Men and boys raped by Russian soldiers in Ukraine, say reports
Amid cases of adult violence by Russian soldiers in Ukraine, reports now show men and boys among the alleged rape victims. Several such cases are already being investigated, the UN and Ukraine officials have said.
“I have received reports, not yet verified about adult violence cases against men and boys in Ukraine,” said Pramila Patten, UN special representative on adult violence in war, at a press conference in Kyiv, as quoted by The Guardian.
Read: Some Ukrainian women were raped before being killed, reveals autopsy
Patten added that it can be even harder for male rape survivors to report the crime. “It’s hard for women and girls to report [rape] because of stigma amongst other reasons, but it’s often even harder for men and boys to report we have to create that safe space for all victims to report cases of adult violence,” she said.
TIP OF THE ICEBERG
She warned that dozens of cases under investigation “only represent the tip of the iceberg”, as she urged survivors to come forward. She appealed to the international community to find the perpetrators and hold them responsible. “Today’s documentation will be tomorrow’s prosecution,” she said.
Ukraine’s prosecutor general Iryna Venediktova said on Tuesday that her office had collected reports of adult violence against men and women of all ages, from children to elderly people by Russian troops.
Speaking at a news conference, Venediktova said Moscow had used rape as a deliberate strategy to scare civil society. “This is, of course, to scare civil society to do everything to [force Ukraine to] capitulate.”
She said several survivors left the country, while many are afraid of speaking about their experiences. However, teams of prosecutors and investigators are collecting evidence of widespread adult violence since the retreat of the Russian forces.
“Gang rapes, assaults at gunpoint, and rapes committed in front of children are among the grim testimonies they have collected from victims and their families,” she said.
Read: Sleep with me or I’ll get 20 more men: Russian soldier’s threat before raping pregnant teen
According to the report in the Guardian, the country’s human rights commissioner, Lyudmila Denisova, has officially documented the cases of 25 women who were kept in a basement and systematically raped in Bucha, which neighbours Irpin.
Forensic experts are conducting autopsies on the bodies of women in mass graves and have found evidence that some were raped before being killed by Russian forces.
Some Russian soldiers have already been identified by Ukrainian investigators for war crimes including adult violence, and an arrest warrant has been issued for one man accused of rape.
