Sexual violence as a Russian method of warfare in Ukraine: the problem's scale, the world's response and victims' assistance

Since the outbreak of full-scale war, Russian occupation forces have committed numerous war crimes, including sexual crimes.

According to the Prosecutor General's Office, 208 cases of sexual violence are being investigated. The oldest victim is 82, and the youngest is four years old. But these are only the cases in which the victims were willing to testify.

We would like to inform you that 208 cases of sexual crimes of war-related nature committed by the Russian military in Ukraine have been revealed so far. Five indictments were sent to court, and one person was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment. We also report that, indeed, the youngest victim is four years old, and she is alive. The pre-trial investigation has identified the person who probably committed the crime. At the same time, due to the security measures taken for the victim and the secrecy of the pre-trial investigation, we cannot say in which region the crime was committed," the Prosecutor-General's Office said when asked by Socsportal.

Each case is complex and has its own unique details. These could be cases where women were raped in front of children and partners and died trying to protect the injured person. Or when the Russian military went into houses with only women and children and forced them to choose who would be raped.

We know of cases where children have witnessed violence, seen it with their own eyes, and they are the victims by the standards. A child who has witnessed sexual abuse is also a victim," Marina Legenka, an advocate and vice president of La Strada-Ukraine, told Sotsportal.

The real scale of the crimes is probably much larger, as hostilities are ongoing and information from the temporarily occupied territories is limited.

Sexual violence is one of the tools that the enemy uses to subjugate populations in occupied territories.

Sexual violence is integral to any war and is seen to varying degrees in many conflicts. Ukraine is no exception, although the mass nature of such crimes is typical of Russia's war in Ukraine. War-related sexual violence has nothing to do with sexual gratification or rape. It is a method of warfare used to intimidate the population, both women and men and to exert pressure, including on prisoners of war. Thus, it is simply a method of warfare by the rf, which is why it is becoming so widespread in Ukraine," says Marina Legenka.

Although most violence is directed at women and girls, Russian aggressors are not limited by gender or age restrictions.

Among the victims, there are women, men and minors. Immediately after the first instances of sexual crimes were uncovered, Ukraine and its international partners introduced a unified mechanism to respond to this violence. The Government of Ukraine signed a framework agreement with the UN on cooperation to prevent and counteract sexual violence in war and developed an Implementation Plan for its implementation. The country has established a comprehensive coordination mechanism that includes effective investigation and documentation of crimes, provision of comprehensive assistance to victims and raising the competence of professionals, and public awareness," commented Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanyshyna.

Amnesty International also spoke to support the victims of human rights violations because of Russia's war in Ukraine. The organisation said that the violators of international law should be held accountable.

National legislation

The Criminal Code of Ukraine (Special Part, Section IV) establishes liability for crimes against sexual freedom and sexual inviolability of the person: rape, sexual violence, forcing a person to have sexual relations, committing acts of a sexual nature with a person under the age of sixteen, corrupting a minor and soliciting a child for sexual purposes. These provisions apply in peacetime, as they do not reflect a link between committed sexual violence and war.

War-related sexual violence qualifies as a war crime under Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine "Violation of the laws and customs of war". What constitutes a war crime is defined in the Geneva Conventions.

International law considers sexual violence as a war crime, a crime against humanity and/or an act of genocide. War-related sexual violence against women, men, girls and boys has a direct or indirect link to the armed conflict (temporal, spatial or causal).

In the experience of other countries where war-related sexual violence has taken place, the most frequent forms of such violence have been

Rape - an assault on the body of another by an act which resulted in the penetration, even the slightest, of any part of the victim's or perpetrator's body with the sexual organ, or the penetration of the victim's anal or genital opening with any object, or any other part of the body.

Threats and attempts at any form of rape or other forms of sexual violence, whether against the victim him/herself or against someone close to him/her;

Female genital mutilation, including mutilation of the vagina, labia, clitoris, breast and nipple mutilation, mutilation or amputation of the male genital organs, other genital violence;

Sexual slavery, including slavery through forced marriage or concubinage; Sexual slavery is the exercise of any or all of the owner's authority over one or more persons, in particular through the purchase, sale, loan or exchange of such person or persons, or through the use of similar means of deprivation of personal liberty, where the victim has been involved in the performance of one or more acts of a sexual nature.

Sexual torture, including electric shocks to genitals or pinching of nipples, or being forced to watch a partner or child being sexually abused;

Forced prostitution - the coercion of one or more persons to perform one or more acts of a sexual nature through the use or threat of force or coercion, such as that caused by fear of violence, coercion, deprivation of liberty, psychological pressure or abuse of authority, against the victim or another person, or by taking advantage of a coercive environment or by committing an assault against a person incapable of providing actual or necessary assistance.

Forced pregnancy is the unlawful deprivation of liberty of a woman who becomes pregnant for the purpose of changing the ethnic composition of a population or committing other severe violations of international law.

Forced sterilisation or abortion: the deprivation of one or more persons of their natural reproductive capacity, unless justified by medical or medical treatment for such a person or persons or their valid consent has been obtained.

Forced nudity. Other forms of sexual violence of similar severity are the commission of an act of a sexual nature against one or more persons or the involvement of such a person or persons in the act of a sexual nature if the perpetrator's behaviour was of comparable severity to the acts listed above (rape, sexual slavery, forced prostitution, forced pregnancy, forced sterilisation).

Important: In a war situation, consent to sexual intercourse or other acts of a sexual nature cannot be voluntary, even if force or threats of violence have not been directly applied to the victim of sexual violence.

Important: There is an anonymous chat-bot in Ukraine called "Help for survivors of war-related sexual violence", where you can find important information:

• What is war-related sexual violence;

• Where to go for help and support;

• How to document the crime and how to report it.

Providing comprehensive assistance to survivors of war-related sexual violence in an ongoing war is a challenge. However, the system established in Ukraine before the widespread war has adapted to such challenges.

The government of Ukraine has allocated a state subsidy to set up shelters and crisis rooms to help victims.

Helplines and mobile socio-psychological assistance teams are also introduced jointly with the UN Population Fund.

In addition, Rescue Centres have been established to provide maximum support and safe space for victims of sexual violence. As of May 2023, 11 such centres had been opened in Ukraine, but more are planned.

They were established by the Government of Ukraine and supported by UNFPA and provide comprehensive social support to people who have been resettled from active combat zones and occupied territories.

They assist not only to victims of conflict-related sexual violence but also to others needing comprehensive professional assistance.

There are 11 such centres in Kyiv, Lviv, Zaporizhia, Dnipro, Chernivtsi, Odesa, Kropivnitsky, Kherson and Kharkiv. The last two centres are not stationary; they are mobile and move around the cities. New centres may open, including abroad.

The government supports the initiative, particularly the Deputy Prime Minister and the Government Commissioner for Gender Policy. Such centres are effective platforms for assisting war victims and identifying victims of war-related sexual violence. In addition, online support services, such as the Aurora psychotherapeutic platform, are being developed to provide access to support for those in difficult circumstances of war.

Although the support system is not perfect, it is evolving. When mass reports of sexual violence crimes committed by the Russian military began in our country, especially in the Kyiv region, the state authorities did not know how to respond, and the system was not yet in place. Today we have hotlines, help centres and a high willingness of public authorities, particularly the police and the prosecutor's office, to work in this area. Special structural units have been created to deal exclusively with criminal cases of this nature. Specialists in these units are trained to communicate with victims in order to avoid additional trauma and provide them with maximum support.

Victims of war-related sexual violence are entitled to various assistance, including social and medical services. Although they have no separate category, all these services are available. The state tries to provide as much support to the victims as possible. At the same time, non-governmental and public organisations help with legal, social and psychological support and provide basic needs," says Marina Legenka.

However, the first step in creating the system was to identify cases of sexual violence through cooperation with NGOs, said Natalya Karbovska, director of the ICF Ukrainian Women's Fund.

According to her, they received a call from a colleague from a partner organisation who reported a case of abuse suffered by a woman due to the occupation of the Kyiv region by the Russian military. The victim could not talk about it, but her neighbour was looking for a way to help.

Crime recording and working with survivors are related things. The law enforcement agencies are in charge of fixing crimes. This requires, above all, that the person affected comes forward and is prepared to testify.

The special characteristic of war-related sexual violence is that it is a latent crime in which the victims often remain silent. NGOs, especially women's organisations, work with such people and help them to calm down and talk about what happened to them.

At the national level, these are La Strada-Ukraine and the Women Lawyers' Association of Ukraine "YurFem", but many regional organisations in different regions provide direct services to victims. Some NGOs bring together people who have experienced war-related sexual violence, such as SEMA-Ukraine. Of course, their experience is very powerful. My experience with people who were the first to help victims started in the Kyiv region. Now we hear a lot about the Kherson region. NGOs there report that there are many cases where men have also been tortured, that the occupiers have resorted not only to rape but also to other forms of sexual violence. At the same time, people are so traumatised that it is difficult for them to talk about their pain with official institutions, government officials and even law enforcement officials.

Informal communication with community organisations is another matter. This kind of assistance to victims ultimately also contributes to further work to document the crimes of Russian aggressors," says Natalia Karbovska.

Ukraine is actively responding to cases of sexual violence perpetrated by Russian aggressors.

Law enforcement agencies, particularly the police in specialised mobile teams, record cases of sexual violence in the liberated territories.

These crimes are referred to the Public Prosecutor's Office and the Office of the International Criminal Court. At the beginning of the war, the International Criminal Court launched an investigation and set up a joint investigation team with several European judicial bodies.

The Ukrainian government is also working on a bilateral agreement establishing an Office of the International Criminal Court. In addition, international organisations, including the UN, are documenting cases of sexual violence. As agreed with the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the Prevention of Sexual Violence, cooperation with international organisations should be strengthened, including the exchange of information and analysis of Ukrainian legislation to improve the legal framework for prosecuting crimes of sexual violence.

War-related sexual violence is punishable under the Criminal Code of Ukraine, particularly under Article 438, which punishes violations of the laws and customs of war.

The Ukrainian Criminal Code does not have a separate article for these crimes so they are dealt with under the general article. In most cases, the punishment is up to 12 years and 15 years or life imprisonment for murder. However, the punishment depends on the circumstances of the case.

It is also worth noting that some of the perpetrators of these crimes are no longer alive. Thus, personal liability may not be established, but there is still the possibility of recognising collective liability, depending on the decision and the circumstances.

War-related sexual violence is a war crime without a statute of limitations so that victims can seek help anytime.

Many victims are not yet ready to seek help for various reasons. In time, however, they may decide to testify. In Croatia, for example, which has already partly gone all the way, thirty years after the war, victims are still coming forward. We have spoken to prosecutors about their cases, and it turns out that there are still fresh cases. Unfortunately, we will have the same situation. These crimes have no statute of limitations so we will receive appeals regarding such cases for another 10-20 years and perhaps even longer. This will happen when the circumstances which prevented the aggrieved person from coming forward disappear or when the pain becomes less acute because in any case, the pain will not pass away during the whole life, - Marina Legenka believes.

Olena Sotnyk, Advisor to the Vice Prime Minister on European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, and Christina Kyt, Head of the Women Lawyers Association of Ukraine "YurFem", spoke about reparations for victims of sexual violence during the war.

Reparations are measures aimed at a person's recovery from trauma. It is not only monetary payments but also restitution (return to the original state), satisfaction (recognition of the victim's status), rehabilitation (social, medical, psychological assistance) and guarantees of non-repetition.

Christina Kyt talked about the different forms of reparations. Restitution involves returning the affected person and their property to the state they had before the war. Satisfaction is important for recognition of the status of survivors of sexual violence, which includes legislative recognition and public acts of remembrance. Rehabilitation includes social, medical and psychological assistance that helps people integrate into society. Compensation includes immediate and long-term benefits. Guarantees of non-repetition require the state and international institutions to ensure the security and prevention of similar crimes in the future.

In several studies, survivors of sexual violence in conflict situations stressed that it is extremely important for them that the state recognises their status as victims of this type of war crime. First of all, at the legislative level. And in some countries, such as Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Colombia, where there were armed conflicts and sexual violence, memorials have been erected, and various campaigns are being conducted to remind victims of it. This is done to emphasise how many people have been affected, how it has affected their lives, and to ensure that the society in which they live understands their challenges, says Christina Kyt.

Olena Sotnik explained the difference between immediate reparations and the general reparations system. Emergency reparations are provided to those already feeling the effects of trauma and needing urgent assistance. It is a temporary reparation that helps in the most difficult cases here and now and allows you to test the overall reparation mechanism.

This also distinguishes reparations from social assistance. Social assistance is an obligation of the state in peacetime, whereas reparations are linked to war and the responsibility of the aggressor. Reparations have a financial and restorative function and a moral role, contributing to the restoration of justice.

We must understand that the state is already assisting victims of war-related sexual violence. They receive it at the Survivor Assistance Centres, established with the assistance of the United Nations Population Fund and offer legal, medical and other support. Although this is not called a reparations system, it performs a significant part of its functions.

The next task for the state to support survivors of war-related sexual violence is to introduce immediate reparations, which certain financial payments may supplement. Later, a general system of reparations should be put in place. What it will look like will become clear closer to the end of the war and a clearer understanding of what resources we have for this, how we will collect damages from Russia and what the support of the international community will be in these matters," says Olena Sotnyk.

It is important to work with society to break down the stereotypes and stigma that hold victims back from telling their stories. This will help increase the number of identified cases," stressed both speakers.