76. The authorities of Ukraine can legitimately claim they have a duty to restore law and order, including, if necessary, by resorting to force. In any law enforcement operation security forces must act proportionally to the threat and must at all times respect the right to life. In addition, in the conduct of hostilities all those involved in the hostilities must comply with principles of distinction, proportionality and precautions. This is particularly important in an environment in which armed groups and civilians are inter-mingled. 77. The use of heavy artillery and aviation, in particular, have increased the risks to civilians and caused casualties. It is essential that the authorities conduct full and impartial investigations of all incidents where civilians may have lost their lives or have been injured by the Ukrainian forces since the launch of the security operation. Remedies must be available to victims, if the damage to their property was done illegally. 78. The Ukrainian forces have regained several areas formerly controlled by armed groups since 5 July; it is essential to ensure that no reprisals are applied against civilians. The questioning of people and verification of information conducted by Ukrainian forces in areas, formerly controlled by the armed groups, must at all times uphold the presumption of innocence and respect human rights and human dignity80. The Government needs to provide information on how these activities are conducted and what human rights guarantees are attached to this process. The HRMMU stresses the paramount importance to uphold the right to life and ensure protection against arbitrarily deprivation of liberty, in accordance with Ukraine’s obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and other international instruments. 79. There are disturbing reports of cases, including journalists, politicians and of people allegedly supporting the armed groups, of having been arrested by the Ukrainian forces but whose whereabouts could not be ascertained for a long period of time or are still not known. These cases constitute a violation of the right to liberty and security, which implies a prohibition of arbitrary arrest or detention, and of the ‘minimum guarantees’, such as the right to a counsel, that every person deprived of liberty is entitled to benefit from under international human rights law. B. Constitutional amendments 80. On 2 July, the Parliament registered a draft law (№ 4178а) initiated by the President of Ukraine, proposing to amend the Constitution of Ukraine. 81. According to this document, Ukraine is to be divided into regions, districts and communities, based on the principles of unity, integrity and decentralization. Local selfgovernment institutions with legislative and executive functions are to be created and local state administrations abolished. Representatives of the President are to be appointed at local level and entrusted with powers to suspend local decisions deemed to be in violation of the constitution. The draft mentions that the division of power between the different levels of self-governance is based on the principle of subsidiarity and that the President can revoke the powers of the local self-government institutions. The provisions regulating selfgovernment institutions in Ukraine also apply to Crimea, but the function of the representative of the President in Crimea is abolished. Other new provisions include the possibility to grant “special status” to the Russian language and languages of other national minorities at the level of villages, towns, districts and regions; increasing the powers of the parliament to initiate or approve appointment of ministers and heads of state institutions; 80 In accordance with Article 10 of International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) for detainees as well as the prohibition of torture and ill-treatment under Article 7 of ICCPR. 146 | P a g e