The RAPE WAR Putin Denies?

In occupied towns across Ukraine, survivors of Russian sexual violence are breaking years of silence to demand justice—and an end to impunity.

At a Glance

Ukrainian women report systemic rape by Russian forces

Fewer than 210 sexual violence cases are being investigated

Victims face stigma, state neglect, and legal failure

The UN and global watchdogs call it weaponized warfare

Ukraine is pursuing justice and reparations amid war

A Campaign of Sexual Terror

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, sexual violence has become a brutal hallmark of the war in Ukraine. Survivors’ testimonies reveal a systematic campaign of rape, coercion, and torture deployed not just to harm individuals but to devastate entire communities.

Organizations like SEMA Ukraine have gathered harrowing reports of such abuses. Activists including filmmaker and survivor Alisa Kovalenko have led efforts to document these war crimes, highlighting what she calls a “copy and paste” method of sexual terror deployed across regions. According to The Guardian, the accounts show repeated patterns—assaults by armed men in homes, detention centers, and front-line zones, often in front of victims’ families.

Watch CBS News’ report on the incident at Ukrainian investigators uncover horrific claims of Russian sexual violence.

One survivor, 77-year-old Liudmyla, recounted being raped and beaten yet still considers herself “living thanks to these people”—referring to SEMA and the support of other survivors. Another, Tetyana, now speaks at village forums, confronting the cultural silence that often prevents rural Ukrainians from reporting such trauma.

Silence, Stigma, and Institutional Failures

Despite nearly 100,000 total war crimes registered by Ukraine’s prosecutor’s office, only 208 relate specifically to sexual violence, according to The New York Times. Survivors often find little support, facing shame or even blame from local officials. As one woman, Halyna, told The Guardian, “[Some people, including police officers, say,] ‘Well, you decided to stay, if you had left, this wouldn’t have happened.’”

This pervasive stigma, paired with bureaucratic inertia, prevents many victims from coming forward. Maryna, another survivor, noted, “Sexual violence is low attention. It’s not treated the same as torture or other war crimes because there is no proper mechanism, no laws.”

Efforts to rectify this are underway. Ukraine is revising its legal code to better prosecute wartime sexual violence and has established a special working group to handle survivor cases. A new hotline and reparations framework are slowly gaining traction.

Global Pressure and a Reckoning Ahead

International condemnation is mounting. The United Nations and groups like Human Rights Watch have documented widespread sexual torture and called it a strategy of dehumanization by Russian forces. As Kateryna Pavlichenko of Ukraine’s interior ministry told The Guardian, investigators are “more efficient” now after years of learning to document these crimes since the 2014 annexation of Crimea.

Yet accountability remains elusive. Alisa Kovalenko, echoing the despair of many victims, questioned: “What will we say to them? For what was this for?” Her words underscore the gap between justice promised and justice delivered, as global leaders balance war politics with prosecuting atrocity.

Toward Recognition and Reparations

Ukraine’s First Lady Olena Zelenska has backed legislative changes aimed at funding survivor support and memorializing the toll of conflict-related sexual violence. Reparations include not just financial assistance but also psychological care and official recognition—a vital step for victims long erased from war narratives.
Survivors like Halyna, Maryna, and Tetyana now anchor local and global movements demanding that the world not look away. Their resilience, documented in reports and raw testimonies, marks a turning point in Ukraine’s battle not only for sovereignty but for dignity.

Watch Channel 4’s report on the incident at Russia urging soldiers to ‘rape Ukrainians’, giving them Viagra for sexual assault.