Event in Türkiye: liberate Ukrainian women from Russian captivity
Human Rights Centre ZMINA in partnership with the Media Initiative for Human Rights and with support of the Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of Türkiye holds an event “Liberate Ukrainian Women from Russian Captivity: Expert Findings and Survivor Testimonies” at the HiltonSA in Ankara, Türkiye, on August 29 from 9:00 to 12:00.
Dozens of Ukrainian civilian women are currently in Russian captivity. They are detained without the possibility of receiving any assistance and in blatant violation of international law.
Women in times of war are especially vulnerable and subjected to torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and punishment. “I saw my son being taken for interrogation. I heard him pleading not to torture him with electric shock”, shared her terrible experience Olha Chernyak, one of at least 30 civilian women who were held in “women’s cells” of Kherson torture chamber.
Ukraine needs strong support from the international community in pushing Russia to free female prisoners. It is our common obligation to save civilians who suffer from the blatant violation of the international law by the Russian side and Türkiye has to take a central role in this process due to its multi-layered and diverse architecture of initiatives including mediation efforts.
At the event experts and survivors will discuss:
- Arbitrary detention and torture of Ukrainian women: stories, patterns and profiles
- Legal qualification and ways of bringing perpetrators to accountability
- Mechanism of the liberation of civilians
- Suggestions to the Government of Türkiye
Welcome words and short presentations are expected by:
- Ambassador Vasyl Bodnar, Ambassador of Ukraine to the Republic of Türkiye
- Ambassador Nikolaus Meyer-Landrut, Head of the EU Delegation to Türkiye
- Mr Dmytro Lubinets, Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights (online)
Panelists:
- Ms Nataliya Okhotnikova, Human Rights Centre ZMINA
- Ms Lyubov Smachylo, Media Initiative for Human Rights (online)
- Мs Olha Chernyak, who spent 280 days in Russian captivity (online)
- Ms Natalia Checheliuk, mother of the captive Mariana Checheliuk
Moderator: Tetiana Zhukova, Human Rights Centre ZMINA
Language of the event: English
For registration, please, fill in the form.
