Appeal to the Government of Switzerland

On July 28, 2025, in Geneva, during the events of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), a delegation from the Russian Federation took the floor, including Valentina Matvienko, Chair of the Federation Council.

In her speech, she voiced a one-sided interpretation of events that causes deep pain to those who have directly suffered from the full-scale aggression.

We, representatives of civil society from different countries, cannot leave this unanswered.

We acknowledge and respect Switzerland’s international obligations as a country hosting UN institutions and key international diplomatic missions.

We also respect Switzerland’s neutrality, which has played an important role in the history of Europe.

But it is precisely within this neutral position, we believe, that it is possible to create a space where all voices can be heard — including those who do not have diplomatic status but who have lived through occupation, violence, captivity, and repression.

In this context, we propose to hold a public screening of the documentary film “Systema Terrora (System of Terror)” in one of the IPU conference halls in Geneva.

This film, already presented in the European Parliament and serving as the basis for a parliamentary resolution, tells the stories of Ukrainian civilians who endured abductions, unlawful detention, and torture in the temporarily occupied territories.

The screening can be followed by an open discussion with the participation of Ukrainian civil society representatives, former prisoners, their relatives, international human rights defenders, and independent observers.

We see this as an opportunity — an opportunity for Switzerland not only to demonstrate its neutrality in legal terms, but also to affirm it morally, as equal access to voice, human dignity, and truth.

This will be an act of justice and will enable an open public dialogue.

We are ready for open dialogue and coordination on a partnership basis.

We are confident that joint steps in this direction will benefit not only the victims but also Switzerland’s international reputation as a fair and neutral party.

Initiated by

Civil activist Evgeniya Chirikova, Activatica.org

Oleksandr Tarasov, human rights activist, civilian prisoner, Center for the Development of Democracy

Polina Sommer, Political and human rights activist, President and Founder of Art of Peace — a transnational platform for justice, memory and resistance