Paper details
| Paper authors | Ruby Axelson, Tobias Freeman and Danielle DerOhannesian |
| In panel on | The Forgotten Affected Population: Recognizing and Accounting for Crimes against Persons with Disabilities |
| Paper presenter(s) will be presenting |
In-Person / |
Abstract
People with disabilities bear the brunt of hostilities and war-time deprivation in Ukraine. Up to five million persons with disabilities have been disproportionately affected since 2014 and particularly after Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022 brought the war to all Ukrainian regions. While recognised among the most marginalised communities, people with disabilities have received scant attention including in investigative reports by the United Nations, the Organization for Security Co-operation in Europe and others. Consequently, the nature and scale of conflict-related violations against persons with disabilities in Ukraine is unclear.
While national reporting, including by organisations of people with disabilities, has highlighted the multifaceted impacts and challenges they face in accessing safe evacuations, shelters and healthcare, underlying protection and accountability gaps have received less attention. In particular, little is known about the extent to which diverse persons with disabilities are included in atrocity crimes investigations and prosecutions. This paper aims to provide an overview of the diversity of people with disabilities in Ukraine and their diverse experiences of war, to identify obstacles to their participation in accountability efforts including the lack of international guidance on integrating disability perspectives into investigations, and to propose recommendations for bolstering Ukraine’s commitment to inclusive, victim-centred justice.
