APGN mourns Green colleague Mr. Vladimir Goncharenko

The Asia Pacific Greens Network (APGN) mourns the death of Ukrainian environmental activist Mr. Vladimir Goncharenko.

On July 27, 2012 Mr. Goncharenko gave a press conference revealing that 180 tons of dangerous chemical and radioactive industrial waste had arrived at the city of Kryvyi Rih (Dnipropetrovsk area) without control of local authorities and police. Four days later he was brutally beaten and died in the hospital. The Ukrainian Green Party has no doubt that the murder was linked to his professional activities. The Ukrainian police have opened an investigation into the case and the global community is watching attentively that the inquiry will lead to the arrest and conviction of those responsible.

Mr. Goncharenko was 57 and a Chairman of the “For the Rights of Citizens to Environmental Safety” movement. The Ukrainian Greens collaborated with Mr. Goncharenko for 15 years in public work and commemorates him as a wonderful man, a colleague and a friend.

Mr. Goncharenko’s legacy will be the continued civic movement for a just and democratic world; his shared vision with the Greens worldwide is a crucial insurance against the injustice and harmful acts against our human and ecological wellbeing. The APGN demands justice through a rigorous and fair trial so that similar crimes may not be repeated elsewhere. This is a time for Ukraine to show its integrity and leadership.

Ukrainian Green Party page about Mr. Goncharenko’s death