News and press releases

While international justice tools to deal with war-related crimes are high on the agenda, national institutions can and should pursue investigation and prosecution of those who commit them, as synergy of domestic and international efforts is an important precondition for justice to effectively respond to violations of human rights in the course of ongoing war. The needs of adapting national practices and legislation in criminal justice were in focus of IX Lviv Criminal Justice Forum, organized by the OSCE Secretariat Extra-Budgetary Support Programme for Ukraine (SPU) together with State Bureau of Investigations and Lviv University of Internal Affairs on 26-27 October 2023.

Ensuring gender-sensitive education of staff working in Ukraine’s system of free legal aid will enhance quality of assistance provided to survivors of gender-based violence, including related to the ongoing war. These are some of the recommendations, elaborated with the assistance of the OSCE Secretariat Extra-Budgetary Support Programme for Ukraine (SPU), based on the assessment of documents, policies and practices used by members of the Free Legal Aid system.

More than 90 young legal professionals, students of law and post-graduates, including 53 women and 40 men, had a chance to upgrade their professional knowledge during a series of four summer schools, organized in August by the OSCE Secretariat Extra-Budgetary Support Programme for Ukraine (the SPU).

Ukrainian and international legal professionals, civic activists, experts and youth join a series of events under the Constitution Week initiative to discuss how to better use constitutional justice for defending human rights in times of war.

Improvements in prevention, law enforcement, prosecution and judicial review of sexual violence cases in times of war were the focus of discussions among more than 150 legal professionals, officials and civil society organisations during the of the 4th Forum of Women Lawyers held on 16 June.