Erklärung der Ukrainischen Evaluationsgesellschaft

24 February 2022

On February 24, at 4 o'clock in the morning, Russia treacherously attacked our country. Russian military forces are shelling Ukrainian cities from both the Ukrainian-Russian and Belarusian borders. Not only military installations have been destroyed. Important infrastructure and medical facilities have also been shelled. There are civilian casualties, and children are dying. This is a premeditated attack on the whole of Ukraine, and not a special operation in the Donbass.

The Donbass region of Ukraine has been occupied by Russia for 8 years. For 8 years now, our military and civilian population have been dying, and society throughout Ukraine has been suffering. Russia has also occupied Crimea since 2014. We have been deprived of territories and Ukrainians are forcibly turned into subjects of authoritarian Russia, devoid of democratic principles of governance.

Today, we are being forced to hand over all Ukrainian land to Russia, to submit to the desire of one person to return the countries that were previously part of the Soviet Union to the subordination of one person - Vladimir Putin. F

For almost a day now, our country has been shaken by explosions. Ukraine, a country that gained independence at a heavy cost, and worked hard for a long time to introduce democracy and human rights, may again fall into the network of authoritarianism.

The invaders have seized the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, where dozens of tons of spent nuclear fuel are buried, following an accident in 1986. Workers at the power plant are being held hostage. This is a "dirty bomb" that is dangerous for the whole of Europe. Military action could damage the power plant and lead to an ecological catastrophe on the European continent.

We appeal to all assessment associations and colleagues with a request to support the Ukrainian people in their desire to preserve their state and repel the invaders.

We understand better than others that our eastern neighbor will not be satisfied with Ukraine and will move further into Europe, destroying everything that was built at such a high price after the Second World War.

We invite our partner organizations to evaluate the challenges posed by the war in Ukraine for every country in the world.

We hope that your organizations and the leadership of your countries will not only condemn the actions of the President of Russia, but also take concrete steps to stop the war in Ukraine and prevent war in other countries.

In particular, we ask you to:

1. Join the dissemination of information about the war in Ukraine, trusting only reliable sources.
2. Publish our appeal about the full-scale war that Russia has launched against Ukraine.
3. Appeal to your governments to support Ukraine.

As of 12:00 on February 25, Russian occupiers are in Kyiv, houses are burning, and many civilians are dead. Most Ukrainians spent last night in bomb shelters - they are shelling from the ground and bombing from the sky. An increase in radiation was recorded in the area of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

Unsere Gedanken und Gebete sind bei den Kolleg:innen in der Ukraine. Wir sind entsetzt und empört über den völkerrechtswidrigen Angriff auf ihr Land. Wir sind zutiefst beunruhigt, wenn wir an die zahlreichen Opfer dieser Geschehnisse denken.

Das Schicksal der Ukraine und ihrer Menschen betrifft uns aber nicht nur als Bürger:innen Europas, auch unser Berufsfeld Evaluation ruft uns hier in die Verantwortung. Denn nach unserem Verständnis ist Evaluation kein neutrales unpolitisches Werkzeug, das unter allen gesellschaftlichen und historischen Bedingungen funktionieren kann. Die Idee einer objektiven, wissenschaftlich fundierten Wirkungsmessung und einer sachgerechten Bewertung politischer Maßnahmen ist nur in einem Umfeld umsetzbar, in dem grundlegende Institutionen demokratischer Ordnung und die Herrschaft des Rechts geachtet werden. Werden diese Institutionen zerschlagen, ersetzt schließlich Ideologie und Propaganda jeden Versuch einer ernsthaften Evaluation.

Wir begreifen es deshalb als unsere fortdauernde Aufgabe, einzutreten für eine freiheitliche Gesellschaftsordnung und die Normen des Völkerrechts und den Opfern von staatlichem Terror und Gewaltherrschaft beizustehen.

Der Vorstand der DeGEval
Prof. Dr. Udo Kelle, Dr. Angela Wroblewski, Dr. Sonja Kind, Prof. Dr. Manfred Rolfes, Stefan Schmidt, Jutta Wolff