WASHINGTON – Co-chairs of the Congressional Ukraine Caucus, Reps. Sander Levin (D-Mich.), Mike Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) and Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), and caucus member Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr. (D-N.J.), on June 9 urged the co-chairs of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission to support the release of detained Ukrainian pilot and Member of Parliament Nadiya Savchenko.
The commission, formerly known as the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, was named in honor of the late Rep. Thomas Peter Lantos (D-Calif.), the only Holocaust survivor to ever serve in the U.S. Congress (1980-2008). The congressman dedicated all of his efforts to raise awareness and respect for human rights around the world and became a leading human rights champion in the Congress. In 1983, he co-founded the Congressional Human Rights Caucus with then-Congressman John Edward Porter (R-Ill.).
In their letter to the commission, the four members of Congress wrote: “Since her capture and detention in July 2014, we have been concerned about her deteriorating condition. Savchenko has been subjected to psychiatric evaluations, solitary confinement, and callous treatment by Russian authorities. She also did not receive adequate medical care, especially since her commencement of hunger strikes to protest the terms of her detention. We urge the commission to support Nadiya Savchenko’s release and facilitate passage of H. Res. 50.”
Ms. Savchenko is a female fighter pilot for Ukraine’s armed forces. During her mission in eastern Ukraine, she was captured by rebel forces, and illegally transferred to the Russian Federation to stand trial on unsubstantiated charges of complicity in murder. While in detention, Russian courts have repeatedly delayed her hearing dates for apparently politically motivated reasons. Recently, a Moscow court again extended her pretrial detention to June 30. [On June 10, the court further extended her detention to September 30.]
In January, Rep. Levin was joined by Reps. Pascrell, Fitzpatrick and Kaptur in introducing a House resolution that calls for Ms. Savchenko’s release. The companion Senate resolution, S. Res. 52, passed by unanimous consent on February 12.
In their letter to the commission, the House members also wrote: “Savchenko is a member of the Parliament Assembly of the Council of Europe, and was elected in absentia to Ukraine’s Parliament in October 2014. The call to end her illegal detention has received overwhelming support from the international community. In January 2015, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe called for her immediate release… In April, members of the European Parliament passed a resolution demanding her immediate and unconditional release. And in May 2015, the United States Ambassador to Ukraine called on Russia to release Savchenko. In addition, officials at the State Department have repeatedly spoken about their concern for her detention.”