Kyiv’s Shevchenkivsky district court has ruled to run a forensic language test for the speech of the leader of the Ukrainian Choice – People’s Right movement, the head of the political council of the Ukrainian party Opposition Platform – For Life, Viktor Medvedchuk, at a press conference in St. Petersburg (Russia) on July 18.
According to the court ruling dated August 2, the court made this decision at the request of the senior investigator of one of the departments of the Main Investigation Department of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) regarding the conduct of a forensic language test as part of criminal proceedings launched on Feb. 5.
The court granted the petition of the senior investigator.
The examination was entrusted to experts of the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine.
Experts should, in particular, establish whether Medvedchuk’s speech on July 18, in St. Petersburg contains public appeals for changing or removing individual government officials; for violent changing or overthrowing the constitutional order or seizing state power.
In addition, experts have to determine whether the text of this speech contains public calls for changing the borders of Ukraine, for inciting ethnic or religious hatred, and other things.
The SBU is conducting a pretrial investigation in criminal proceedings under Article 110 (trespass against territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine) and Article 111 (high treason) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. Forensic tests of visits Medvedchuk and politician Yuriy Boiko to Russia in March and June this year have been prescribed.
