XIII Civil Society Development Forum: ZMINA held a panel on volunteering during the war
On December 5, 2024, on International Volunteer Day, the XIII Civil Society Development Forum of the ISAR Ednannia took place in Kyiv, during which the Human Rights Centre ZMINA, together with the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union, held a panel discussion “Volunteering during the war: threats, challenges and obstacles”.
The panel paid particular attention to information about volunteers and activists killed by Russia during the three years of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
A Lawyer with the Human Rights Centre ZMINA, Danyil Popkov, spoke about the documented cases of deaths of civilian activists, journalists, volunteers and representatives of civil society as a result of abductions, ill-treatment and torture, bombings and shelling of humanitarian and evacuation missions during the Russian aggression.
“These are stories about the courage and bravery of people who continued their work even in the most difficult conditions of war and tragic cases that demonstrate the dangers faced by activists and volunteers,” stressed Danyil Popkov.
Danyil PopkovVladlena Padun, Analyst with the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union (UHHRU), outlined the main challenges faced by volunteers today, including bureaucratic difficulties related to the new rules for the import of humanitarian aid, gaps in taxation and reporting, and criminal prosecution of volunteers under Law No. 2155-IX.
“We see that legislative changes are often introduced in a hurry, without taking into account the realities of the work of NGOs. This creates additional pressure and sometimes serious risks for the activities of volunteers,” said Vladlena Padun.
Taras Shcherbatiuk, Coordinator with the UHHRU Reception Centre in Cherkasy, focused on local problems of volunteer activity. He cited specific examples of persecution of activists, including the cases of Oleksandr Artyshchenko and Viacheslav Bytyi, who suffered because of their civic activities.
Taras Shcherbatiuk also noted that the protection of activists on the ground largely depends on the work of law enforcement agencies, which do not always respond properly to cases of harassment and threats.
Yuliia Kovalenko, Lawyer with the UHHRU Center for Strategic Litigation, presented key cases that were won through appeals to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). She noted that obtaining compensation at the national level remains a serious challenge, but there are positive precedents.
Panel moderator Tetiana Bezruk, Head of Civil Society Protection Division of ZMINA, summed up the discussion: “This forum has once again proved how important it is to protect volunteers and activists in the current circumstances. The work of civil society is not just about helping, it is about fighting for people’s lives and rights.“
