Communication Strategies of NGOs in Reporting War Crimes in Ukraine
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17721/CIMC.2025.38.31-42Keywords:
NGOs; war crimes; strategic communication; human rights advocacy; transitional justiceAbstract
This article examines the communication strategies of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in reporting and advocating accountability for war crimes during Russia’s war against Ukraine. The study aims to identify effective mechanisms of public engagement, legal advocacy, and international outreach used by Ukrainian and international human rights groups. It applies the following method: qualitative content analysis, case studies, and source triangulation. Examples are drawn from the activities of ZMINA, the Media Initiative for Human Rights, Truth Hounds, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the Clooney Foundation for Justice. The findings reveal a multilayered communication model that combines legal rigor, emotional storytelling, media collaboration, and digital innovation. The paper also highlights key challenges, such as disinformation, audience fatigue, and reputational risks, and outlines NGO responses. Communication emerges as a strategic instrument in the global fight against impunity.
Downloads
References
Borger, J. (2023, October 26). German prosecutors handed evidence of Russian war crimes in Ukraine. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/oct/26/german-prosecutors-evidence-russian-war-crimes-ukraine.
Clooney Foundation for Justice. (2024, July 10). NGOs file landmark complaint to UN Human Rights Committee on Russian aggression in Ukraine. CFJ. https://cfj.org/news/ngos-file-landmark-complaint-to-un-human-rights-committee-on-russian-aggression-in-ukraine/.
Dooley, B. (2022, 21 березня). Tracking War Crimes In Ukraine With The Truth Hounds. Human Rights First. https://humanrightsfirst.org/library/tracking-war-crimes-in-ukraine-with-the-truth-hounds-2/.
Futamura, M. (2023). Talking about War Crimes: War Crimes Discourse and Strategy. Defence Strategic Communications, 12, 135–164. https://doi.org/10.30966/2018.riga.12.7.
Human Rights Watch. (2008). Still waiting: Bringing justice for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s cantonal and district courts. https://www.hrw.org/reports/2008/bosnia0708/10.htm.
Human Rights Watch. (2023). Documenting loss in Mariupol: Justice for Mariupol project. https://www.hrw.org/feature/russia-ukraine-war-mariupol.
International Criminal Court. (2023, March 17). Judges issue arrest warrants against Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova. https://www.icc-cpi.int/news/situation-ukraine-icc-judges-issue-arrest-warrants-against-vladimir-vladimirovich-putin-and.
Media Initiative for Human Rights. (2025, April 30). Rosiia utrymuie shchonaimenshe 2246 tsyvilnykh ukraintsiv. https://mipl.org.ua/rosiya-utrymuye-shhonajmenshe-2246-czyvilnyh-ukrayincziv-minimum-286-iz-nyh-otrymaly-nezakonni-vyroky/.
Media Initiative for Human Rights. (2023). Release Hostages: a Demand for Freedom Campaign. MIHR. https://mipl.org.ua/send-letter/.
Media Initiative for Human Rights. (2025). Rodyny znyklykh bezvisty desantnykiv zaklykaiut Koordshtab do proportsiynosti pid chas obminu polonenymy. https://mipl.org.ua/rodyny-znyklyh-bezvisty-desantnykiv-zaklykayut-koordshtab-do-proporczijnosti-pid-chas-obminu-polonenymy/.
Open Society Foundations. (2024, July 3). How Open Source Evidence Is Challenging Abuses, Atrocities, and Disinformation. OSF. https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/voices/q-and-a-how-open-source-evidence-is-challenging-abuses-atrocities-and-disinformation#.
Posner, L. (2022, August 9). Flawed Amnesty report risks enabling more Russian war crimes in Ukraine. Atlantic Council. https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrainealert/flawed-amnesty-report-risks-enabling-more-russian-war-crimes-in-ukraine/.
PR Army. (n.d.). Where Are Our People? Deportation campaign. https://deportation.org.ua/about-our-project/.
Radio Svoboda. (2025, May 9). Спецтрибунал для посадовців РФ за злочини агресії. У Львові підпи-сали декларацію [Special tribunal for Russian officials for crimes of aggression. Declaration signed in Lviv]. https://www.radiosvoboda.org/a/news-lviv-deklaratsia-spetstrybunal/33409337.html
Sherpa, C. N., & Lugt, R. v. d. (2024, October). Navigating Pathways Toward Transitional Justice In Ukraine. The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights. https://www.geneva-academy.ch/joomlatools-files/docman-files/Navigating%20Pathways%20Toward%20Transitional%20Justice%20in%20Ukraine.pdf#:~:text=Despite%20the%20ongoing%20hostilities,%20it,Moreover,%20experience.
Starcevic, S. (2024, August 19). Russia bans George Clooney’s ‘undesirable’ foundation. Politico. https://www.politico.eu/article/russia-bans-george-clooney-foundation-amal-clooney/.
United Nations. (2022). Berkeley Protocol on Digital Open Source Investigations. UN.
ZMINA. (2025, March 26). “Зло буде покаране”: ініціатива “Трибунал для Путіна” оприлюднила підсумки роботи за три роки [“Evil will be punished”: the “Tribunal for Putin” initiative pub-lished the results of its work over three years]. ZMINA Human Rights Center. https://zmina.info/news/zlo-bude-pokarane-inicziatyva-trybunal-dlya-putina-prezentuvala-rezultaty-roboty-za-try-roky-roboty/.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
Categories
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Станіслав Мірошниченко
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors published in this journal agree to the following terms:
a. Authors reserve the right to author their work and transfer to the journal the right to first publish this work under the CC BY 4.0 license, which allows others to freely distribute the published work with mandatory reference to the authors of the original work and the first publication in this journal.
b. Authors have the right to enter into independent additional agreements on non-exclusive distribution of the work in the form in which it was published in this journal (for example, to place the work in the electronic repository or publish in a monograph), provided that the link to the first publication in this journal.
c. The journal's policy allows and encourages authors to post manuscripts on the Internet (for example, in repositories or on personal websites) both before the submission of this manuscript and during its editorial processing, as it promotes productive scientific discussion and has a positive impact. on the efficiency and dynamics of citing published work.
