 2014.[10] During the 2006 and 2007, parliamentary elections, she was elected as a deputy to the Verkhovna Rada.[12]

Minister

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On 18 December 2007, Yulia Tymoshenko, with a margin of two votes, was elected Prime Minister,[13] and the second Tymoshenko Government was formed between the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc and Our Ukraine–People's Self-Defense Bloc in which Denisova was elected Minister of Labour and Social Policy.

In October 2009, Denisova was ranked 15th in the top 100 of "most influential women in Ukraine" compiled by experts for the Ukrainian magazine Focus (six places lower than non-minister and fellow Batkivshchyna member Natalia Korolevska).[14]

2010 Crimean parliamentary election

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Denisova headed the electoral list of Batkivshchyna during the 2010 Crimean parliamentary election.[9] Batkivshchyna did not win seats in the Supreme Council of Crimea.[15]

2012 Ukrainian parliamentary election

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Denisova was placed at number 38 on the electoral list of Batkivshchyna during the 2012 Ukrainian parliamentary election.[16] She was re-elected into the Verkhovna Rada[17]

2nd minister post

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On 27 February 2014, Denisova became Minister of Labour and Social Policy in the Yatsenyuk Government.[18]

In September 2014 Denisova became a founding member of the People's Front party.[19]

In July 2017, she became Ukraine's head of the permanent delegation to represent the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation.[20]

2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election

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In the 2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Denisova was re-elected into the Verkhovna Rada, placed 15th on the electoral list of People's Front.[21][22][23]

Ombudsman for Human Rights in Ukraine

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On 15 March 2018, the Verkhovna Rada appointed Denisova Ombudsman to head the Ukrainian Commission for Human Rights, where she led a team of human rights and constitutional lawyers.[24][4]

In February 2019, following the Kerch Strait incident in which Russia and Ukraine's tensions had dramatically increased and the Federal Security Service had taken into custody a number of Ukrainian troops, Denisova was able to make contact with Tatyana Moskalkova, her Russian counterpart, via an impromptu meeting, and discuss the status of wounded Ukrainian prisoners of war.[25] The latter had previously refused to meet with her after Denisova launched an official protest that she was not able to visit the Ukrainian wounded soldiers directly.[26]

During the Russian invasion she was described as becoming "one of the leading voices of Ukraine’s suffering and outrage, appearing frequently in news coverage and producing a copious stream of social media posts"[24] She set up a hotline for citizens to report human rights violations and requests for help. According to New York Times, "The vast majority [of calls], more than 15,000 in the first six weeks of war, were for missing people, but requests also come in for humanitarian aid and safe corridors out of besieged cities... The information from callers is fed into a database that Ms. Denisova shares with government officials and prosecutors. As such, it has become an invaluable first warning system for the gross human rights abuses occurring in the cities under assault, and in the towns and villages occupied by Russian troops."[24] Denisova argued that Russian forces were committing genocide, citing the systematic sexual violence by Russian troops and the forcible deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia.[24] She said that in many cases Russian soldiers had called Ukrainian women "Nazi whores" and raped them “until they can't give birth, or give birth to their children" "This suggests that they want to destroy the Ukrainian nation. And when they kill children, it also means that they do not want our nation to be in this world.”[24]

On 31 May 2022, the Verkhovna Rada voted to dismiss her, using the provisions of Ukraine's martial law, for failing to facilitate humanitarian corridors in warzones, to prevent Ukrainians under Russian occupation from being deported to Russia, and to facilitate the protection and exchange of prisoners of war.[27][28][29] The deputy chairman of the Rada regulatory committee said that Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk had had to take on most of the wartime human rights issues.[28] An open letter from 140 activists, media professionals and lawyers criticized the rhetoric of her reports about sexual crimes by Russian forces just before her dismissal.[30][31][27]

Some NGOs and human rights activists, including Opora, questioned the legality of her removal. The Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) and the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU) both criticised the procedure followed for dismissing Denisova, with HRMMU describing the dismissal as "violat[ing] international standards". As of 3 June 2022, a replacement had not been appointed.[29][32][33][34] In June, Ukrainska Pravda published a report alleging that journalists and the Ukrainian Prosecutor’s Office had only been able to verify some of the rapes Denisova had spoken about publicly.[35] Additionally, the deputy chairman of Ukraine's parliament regulatory committee Pavlo Frolov said that Denisova's focus on reporting some unverified crimes had harmed Ukraine's reputation and distracted media attention from proven crimes and problems.[36]

Notes

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  1. ^ Ukrainian: Людмила Леонтіївна Денісова; Russian: Людмила Леонтьевна Денисова, romanized: Lyudmila Leontyevna Denisova[8]

References

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  1. ^ "Людмила Деніcова — омбудсмен: що із цього вийде?" [Lyudmila Denisova - Ombudsman: what will happen?]. www.ukrinform.ua. 19 March 2018.
  2. ^ a b "Rada supports coalition-proposed government lineup". Interfax-Ukraine. 2 December 2014.
    "Rada approves new Cabinet with three foreigners". Kyiv Post. 2 December 2014.
    "Rada voted the new Cabinet]" (in Ukrainian). Ukrayinska Pravda. 2 December 2014.
  3. ^ "CEC registers 357 newly elected deputies of 422". National Radio Company of Ukraine. 25 November 2014. Archived from the original on 4 December 2014.
    "Parliament to form leadership and coalition on November 27". UNIAN. 26 November 2014.
  4. ^ a b c "Рада обрала нового омбудсмена" [The Rada elected a new ombudsman]. Ukrayinska Pravda (15 March 2018)
  5. ^ You Scratch My Back, and I’ll Scratch Yours, The Ukrainian Week (26 September 2012)
  6. ^ "Царские хоромы и убогие квартирки украинских министров - 2. ФОТО" [Royal mansions and miserable apartments of Ukrainian ministers - 2. PHOTO]. www.rupor.info.
  7. ^ a b Biography Archived 2 March 2009 at the Wayback Machine, Довідники про сучасну Україну (in Ukrainian)
  8. ^ a b c d e f (in Russian) Short bio, LIGA
  9. ^ a b Liudmyla Denisova heads electoral list of Crimean branch of Batkivschyna Party, Kyiv Post (30 September 2010)
  10. ^ a b "Новый состав Кабмина принят единогласно" [The new composition of the Cabinet was adopted unanimously]. Archived from the original on 24 June 2008. Retrieved 23 April 2008., news.mediaport.ua(in Russian)
  11. ^ a b c "Is She Next?". Kyiv Post. 3 September 2010.
  12. ^ "Про дострокове припинення повноважень народного депутата України Денісової Л.Л." [On the early termination of the powers of People's Deputy of Ukraine L. L. Denisova.]. Офіційний вебпортал парламенту України (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  13. ^ "Yulia Tymoshenko elected Prime-Minister". Youtube (in Ukrainian). 18 December 2007. Retrieved 18 December 2007.
  14. ^ (in Russian) "Рейтинг Фокуса: 100 самых влиятельных женщин и 100 деталей о них" [Focus Rating: 100 most influential women and 100 details about them]. 23 October 2009. Archived from the original on 27 February 2014. Retrieved 27 October 2009., Focus
  15. ^ (in Ukrainian) Results of the elections, preliminary data, on interactive maps by Ukrayinska Pravda (8 November 2010)
  16. ^ They Call Themselves the Opposition, The Ukrainian Week (31 August 2012)
  17. ^ (in Ukrainian)"Список депутатів нової Верховної Ради" [List of deputies of the new Verkhovna Rada]. Ukrayinska Pravda. 11 November 2012.
  18. ^ Maidan nominates Yatseniuk for prime minister, Interfax-Ukraine (26 February 2014)
    Ukrainian parliament endorses new cabinet, Interfax-Ukraine (27 February 2014)
  19. ^ Yatseniuk elected head of political council of People's Front Party Archived 2 January 2015 at the Wayback Machine, Demotix (9 September 2014)
  20. ^ "Народный депутат Людмила Денисова избрана заместителем главы ПАЧЭС" [People's Deputy Lyudmila Denisova was elected Deputy Head of the PABSEC]. Зеркало недели | Дзеркало тижня | Mirror Weekly. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  21. ^ Poroshenko Bloc to have greatest number of seats in parliament Archived 12 November 2014 at the Wayback Machine, Ukrinform (8 November 2014)
    People's Front 0.33% ahead of Poroshenko Bloc with all ballots counted in Ukraine elections - CEC Archived 12 November 2014 at the Wayback Machine, Interfax-Ukraine (8 November 2014)
    Poroshenko Bloc to get 132 seats in parliament - CEC, Interfax-Ukraine (8 November 2014)
  22. ^ (in Ukrainian) Full electoral list of "Fatherland" Archived 15 September 2014 at the Wayback Machine, TVi (15 September 2014)
  23. ^ (in Ukrainian) Electoral list of People's Front, Ukrayinska Pravda (20 September 2014)
  24. ^ a b c d e On the Trail of Russian War Crimes, by Carlotta Gall, New York Times
  25. ^ "Денисова обсудила с Москальковой состояние здоровья раненых украинских военных" [Denisova discussed with Moskalkova the health status of wounded Ukrainian soldiers]. Крым.Реалии (in Russian). 21 February 2019. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  26. ^ "Москалькова отменила официальную встречу с Денисовой из-за ее протеста" [Moskalkova canceled an official meeting with Denisova due to her protest]. Крым.Реалии (in Russian). 21 February 2019. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  27. ^ a b Saidel, Peter (31 May 2022). "Ukraine's Parliament Dismisses Human-Rights Chief". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  28. ^ a b Burdyha, Igor (3 June 2022). "Why Ukraine's human rights chief Lyudmila Denisova was dismissed". Deutsche Welle. Archived from the original on 13 June 2022. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
  29. ^ a b Chervonenko, Vitaly (31 May 2022). "Денісову звільнили з посади омбудсмена. За що і чи це законно" [Denisova was dismissed from the post of ombudsman. Why and is it legal?]. BBC News Ukraine (in Ukrainian).
  30. ^ "Медійниці закликали Людмилу Денісову скоригувати комунікацію про статеві злочини в час війни" [Media women urged Lyudmila Denisova to correct the communication about sexual crimes during the war]. detector.media (in Ukrainian). 25 May 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  31. ^ "Rada dismisses human rights commissioner, but why?". english.nv.ua. 31 May 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  32. ^ "Human rights defenders demand compliance with procedures and independent competition for the position of the Commissioner for Human Rights | ZMINA | Центр Прав Людини". zmina.ua. 31 May 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  33. ^ "UN: Ombudsman's dismissal 'contrary to international standards.'". The Kyiv Independent. 1 June 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  34. ^ Lukashova, Sonya (27 June 2022). "От facebook до допросов. Почему омбудсмен Денисова потеряла должность" [From facebook to interrogations. Why Ombudsman Denisova lost her position]. Ukrainska Pravda (in Russian). Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  35. ^ "'This will not help us defeat the enemy' A new report looks at Ukrainian Ombudsman Lyudmyla Denisova, who was fired after officials couldn't confirm her stories of rape committed by Russian soldiers". Meduza. 28 June 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  36. ^ "Why Ukraine's human rights chief Lyudmila Denisova was fired – DW – 06/03/2022". dw.com. Retrieved 29 November 2022.
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Political offices
Preceded by Ombudsman of Ukraine
2018–2022 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister of Social Policy of Ukraine
2014 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister of Labor and Social Policy of Ukraine
2007–2010 		Succeeded by
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