On Monday 23rd September, Every Casualty Counts delivered an oral statement at the 57th Regular Session of Human Rights Council in Geneva, during the interactive dialogue with the Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine.
Our statement can be read in full or downloaded below.
Item 4: Interactive dialogue with the Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine
Human Rights Council 57th Regular Session
The OHCHR office Ukraine has recorded the death of more than 10,000 civilians due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Ukraine Memorial Platform, a member of the Casualty Recorders Network convened by Every Casualty Worldwide, has individually identified 2,520 of the deceased. They include 308 children, 53 students, 456 older people, 48 medical staff, 92 educators, and 111 entrepreneurs.
However, it is not possible for civil society organisations such as UVM, or international actors, to access Russian-occupied areas in order to document casualties comprehensively. As a result, there is a lack of verified information on fatalities in these regions. The more time passes, the more difficult the task of locating and identifying the dead becomes, leaving thousands of Ukrainian families facing the agony of never knowing the fate of their loved ones.
The documentation of civilian casualties in frontline settlements, as well as in small villages and towns, remains problematic. This is especially true when it comes to documenting the stories of elderly people and other vulnerable groups who had no relatives. Open source information is limited about victims who were not active on social media, and their deaths requirethe work of monitoring groups directly on the ground.
We respectfully request that in its forthcoming investigations, the Commission pay particular attention to identifying violations of, and obstacles to, the effective implementation of human rights obligations concerning the recovery, documentation, identification and dignified handling of the deceased. We also encourage the Commission to make recommendations on what can be done to ensure the prompt, accurate and comprehensive recording of all victims of the conflict. Finally, we urge OHCHR and Council members to ensure adequate resources continue to be allocated to casualty recording in Ukraine, for as long as is required.
For more information about casualty recording in Ukraine, visit the Casualty Recorders Network page.
