Updated 

On 26 November, Olha Stefanishyna, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration and Minister of Justice of Ukraine, took part online in a high-level meeting of the International Alliance on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict, organised as part of the International Conference on the Prevention of Sexual Violence in Conflict (Bogota, Colombia). The conference was organised in the framework of Colombia’s presidency of the Alliance.

The meeting was also attended by Ambassador for Gender Affairs and Global Feminist Policy of Colombia Arlene Beth Tickner, Government Commissioner for Gender Policy of Ukraine Kateryna Levchenko and other representatives of Alliance member states and civil society organisations.

In her speech, Olha Stefanishyna welcomed the new members of the Alliance and expressed her gratitude for the global support for victims in Ukraine.

“We are united by a common goal: to support survivors of war-related sexual violence and to achieve justice for each of them. This commitment has guided us since the Alliance’s inception, and I am deeply grateful to each and every one of you for your unwavering commitment to this goal. Many of you were with us last year when Ukraine and Colombia served as the Alliance’s vice-chairs, and I am delighted to welcome new members to our initiative today,” the Deputy Prime Minister said.

The Alliance was established in 2023 at the initiative of the United Kingdom. It aims to unite global efforts to prevent and respond to cases of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) around the world.

It currently has 26 members, including Ukraine, the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, Colombia, the United Arab Emirates, the Democratic Republic of Congo, France, Japan, Jordan, Kosovo, Liberia, Luxembourg, Malta, Nigeria, the Republic of Korea, Spain, Switzerland, and others.

Ukraine’s presidency in 2025 will focus on ensuring justice that protects the rights of victims, restores their dignity and confirms the damage caused.

In her speech, Olha Stefanishyna highlighted the following priorities for Ukraine:

• Reparations to victims. Continuing the implementation of the pilot project of urgent interim reparations in partnership with the Global Survivors Fund. Scaling up the initiative to a comprehensive national reparations programme aimed at providing both immediate assistance and a long-term approach.
• Ensuring accountability. Strengthening the legal framework and cooperation with international partners to ensure accountability in the future.
• Justice. Providing support that meets the needs of victims. Creating new and improving existing support services.

As part of its presidency, Ukraine also plans to conduct a comprehensive study of best practices in responding to sexual violence among the initiative’s member states.

“It is a great honour for Ukraine to lead the Alliance in 2025. We highly appreciate Colombia’s unwavering commitment and continued partnership as Alliance co-chair. This cooperation is not just a change of roles, but a joint commitment to continue to provide effective support to survivors of such crimes,” said Olha Stefanishyna.

Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the Prosecutor General’s Office of Ukraine has documented more than 320 cases of sexual violence. As of mid-November, 552 people (313 men, 228 women, 11 children) have applied for assistance under the pilot project of immediate interim reparations. To date, 325 people (168 men, 155 women and 2 children) have received immediate interim reparations.

These figures are only a small part of the crimes committed by the russian federation against Ukrainians that are already known to the state.

“With the support of Colombia as Alliance co-chair, we will work to ensure that victims receive reparations, that perpetrators are brought to justice and that they receive the justice they deserve. We are ready to amplify the voices of victims, to fulfil their rights and to fight for justice for as long as it takes,” the Deputy Prime Minister stressed.

Olha Stefanishyna also informed the participants of the event about the work of 12 centres for assistance to survivors, including 3 in a mobile format, as an effective tool for providing comprehensive and unconditional assistance to victims.

The meeting also provided an update on the implementation of the declared priorities by Alliance member states, introduced new members and coordinated further efforts to expand activities. In particular, the participants discussed the inclusion of survivors of violence in the development and implementation of policies at the international and national levels.

Background

The International Alliance on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict was established last year at the 67th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women in New York on the initiative of Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, Head of the United Kingdom delegation and Special Representative of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict.