Draft bill #10132 of October 9, 2023 

Cosponsors: a group of 65 MPs from the Servant of the People, Holos, Batkivshchyna, and European Solidarity factions and the For the Future group with Marina Bardina as the first signatory 

Status: under review by the dedicated parliamentary committee 

Who is affected: persons who suffered from sexual violence related to the armed aggression of Russia against Ukraine, their family members, and the Ministry of Social Policy 

Summary of the bill: 

  • the bill introduces the concept of sexual violence associated with the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine since February 24, 2014. It includes rape, enforced pregnancy, enforced sterilization, enforced abortion, enforced prostitution, sexual exploitation, enforced sexual act with a third person, enforced viewing of a sexual act, sexual slavery, enforced circumcision, castration, mutilation of genitals, enforced nudity, and other forms of sexual violence 
  • victims of sexual violence related to the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine and children born as a result of such violence will have the right to be recognized as the injured party 
  • those who served in the Russian army since February 24, 2014, or voluntarily participated in military units created in temporarily occupied territories will not have the right to be recognized as an injured party or a family member of the deceased injured person 
  • concept of “immediate interim reparations” includes access for the victims and the family members of the deceased to adequate and effective legal protection, compensation, rehabilitation, satisfaction, and restitution 
  • to ensure effective access to immediate interim reparations, a Commission to consider issues related to the recognition of persons as victims will be established: 
    • its activities will be organized, coordinated, and ensured by the Ministry of Social Policy 
    • the composition of the Commission will be determined and approved by the Ministry of Social Policy 
    • the goal of the Commission will be to grant the status of a person who suffered from sexual violence committed during the armed aggression of the Russian Federation  
  • to obtain the status of a person who suffered from sexual violence, it will be necessary to submit a written application to the Commission  
  • the decision to grant the appropriate status is made by the Commission no later than 30 days after the applicant submits the application 
  • it will be possible to appeal against the court’s decision to refuse to recognize a person as an injured party to the Commission and/or in court 
  • personal data about victims and family members of the deceased victims will be recorded in the State Register of Persons Who Suffered from the Armed Aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine. This data will be classified as confidential information 
  • victims will have the right to immediate interim reparations, which include: 
    • the right to receive immediate compensation in the amount and the manner defined by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine 
    • the right to free rehabilitation 
    • the right to receive the status of a person who suffered from sexual violence 
    • the right to receive full and exhaustive information about their rights and opportunities for exercising such rights 
    • the right to include personal data in the State Register of Persons Who Suffered from the Armed Aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, established in accordance with the law 
    • the right to compensation for material and moral damage at the expense of those who caused it, and in the manner defined by law, including current international treaties recognized by Ukraine 
  • family members of persons who died as a result of such violence also have the right to interim reparations.
    the Fund for the payment of immediate compensation to victims will be set up as part of the special fund of the government budget 
  • the sources of funding for the Fund will be: 
    • funds of international organizations, other creditors, and investors 
    • international technical or grant financial assistance 
    • funds received as subrogation (regress) to the perpetrator, reparations, or other funds recovered from the Russian Federation 
    • other sources permitted by Ukrainian laws 
  • if the draft bill is adopted, it will come into effect on January 1, 2024. 

What is right: the bill addresses the issue of sexual violence during the war and lays the foundations for the work on reparations for other violations.