Ukraine has so far survived the brutal winter despite continuing Russian missile attacks across the country. However, the sustained and intense Russian aggression is having a deep psychological impact on many in Ukraine.

Human Rights First reported from the northeastern Ukrainian region of Kharkiv in November 2023. At the start of the winter, we visited the city, surrounding communities, and the front line of the war to hear how locals intended to survive the bitter cold. In January 2024, in temperatures of minus 0.4° Fahrenheit (-18° Celsius), Human Rights First returned to understand how these communities and human rights defenders (HRDs) are coping.

HRDs working on a range of issues, such as documenting war crimes and working with the most vulnerable communities—including supporting orphans, survivors of domestic abuse and war-related sexual violence, the LGBTQ community, the elderly, and those living at the battlefront—told Human Rights First there is a dire and growing need for psychological support.

HRDs and others in the region also noted with alarm the Biden administration’s recently weakened language around support for Ukraine, and the continued failure of U.S. government officials to visit Kharkiv.

Download the report here.

 

Dr. Brian Dooley is an Honorary Professor of Practice at the Mitchell Institute and a Senior Advisor at Human Rights First, a U.S.- based NGO. He specialises in working with Human Rights Defenders (HRDs) in conflict and post-conflict contexts, and was senior advisor to the UN Special Rapporteur on HRDs Mary Lawlor 2020-2023. His most recent work has been in the Hong Kong revolution and on Russia’s war on Ukraine. He has also written two books related to the conflict in Northern Ireland, including a comparative study of the civil rights movements in the U.S. and Northern Ireland.