IV. HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS RELATED TO THE MAIDAN PROTESTS A. Violations of the right to freedom of assembly 53. There have been notable failures to respect the right to freedom of peaceful assembly in line with international human rights standards since protests started in November 2013. In some cases, local authorities sought to ban or restrict public gatherings through court decisions. On 22 November, the Kyiv district administrative court banned the use of “temporary structures such as tents, kiosks and barriers” from 22 November to 7 January. Local authorities in Odesa applied to a court to ban a demonstration that had attracted several hundred people on 23 November. On 24 November, the court endorsed the ban and the remaining demonstrators were violently dispersed by the police. 54. The Ukrainian Authorities attempted to disperse the demonstration in Kyiv twice, on 30 November and on 11 December, respectively. On 30 November, the Authorities justified the decision to disperse the demonstration by claiming that a New Year tree needed to be erected in the square. On 11 December, the Minister of Interior stated that the decision to remove barricades from the roads surrounding the Maidan was in response to citizens’ complaints that the demonstration was blocking traffic. There have also been reports of individuals having been prevented from attending demonstrations or who were harassed for having done so. 55. While article 39 of the Ukrainian Constitution guarantees freedom of assembly, no post-independence laws regulate it. In the absence of such a law, courts have referred to local authority regulations or to the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 28 July 1988 on the procedure for organizing and holding meetings, rallies, street marches and demonstrations in the USSR. B. Excessive use of force, killings, disappearances, torture and ill-treatment 56. The first instance of excessive use of force against demonstrators took place in the early hours of 30 November 2013, when 290 riot police officers (known as ‘Berkut’) dispersed Maidan protesters, mainly students and youths. Witness testimony and footage of the incident shows that the riot police used excessive force to clear demonstrators, forced assessed as both indiscriminate and disproportionate, including through chasing and beating demonstrators who ran away. The violence escalated on 1 and 2 December and there were serious clashes in nearby streets between demonstrators and riot police, and an attempt to storm the presidential administration building. At least 50 riot police and hundreds of protestors were injured, and twelve persons detained on charges of “organizing mass disorder”. A third instance of excessive use of force and violent clashes occurred on 10 and 11 December 2013, when the riot police attempted to remove barricades, and left 36 persons hospitalized, including 13 policemen. Violent clashes resumed on 19 January 2014, following the adoption of controversial new laws on 16 January limiting the ability to conduct unsanctioned public demonstrations. Demonstrators, many of whom were linked to the far right wing “Right sector” group, attacked governmental buildings, throwing stones, firecrackers and Molotov cocktails at the police. The response of the police included the use of water cannons, in subzero temperatures and live fire, as a result of which five demonstrators were killed. 57. The violence in Kyiv reached its peak between 18 and 20 February 2014, when mass violent clashes took place mainly on Institutskaya Street. During these three days around 90 people were killed, mostly from sniper shots allegedly from rooftops. The new Minister of 13 | P a g e