Only India has managed to bring its citizens home from Russian front

Maria Tomak is a Ukrainian human rights activist, journalist and researcher whose work has been documenting the human impact of Russia's aggression against Ukraine. She began her career as deputy editor of the leading daily Den, before joining the Euromaidan SOS initiative during the 2013-2014 revolution. Since then, she has investigated human rights violations in occupied Crimea and eastern Ukraine, coordinated international advocacy campaigns for political prisoners and co-founded the NGO Media Initiative for Human Rights. In an exclusive interview, she spoke about documenting atrocities and defending human dignity. Excerpts:

- MRIDULA GHOSH

When did human rights become a passion for most civil society groups in Ukraine?

The focus on human rights really began in 2014, after the first attacks on Ukraine by Russia and the occupation of Crimea, followed by the invasion of Donbas. After the full-scale invasion in 2022, there was a significant shift. Many organisations that had previously worked in other areas, such as election monitoring, became active in human rights work.

The geography of these activities also changed, expanding from Donbas and Crimea to the whole of Ukraine. Activists began collecting evidence of mass graves and murders in areas around Kyiv, such as Bucha and Borodyanka, as well as near the Azov Sea coastal city of Mariupol. This evidence has enabled NGOs to submit complaints to the International Criminal Court.

However, we are facing two serious challenges: first, the problem of financing due to shortages and the reduction of US-funded programmes; and second, the issue of institutional credibility. We see countries failing to arrest individuals even after international warrants have been issued.