Civil society representatives interviewed civilians in villages and cities that had been partially destroyed, and contaminated with land mines. The experts met those who survived the Russian occupation and collected information on the humanitarian needs of these parts of Ukraine.

Based on the visit, the experts of the Mission prepared a detailed report for decision makers and civil society stakeholders.

In addition, the reference book offers a list of circumstances that must be ascertained during the inspection of a location where a war crime is believed to have been committed. Here you can find guidance on securing the scene and preserving data that may be important in later stages of incident investigation or recovery planning. The reference book also offers practical tips for collecting photographic and video evidence of capturing the aftermath of shelling.

The purpose of this reference book is to provide basic guidance on the professional documentation of war crimes cases, both for keeping track and logging these incidents and for building the capacity of specialised organizations to investigate and establish cases of violations of international humanitarian law. In addition, the reference book also aims to offer specialised organisations guidance on the
principle of universal jurisdiction and the preparation of such cases for the investigation and subsequent prosecution of potential perpetrators in foreign jurisdictions.

The civil society of Ukraine has shown high resilience. The development of this resilience was, among other things, fostered by the support of international funds and government programs in the EU countries. The activists were able to unite, use the acquired qualifications and experience and, as a result, quickly respond to the challenges of the war, adapt their activities in accordance with the changing needs of society. Also, the war brought into the ranks of activists many of those who had not previously engaged in such work. In the situation of a global threat, the cohesion of Ukrainian society and its readiness for volunteer work have grown to new heights.

Under the current conditions, the civil societies of Ukraine and other countries play one of the key roles in supporting Ukraine in the rear and at the front, taking care of the delivery and distribution of humanitarian aid, help to the defenders of the country, refugees, documenting human rights violations and war crimes, advocating support for Ukraine abroad, strengthening Ukrainian subjectivity at the international level.

The stories of real people presented in this publication show civil society as an important actor in countering Russia’s aggression, lobbying for more active support for Ukraine by the international community and covering the topic of Ukraine in the media space, working with the consequences of the war and post-war reconstruction of the country. The stories of heroes and heroines demonstrate the range of social and political challenges, personal risks faced by active citizens in Ukraine and in other countries due to the war unleashed by the Kremlin.

With these stories, we want to motivate the international community to support Ukraine, and the societies of the countries of the world to be ready to sacrifice some of their personal comfort in order to help others.