Russia’s Repression At Home & Aggression Against Ukraine Demand Justice, No Lasting Peace Without Accountability

GENEVA (24 February 2025) – As Russia’s aggression against Ukraine enters its fourth year today, and discussions intensify about settling the war without Ukraine’s participation, UN experts* demand accountability and warn that without guarantees for human rights and justice there can be no peace. They issued the following joint statement:

“Today, we call on the international community to stand in solidarity with all the victims of the war against Ukraine. Accountability and justice must take precedence over any political negotiations in which Ukraine has not been included at the table. This means, first and foremost, the immediate and unconditional release of all deported Ukrainian detainees held in Russian prisons and all political prisoners within Russia. Impunity is unacceptable, as it emboldens aggressors and paves the way for future conflicts.

Russia’s aggression against Ukraine stems from a system constructed over the past two decades, and severely intensified in the past three years of war, to systematically destroy the independence of State institutions and the judiciary, transforming them into political instruments of repression.

Since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the Russian Government undertook a deliberate strategy to crush opposition, instill fear, and eliminate any challenge to its war agenda, while imposing a total blackout on reporting and information related to the invasion. This Government’s strategy has wiped out civil society in order to eliminate all checks and balances on power. Independent voices—journalists, human rights defenders, activists, opposition politicians, and anti-war critics from all walks of life—have been imprisoned for speaking out against the war. Women journalists and activists in detention have been particularly targeted, facing gendered repression and heightened risks of violence. Lengthy imprisonment and widespread and systematic torture are hallmarks of the Russian Government’s crackdown on dissent. Over 2000 political prisoners in Russia face life-threatening conditions. Some have already died in prison.

Russia has brought war to Ukraine, including attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, risking a nuclear disaster. It has been well documented that the government uses its most ruthless methods of torture on Ukrainian prisoners of war and thousands of Ukrainian civilians deported to Russia. Among them, women detainees face a distinct and grave risk of sexual violence.

Survivor testimonies paint a horrifying picture of torture, including gang rapes, electric shocks to the genitals and other sensitive body parts, the pulling of nails and filing of teeth, prolonged beatings which cause excruciating pain and irreparable damage, waterboarding, and mock executions. Ukrainian detainees, the majority of whom are kept incommunicado, are denied essential medicine, food and water until death becomes inevitable. These crimes have been perpetrated with a total impunity by Russian military, security officers, and prison guards across Russia and in the occupied territories of Ukraine. The Russian Government has also committed crimes against the forcibly transferred or deported Ukrainian children, failing to reveal their fate, whereabouts and well-being.

Rape and sexual violence have been systematically used as a weapon of war, disproportionately impacting Ukrainian women and girls. Recognising and addressing the gendered consequences of this war should be at the heart of any peace and accountability efforts.

Ahead of the third anniversary of the aggression against Ukraine, Ukrainian and Russian civil society together launched a campaign, called “People First!”, to recall that a key priority of any just peace in Ukraine should be the release of all Ukrainian civilian detainees from Russian prisons, all Ukrainian and Russian prisoners of war held by both sides, all Ukrainian children deported to Russia, and all Russian political prisoners held behind bars for protests against the war. This campaign aims to rescue their lives.

During three years of war, the Russian Government has returned 160 bodies of Ukrainians who died in Russian detention, but the real number is likely much higher. Russian authorities are responsible for all deaths in custody, including the death of Victoria Roshchyna, a Ukrainian journalist and human rights defender. For almost six months, they have refused to return the body to her family in Ukraine, so that an independent investigation into the cause and circumstances of her death could be undertaken. All deaths in custody must be independently investigated in line with international standards, to establish the truth and ensure accountability.

Standing in solidarity with the victims of the war against Ukraine means standing for justice. Attempts to undermine the International Criminal Court (ICC) and dismantle the architecture of international justice sets a dangerous precedent of undermining international law, allowing arbitrariness and politicisation.

The world must uphold international law born from the ruins of World War II —principles founded on the promise of “never again”, ensuring dignity, respect for human rights, and justice to protect future generations from the scourge of war. It is imperative to honour this commitment also for the people of Ukraine. Turning a blind eye to Russia’s crimes is a betrayal of its victims.”

*The experts: Mariana Katzarova, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation; Margaret Satterthwaite, Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers; Cecilia M. Bailliet, Independent Expert on human rights and international solidarity; Mary Lawlor, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders; Gina Romero, Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association; Irene Khan, Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression; Marcos A. Orellana, Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes; Michael Fakhri; Special Rapporteur on the right to food; Nicolas Levrat, Special Rapporteur on minority issues; Bernard Duhaime, Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence; Tomoya Obokata, Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery; Surya Deva, Special Rapporteur on the right to development; Gabriella Citroni (Chair-Rapporteur), Grażyna Baranowska (Vice-Chair); Ms. Aua Baldé, Ms. Ana Lorena Delgadillo Pérez, Mr. Mohammed Al-Obaidi (members), the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances; Laura Nyirinkindi (Chair), Claudia Flores (Vice-Chair), Dorothy Estrada Tanck, Ivana Krstić, and Haina Lu, Working group on discrimination against women and girls; Alice Jill Edwards, Special Rapporteur on Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment

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