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Law enforcement has launched a series of criminal proceedings for the assault and rape of women and girls in the Donetsk, Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Kherson regions. Source: Ihor Mustetsa, Deputy Prosecutor General, in a commentary for Ukrainska Pravda According to Mustetsa: "Information about these criminal offences in almost all cases is based on the results of monitoring Internet resources, media information, reports from third parties, etc. The Beryslav District Prosecutor’s Office initiated criminal proceedings under Part 1 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code on the basis of information obtained as part of a report by a refugee from the Kherson region about the rape of her minor neighbour by a Russian soldier. This fact was confirmed in a telephone conversation with the girl’s parents. Detection of these facts and further pre-trial investigation is complicated on the one hand by the fact that the victims remain in the [Russian-]occupied territories and do not have access to law enforcement agencies and, on the other hand, by the fact that incidents of assault may not be reported by law enforcement agencies because many victims do not want to disclose having suffered these criminal offences." Details: Law enforcement officers are currently implementing a mechanism for Ukrainian women to report instances of rape by the Russian occupiers. Given the sensitive nature of such assault disclosures, a separate format for work with victims of sexual assault is also being developed. Prosecutors are working with law enforcement officers and civil society organisations to ensure victims of rape and sexual assault have access to premedical, medical, and psychological help and treatment. On 8 April, Ombudsman’s official website published information about an instance of rape by the Russian occupying soldiers of a 14-year-old girl and an 11-year-old boy in the city of Bucha in the Kyiv region. Mustetsa said that so far the Prosecutor’s Office has not received any statements or materials on the facts of child rape described in the publication. The Prosecutor General’s Office asked the Ombudsman for further information on these crimes. The Prosecutor’s Office also added that the investigation of such crimes presupposes the existence of a victim, so it is currently important to identify the children who suffered the offence and obtain their consent to further investigation.
