Kateryna Shatkovska had only a few sessions with a sexual violence survivor, a serviceman, when he stopped showing up at her office. The 44-year-old psychologist called him to urge him to continue therapy, but she could not persuade him. There was no further news from him.
With a different case, a civilian from Kherson, there was more progress. Shatkovska began treating him after Ukraine re-took the city in November 2022, and since then the survivor’s life has slowly emerged from silence. Yet she remains cautious, trying to prevent retraumatization, a risk where recalling the ordeal could trigger new trauma for the patient.
Understanding the real scale of sexual violence in war, especially the conflict context between Russia and Ukraine (CRSV), has long been one of the most challenging areas for researchers. Various NGOs and international agencies have provided data on this phenomenon, Kiev has filed cases against Moscow, and one instance even reached the International Court of Justice. However, ongoing hostilities have made a complete, clear picture difficult to achieve.
Fear of Reporting
Over time, however, a clearer picture has begun to emerge from United Nations investigations, one of the most trusted sources on the Russia-Ukraine conflict. CRSV survivors appear to be predominantly male in the numbers reported so far.
In its latest October report, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) presented figures. It documented 149 CRSV cases attributed to Russian soldiers or penitentiary agents from February 2022 to June 2023, of which 94 involved men, 51 women, and 4 girls. It also noted 24 cases in zones controlled by Ukrainian forces, with 18 involving men.
Experts and researchers consulted for this piece acknowledge that these numbers likely represent only a fraction of the true total, as many victims remain afraid to come forward, a sentiment echoed by Shatkovska in a recent interview conducted at her office on the left bank of the Dnipro in Kyiv.
Stigma
“There are many reasons behind the stigma—some survivors have relatives in occupied areas, and they fear reprisals or feel society might blame them for surviving,” says Shatkovska. Over the past two years, a network of 11 centers and survivor support programs has been established by the Ukrainian government and UNFPA, the United Nations agency for sexual and reproductive health. “The stigma is a major hurdle,” she warns.
Oksana Dumska, UNFPA communications lead, notes that this is a relatively new issue for Ukraine. She explains that the number of cases has risen rapidly since 2022, creating a pressing need for male specialists to support the growing number of male survivors who have endured captivity, a view she shares publicly.
Whether Ukraine can scale up this response remains to be seen. In the meantime, professionals like Ljuba, a social worker from southern Ukraine who asked to withhold her real name to protect family members still living in a war-torn city, describe what motivates their work. Ljuba says a key reward is earning the trust of survivors without eliciting pity, and she believes her close, firsthand experience helps survivors open up more fully than they might with others.
Women at the Frontline
In responding to sexual violence linked to the conflict, women have largely formed the frontline of aid. UNFPA centers illustrate this, with about 90 percent of their staff being women, according to the agency.
There are many noteworthy examples beyond these programs. Ukraine also features prominent figures such as Kateryna Pavlichenko, deputy interior minister and head of the unit investigating war-time sexual violence, and Iryna Didenko, who serves the General Prosecutor’s Office. Uliana Tokarieva, deputy minister of social policy, has pushed reform to include war-related sexual violence in the Ukrainian penal code, a move not yet reflected in the current law, which still recognizes other forms of sexual violence but not this crime under international law.