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20 OUR LIFE • May-June 2025 Reports from the Annual Meeting of the UN Commission on the Status of Women Our Life is grateful to Soyuzianky Irene Jarosewich (Branch 75, Maplewood, NJ) and Zoryana Golovata (Member-at-Large) for sharing these reports. Irene and Zoryana are both Representatives from the World Federation of Ukrainian Women’s Organizations (WFUWO) to the United Nations Department of Global Communications/Civil Society Unit (UNDGC/CSU). WFUWO is the international umbrella Ukrainian women’s organization of which the UNWLA is a founding member. Звіти щорічного засідання Комісії ООН зі становища жінок «Наше життя» вдячне союзянці Ірині Яросевич (75-й Відділ, Мейплвуд, Ню Джерзі) та Зоряні Головатій (членкині з особливих питань) за поширення цих звітів. Ірина та Зоряна є представницями Світової Федерації Українських Жіночих Організацій (СФУЖО) — міжнародної організації українок, одним із засновників якої є СУА, у Департа- менті глобальних комунікацій/Підрозділ громадянського суспільства ООН (UNGC/CSU). The presentation of the book Ukraine Is Not Silent on March 10 at the Ukrain - ian Institute of America brought to - gether more than 120 guests, leading experts on the topic of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV), and represent - atives of the international community, the public sector, and civil society. Held as part of the annual meeting of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69), the event demon - strated broad support for Ukraine in the fight for justice for survivors of CRSV. Since russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine in 2014, russian military forc - es in Ukraine, as well as personnel in russian prisons, have used sexual vio - lence against Ukrainian women, men, and children as a weapon of war in a brutal attempt to break Ukraine and Ukrainians. The book presentation pro - vided an important platform to discuss Ukraine’s efforts to hold perpetrators accountable and to strengthen interna - tional support for CRSV survivors. The evening began with welcom - ing remarks by Ukrainian Institute of America (UIA) President Kathy Naly- vayko and a moment of silence for the victims of russia’s war against Ukraine. Opening remarks by Ambassador Melanne Verveer, Executive Director of the Georgetown Institute for Wom - en, Peace and Security and former U.S. Ambassador for Global Women’s Issues, and Irene Jarosewich (Irena Yarosevych), Main Representative from the World Federation of Ukrainian Women’s Organ - izations (WFUWO) to the United Nations Department of Global Communications/ Civil Society Unit (UNDGC/CSU), set the tone for the discussion. They emphasized the global importance of supporting sur - vivors of sexual violence and the need for international accountability. Attendees were addressed via video by Olga Stefanishyna, Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, and in per - son from the UIA podium by Deputy Foreign Minister Mariana Betsa. In a discussion moderated by Irene Jarosewich, participants spoke about Ukraine’s experience in combating CRSV. The focus of the discussion was the pub - lication of Ukraine Is Not Silent (2024). Available in Ukrainian and English, the book contains 25 interviews with CRSV victims and with legal, medical, and polit - ical professionals who work with victims. Ukraine has launched a unique pilot proj- ect, the first in history, to compensate Ukraine Is Not Silent event organizers and members of delegations representing the government of Ukraine and non-governmental organizations, including UNWLA representatives Oksana Lodziuk Krywulych (1st Vice President) and Oka Hrycak (2nd Vice President – Membership). Організатори заходу та члени делегацій від уряду України та неурядових організацій: зокрема, представниці СУА Оксана Лодзюк Кривулич та Ока Грицак. CRSV victims before the completion of a war crimes trial to hold russia account - able. The testimonies of the victims are being verified by legal experts and pre - pared in such a way that they can be pre - sented as evidence in future trials against russian criminals. Representatives of the Ukrainian delegation spoke about initiatives to include russia in the United Nations List of Shame and international cooperation to support victims. These efforts were emphasized by Sabine Fraser Gunes, UN Women Representative in Ukraine. The initiators and editors of the book, Natalia Karbovska, Director of Strategic Development of the Ukrain - ian Women’s Fund, and Kateryna Levchenko, Government Commissioner for Gender Policy of Ukraine, empha - sized the importance of international responsibility. They spoke about how Ukraine and the world community are working to ensure that the guilty are punished and the victims receive nec - essary assistance. The presentations by Iryna Dovgan (Director of SEMA Ukraine, member of the Board of Directors of the Global Sur - vivors Fund) and Lyudmila Huseynova (founder of the NGO “Numo, Sisters!” and member of the Supervisory Board of the pilot project on interim repara - tions for victims of CRSV) were especial - ly moving. Both speakers shared some of their experience as CRSV survivors and their work aimed at helping women who have survived sexual violence. Organized and funded by several leading non-governmental interna - tional and Ukrainian organizations (Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security; WFUWO; UNWLA; Ukrainian Women’s Fund; Self Reli - ance New York Federal Credit Union; UIA), the event became a powerful call to action for human rights defenders, diplomats, and all those fighting for hu - man rights. It demonstrated large-scale international support for Ukraine and emphasized the importance of a joint fight for justice for victims. Ukraine is not silent — and neither should the world be. Ukraine Is Not Silent: A Discussion on Justice and Resilience
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