According to the international program Front Line Defenders, at least 50 human rights defenders, journalists and humanitarian workers have been killed in the year since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The program notes that Russia has been persecuting Ukrainian human rights activists since the beginning of the war because of their activities in recording and broadcasting testimonies about the actions of the Russian military in Ukraine. This evidence is needed for future testing.

According to the program, in 2022 Ukraine was the second country in the world in terms of the number of victims among human rights defenders and journalists after Colombia, where 186 people died. Over the previous three years, the program did not record such killings in Ukraine. In 2018, eco-activist Mykola Bitko made the list when he was found hanged in the woods. According to one version, it was a staged murder, similar to suicide.

The Ukrainian human rights group Zmina previously estimated that Russia also kidnapped or illegally detained at least 386 human rights activists, journalists and volunteers. According to the organization, many of them reported being tortured while being held captive by Russian troops.

Front Line Defenders estimates that 401 human rights defenders and journalists were killed in 26 countries in 2022. Almost half of them defended the environment and the rights of indigenous peoples. 17% of those killed were women.

Source: Front Line Defenders