Dialogue “Social contract for Ukraine: Dimensions of Justice”: Finding a balance between justice and public opinion during the war

On May 16, the Aspen Institute Kyiv and the Association of Lawyers of Ukraine held a Dialogue on “Social Contract for Ukraine: Dimensions of Justice.” Participants from various spheres were involved in the event — members of parliament, representatives of the judiciary of Ukraine, anti-corruption bodies, media, the scientific community, civil society institutions, international organizations, and lawyers from various fields of practice.

The event’s interactive format helped participants share their views on the role of advocacy in ensuring the right to defence, assess the risks of public opinion influencing justice, and discuss the main challenges of judicial independence in Ukraine during wartime.

During the first session, Olesia Ostrovska-Liuta, the general director of the National Cultural and Art Museum Complex “Mystetskyi (Art) Arsenal,” and Yevhen Hlibovytsky, Director of the Frontier Institute, spoke about the impact of war on the collective understanding of civil rights and obligations, the changes in the perception of justice in Ukrainian society after full-scale invasion, and its impact on societal expectations regarding the reliability of legal institutions in a polarized society.

The role of advocacy during the war: how to ensure the right to defence

During the session “Justice and the role of advocacy in ensuring the right to defence,” participants emphasized the importance of continuing the reform of the self-government bodies of advocacy, which will contribute to ensuring the right to defence, as well as the right to a fair trial. They discussed the challenges facing advocacy as an element of the justice system during wartime, including access to justice, the safety of parties during the administration of justice, ethical and moral dilemmas, and possible political or public pressure on lawyers. Among other important thoughts were:

• The justice system cannot function fully without advocacy, and judicial reform will not be logically completed without reforming the advocacy institution. 
• The key factors ensuring justice are the irreversibility of punishment, an independent judicial system, and public oversight.
• Working on societal perceptions of justice is essential, and public education plays a fundamental role in this matter.
• Ensuring justice is about finding a balance in resolving ethical and moral dilemmas, which is particularly challenging in wartime.

Justice and the court of public opinion: how to find a balance?

Participants in the session “Justice and the Court of Public Opinion” discussed the importance of effective public oversight mechanisms to ensure transparency in the administration of justice, which will mitigate excessive attention and bias from the public. Therefore, a campaign against disinformation is necessary, as it can distort society’s understanding of justice.

• Ensure the principle of transparency in the administration of justice and ensure the accountability of judges are key aspects of ensuring justice.
• It is worth intensifying public education on legal issues to prevent society from “passing judgments without trials.”
• Fact-checking is one of the methods to prevent emotional bias in the perception of sensitive news. Communication needs to be improved: news related to the justice sector needs to be explained to society in understandable language.

Independent courts — a guarantee of justice on the state level 

Participants of the session “Independence of Judges” discussed the main challenges of judicial independence in Ukraine during wartime. These challenges include the influence of a judge’s reputation on society’s perception of the made decision and its recognition as fair, political or social pressure on judges, and the duration of judicial system reform. Possible ways to address these challenges may include: enhancing the authority of judges in society, revising the legislative framework related to the judiciary to prevent pressure on all sides of the judicial process, informational support, and judges’ openness to dialogue with the public sector and the media.

• Maintaining a high level of professional ethics and transparency in judicial activities is essential to prevent possible obstacles to society’s objective perception of judicial decisions.
• Open and trustworthy communication with society regarding made decisions will help increase trust in the judiciary as a whole.

Denis Poltavets, Director of Program Development at the Aspen Institute Kyiv, and Anton Drobovych, a moderator at the Aspen Institute Kyiv, Head of the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory, moderated the seminar. Olena Fomina, Policy Program Director at the Aspen Institute Kyiv, coordinated the seminar.

We thank the participants for their sincere discussion and exchange of views. We hope that different perspectives have expanded everyone’s understanding of the dimensions of justice in modern conditions.

The event was possible thanks to the support of the American people, provided through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) as part of the “Justice for All” Program, with the support of the National Endowment for Democracy, and also supported by law firms: VB PARTNERS, MORIS, Miller Law Firm, LCF Legal Group, ARIO, Sokolovskiy and Partners.