Venediktova: Ukraine's First Woman Prosecutor
2022-04-24
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1The messages, reports from across Ukraine, read:
2One civilian dead.
3Thirteen military casualties.
4Five civilians injured.
5Ukrainian Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova is looking at her cell phone as the messages come in.
6Her staff will collect the messages, register the reports, and investigate them for evidence of possible war crimes.
7Venediktova declared last week that Ukraine would seek official international justice against Russia for its war.
8She noted at the time that the process would not be a quick one, especially as the warring continues.
9And, so it is.
10The office is slowly and carefully gathering the information with one goal in mind: to hold Russia's military and its president, Vladimir Putin, accountable for the death and destruction in Ukraine.
11Venediktova's office has opened more than 8,000 criminal cases linked to the war already.
12Investigators have identified 500 suspects so far, including Russian government ministers and military commanders.
13Venediktova has deployed prosecutors to refugee centers across Ukraine and at border crossings.
14They talk with the displaced, seeking the refugees' stories of the war to document as evidence.
15Even little details reported by a witness can be important.
16A description of an attacker's clothing, or the sound of shelling, might lead to a major finding.
17The interviews are slow and careful but worthy of the time.
18Venediktova and her office say they have documented evidence of mass burial sites, execution of civilians, shelling of civilian areas, repeated attacks on hospitals, forced disappearances, torture, sexual violence and cities under siege, denied food, water and humanitarian aid.
19For Venediktova, the goal is personal. "I protect the public interest of Ukrainian citizens," she told The Associated Press.
20"And now I see that I can't protect these dead kids. And for me it's pain," she said.
21The 43-year-old former law professor became Ukraine's prosecutor general in 2020, the first woman to serve in the position.
22Since the war, she is on the move continuously with special safety measures in place, including bullet-proof military clothing. There is little time to eat or rest.
23"The main functions of the law are to protect and to compensate. I hope that we can do it, because now it's just beautiful words, no more rule of law," Venediktova says.
24"It's very beautiful words. I want them to work."
25Recently Venediktova visited the Lviv office.
26She and prosecutors spoke with Ala. Ala is 34 years old, and she has an 8-year-old daughter.
27Ala did not give her last name because her daughter is still in the Russian-controlled area.
28Ala explains to them that shelling destroyed her home.
29 She collected a piece of metal for evidence.
30"We need proof for them to be punished. I am lucky. I am still here to talk about what happened to me," Ala said.
31Venediktova has been creating partnerships and relations with human rights group.
32Some of these groups and the public have been concerned about the Ukrainian authorities in the past.
33Venediktova also wants average citizens to help collect evidence by using their phones to send the information to a government website.
34In the past five weeks there have been over 6,000 claims on the site.
35Most nights, Venediktova appears on Ukrainian TV to speak to the people of her country.
36She tells them that Ukraine will punish Russia for its actions.
37"My first joy will be victory when we sell someone's villa, yacht, and our ordinary Ukrainians, who were forced to flee their homes, will physically receive this compensation," she says.
38"Thank you, good evening, see you soon."
39I'm Faith Pirlo.
1The messages, reports from across Ukraine, read: 2One civilian dead. 3Thirteen military casualties. 4Five civilians injured. 5Ukrainian Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova is looking at her cell phone as the messages come in. Her staff will collect the messages, register the reports, and investigate them for evidence of possible war crimes. 6Venediktova declared last week that Ukraine would seek official international justice against Russia for its war. She noted at the time that the process would not be a quick one, especially as the warring continues. 7And, so it is. The office is slowly and carefully gathering the information with one goal in mind: to hold Russia's military and its president, Vladimir Putin, accountable for the death and destruction in Ukraine. 8Venediktova's office has opened more than 8,000 criminal cases linked to the war already. Investigators have identified 500 suspects so far, including Russian government ministers and military commanders. 9Venediktova has deployed prosecutors to refugee centers across Ukraine and at border crossings. They talk with the displaced, seeking the refugees' stories of the war to document as evidence. 10Even little details reported by a witness can be important. A description of an attacker's clothing, or the sound of shelling, might lead to a major finding. 11The interviews are slow and careful but worthy of the time. Venediktova and her office say they have documented evidence of mass burial sites, execution of civilians, shelling of civilian areas, repeated attacks on hospitals, forced disappearances, torture, sexual violence and cities under siege, denied food, water and humanitarian aid. 12For Venediktova, the goal is personal. "I protect the public interest of Ukrainian citizens," she told The Associated Press. "And now I see that I can't protect these dead kids. And for me it's pain," she said. 13The 43-year-old former law professor became Ukraine's prosecutor general in 2020, the first woman to serve in the position. Since the war, she is on the move continuously with special safety measures in place, including bullet-proof military clothing. There is little time to eat or rest. 14"The main functions of the law are to protect and to compensate. I hope that we can do it, because now it's just beautiful words, no more rule of law," Venediktova says. "It's very beautiful words. I want them to work." 15Recently Venediktova visited the Lviv office. She and prosecutors spoke with Ala. Ala is 34 years old, and she has an 8-year-old daughter. Ala did not give her last name because her daughter is still in the Russian-controlled area. 16Ala explains to them that shelling destroyed her home. She collected a piece of metal for evidence. 17"We need proof for them to be punished. I am lucky. I am still here to talk about what happened to me," Ala said. 18Venediktova has been creating partnerships and relations with human rights group. Some of these groups and the public have been concerned about the Ukrainian authorities in the past. 19Venediktova also wants average citizens to help collect evidence by using their phones to send the information to a government website. In the past five weeks there have been over 6,000 claims on the site. 20Most nights, Venediktova appears on Ukrainian TV to speak to the people of her country. She tells them that Ukraine will punish Russia for its actions. 21"My first joy will be victory when we sell someone's villa, yacht, and our ordinary Ukrainians, who were forced to flee their homes, will physically receive this compensation," she says. "Thank you, good evening, see you soon." 22I'm Faith Pirlo. 23Erika Kinetz reported this story for the Associated Press. Faith Pirlo adapted it for VOA Learning English. 24____________________________________________________________________ 25Words in This Story 26staff - n. people who work and are employed by a company or organization 27prosecutor - n. one who is in charge of the process of pursuing formal charges against an offender to final judgment 28kids - n. children 29bullet-proof - adj. not able to be penetrated by bullets 30compensate - v. to give money to make up for something 31joy - n. a feeling of great happiness 32villa - n. a large house, usually in the countryside or near the sea, especially in southern Europe, and often one that people can rent for a vacation 33yacht - n. a large boat that is used for racing or pleasure