2009 Annual Report

2009 Eurasia Grantee Spotlight:
Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group

The Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group is one of the oldest and most respected human rights organizations in Ukraine. Registered in 1992, this groundbreaking NGO was originally a part of the Kharkiv branch of Memorial, one of the first human rights groups in the Soviet Union. Since Ukrainian independence, the Group has actively monitored, investigated and reported on human rights abuses. The NGO has also become known for aiding victims, conducting human rights education and legal awareness programs, and carrying out human rights advocacy at the regional, national and international levels.

The Group’s impact has been striking. More than 60 appeals filed by the Group have been accepted by the European Court of Human Rights; three have been successful. The UN Committee Against Torture has included many of the NGO’s recommendations in its remarks to the Ukrainian government. Amendments to the Ukrainian Constitution drafted by the Group have been passed into law. The NGO played a key role in formulating and advocating the successful passage of the Law on Equal Rights and Opportunities for Men and Women and the Law on Social Protection of Persons with Disabilities; the Group’s involvement was also key to the establishment of the National Program to Prevent Trafficking. In the coming year, the Group will review amendments to the Law on the Free Legal Aid System and a new Freedom of Information Law.

The Group has been an Endowment grantee since 1996. While the NGO has used support to carry out a number of different and innovative programs over the years, perhaps the most important NED contribution has been in helping the Group get its message, findings and materials out to domestic and international audiences. Endowment funding has been used to produce the Group’s Pravo Ludyny (Human Rights) and Civic Education bulletins, books and reports on human rights topics, and to run a virtual human rights library on its website (www.khpg.org). These information resources are making an impact.

The Group’s reports are widely read and regularly cited by domestic and international bodies, including the EU, UN and U.S. State Department. The books are highly regarded by and used in educational institutions. The website averages 1,700 visitors every day and consistently ranks among the ten most popular nonprofit sites. Its influence was underlined by the cyber attack launched against it by a Russian extremist movement in December 2007. In 2010, the Group will launch a website for victims of torture and abuse on the popular civil society portal www.maidan.org.ua.

For almost two decades, the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group has proven its ability to advance human rights in Ukraine, but the Group’s work also extends beyond human rights issues to include programs that address elections, HIV/AIDS and the environment. Thanks in large measure its work, the protection of fundamental freedoms in Ukraine has improved considerably since the country gained independence in 1991.