Open Letter: Ensuring Survivor and Civil Society Participation in the Establishment and Design of the International Claims Commission for Ukraine

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To: The Council of Europe Secretariat and Members of the Preparatory Committee of the International Claims Commission for Ukraine

As survivor groups and civil society organisations, we welcome the important steps already taken by various actors, including the Council of Europe and its Member States, to ensure that victims of crimes committed by the Russian Federation in Ukraine can access compensation, and to make the right to reparation an integral and feasible component of broader processes of accountability and recovery in Ukraine.

In particular, the establishment and ongoing functioning of the Register of Damage for Ukraine (Register), alongside the creation of the International Claims Commission for Ukraine (Claims Commission), represent critical steps in acknowledging and addressing the harms suffered by victims.

At this crucial moment, the Claims Commission has a unique opportunity to ensure that its work is firmly grounded in the needs and priorities of victims and Ukrainian society in general. The upcoming discussions on the Claims Commission’s technical and procedural framework are critical, as they will directly and indirectly shape how claims will be assessed and, ultimately, how compensation will be delivered. It is therefore essential that these frameworks consider and reflect the lived realities of survivors.

However, we remain concerned about the limited opportunities for survivors and civil society to meaningfully participate in the design and implementation of the Register, the Claims Commission, and the future Compensation Fund. To date, civil society and more importantly, survivors, have played only a minimal role in key discussions, including those related to the establishment and functioning of the Register. Recent survivor and civil society consultations have shown that this has led to difficulties in them engaging with the registration of claims. When the Convention establishing the Claims Commission was adopted at a diplomatic conference in The Hague in December 2025, to our knowledge no survivors or civil society organisations were invited to participate; instead, they were told it was a closed session. Closing off convenings aimed at establishing compensation mechanisms for Ukraine risks sending the message to those most in need of reparation that these mechanisms are distant, inaccessible, and ultimately less trustworthy.

Since the Claims Commission is not yet fully established and its design is currently underway, policymakers still have the opportunity to address this gap. We understand that the first meeting of the Preparatory Committee for the Claims Commission is scheduled to be held on 22–23 June 2026 in The Hague. Nevertheless, there appears to be no publicly available information regarding whether and how civil society actors may participate in, contribute to, or engage with the Committee, whether during the session itself or through related processes. We note with concern that the Statute of the Preparatory Committee seems to only foresee meetings in camera with a mention of observers, which we read to include representatives of non-signatory States and regional organisations. The Statute bears no mention of survivors or civil society.

While we recognise the often technical nature of discussions at such meetings, decisions regarding procedure and technicalities will have a direct and lasting impact on the Claims Commission’s design and operations. Survivors and other civil society representatives have valuable insights and expertise that should be considered when shaping both procedural and substantive matters of the Claims Commission to ensure that these mechanisms are accessible, inclusive, and sensitive to diverse victims, including particularly vulnerable groups. For instance, at the time of the diplomatic conference to adopt the Convention in December 2025, Ukrainian survivor groups released a joint statement urging States to sign and ratify the Convention, and highlighting the need for an inclusive and victim-centred approach to reparation, including victims harmed before the full-scale invasion.

Meaningful victim participation should not be viewed as a discretionary matter but rather recognised as a requirement under international standards. As emphasised by the UN Special Rapporteur on Truth, Justice and Reparation, ensuring victim participation in the design and implementation of reparation mechanisms is indispensable. Such participation helps ensure that mechanisms respond to victims’ real needs and priorities, promote recognition and empowerment, and strengthen the legitimacy, ownership, and overall effectiveness of reparation efforts. This applies to compensation as a form of reparation.

At the time of signing the Convention, the Secretary General of the Council of Europe stated: “Today marks a major step forward in ensuring accountability for Ukraine. The International Claims Commission represents justice and hope for tens of thousands of victims—our determination that those who have suffered will not be forgotten.”

Without the active involvement of survivors and civil society, there is a significant risk that the Claims Commission may fall short of this important aim.

In light of the above, we respectfully urge you to take concrete steps to ensure that survivors and civil society organisations are meaningfully included in the preparatory work of the Claims Commission. This includes:

  • Ensuring early, transparent, and comprehensive communication with the public about meetings held and progress made towards the establishment of the Claims Commission and future Compensation Fund;
  • Creating accessible and transparent opportunities for participation in preparatory meetings and other relevant discussions;
  • Ensuring consultation processes are inclusive and meaningful by incorporating input from diverse groups of victims—including potentially vulnerable and underrepresented groups—into decision-making;
  • Providing mechanisms for civil society and survivors to review and comment on draft rules and procedures and other relevant documents;
    Facilitating ongoing dialogue among stakeholders to promote a survivor-centred and inclusive approach, including for the design of future mechanisms, such as the Compensation Fund.

Taking these steps would ensure that the Claims Commission’s work is not only effective, but also legitimate, victim-centred, participatory, and grounded in principles of justice and dignity.

Signatories

Ukrainian survivor groups:

  • Association of relatives of political prisoners of the Kremlin
  • Civilian Prisoners
  • Free Civilians
  • Free to leave
  • Network of Men of Ukraine Who Survived Captivity and Torture “Alumni”
  • NGO “29th December”
  • NGO “Numo, Sisters!”
  • SEMA Ukraine
  • Ukraine Legal Network
  • Way of the Freemen 

Ukrainian civil society organisations:

  • Center for Civil Liberties
  • Centre of civic education “Almenda”
  • Civil Network OPORA
  • Code of Freedom
  • Crimean Human Rights Group
  • Crimean Process
  • DYNAMIC ASSOCIATION OF PEOPLE (DAP)Eastern Ukrainian Center for Civic Initiatives
  • Human Rights Centre ZMINA
  • Human Rights Clinic, NGO Projector
  • Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group
  • Media Initiative for Human Rights
  • Non Government Organization “Southern Development Strategy”
  • Regional Center for Human Rights
  • Ukrainian Legal Advisory Group
  • Ukrainian women lawyers association “JurFem”

Other civil society organisations:

  • Civil Rights Defenders
  • Coalition for the International Criminal Court (CICC)
  • Foundation “OPORA in Poland”
  • Global Survivors Fund
  • International Partnership for Human Rights
  • Legal Action Worldwide
  • REDRESS
  • Stichting Justice Initiative
  • The Nuhanovic Foundation

This statement was produced with support of the Global Initiative Against Impunity for International Crimes and Serious Human Rights Violations: Making Justice Work (GIAI), which aims to contribute to the fight against impunity by supporting a comprehensive approach to justice and accountability for serious human rights violations and core international crimes, and is funded by the EU. Its contents are the sole responsibility of the signatories and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.

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