Analytical report within the framework of the KHPG project ‘Strengthening Public Oversight and Accountability of State Institutions in Ukraine’, 2025–2026

1. General trends and constitutional rights during the war (Sections #01–#03)

• Authors of this section: Yevhen Zakharov, Vsevolod Rechytskyi, Borys Zakharov.

• Link to the report file:
  Human Rights in Ukraine 2025 and the First Half of 2026. Summaries of the reports

• Key issues:

  • The report examines the narrowing of the space for civil and political freedoms under the pretext of martial law, the absence of systematic dialogue between the authorities and civil society, pressure on the opposition and attempts to subordinate the judiciary.

  • It analyses the unconstitutional application of National Security and Defence Council (NSDC) sanctions against Ukrainian citizens and cases of unlawful deprivation of citizenship without transparent procedures or judicial oversight.

  • In the sphere of freedom of speech, the report records the growing state monopolisation of the information space through the retention of the ‘United News Telethon’, the removal of patriotic opposition TV channels (Espreso, Priamyi, Channel 5) from digital broadcasting, and pressure by law enforcement and security agencies (the SBU and the SBI) on investigative journalists and bloggers (the cases of Bihus.Info, Yu. Butusov, B. Bereza and Slidstvo.Info). At the same time, it emphasises that society has retained its capacity for peaceful resistance (the ‘cardboard protests’ of 2025–2026).

2. Anti-corruption and human rights (Section #05)

• Authors: Valeriia Lutkovska, Tetiana Kozachenko, Anastasiia Lutkovska-Babych.

• Link to the report file:
  Права людини в Україні у 2025 році та у першій половині 2026 року. Антикорупція та права людини
  Human Rights in Ukraine 2025 and the First Half of 2026. Anti-corruption and Human Rights

• Key issues:

  • Striking a balance between the effectiveness of anti-corruption justice (NABU, SAPO, HACC) and respect for the guarantees of a fair trial (Article 6 of the ECHR) and the presumption of innocence.

• Key systemic problems identified:

  1. Information influence and leaks of materials: The publication of fragments of covert investigative actions (the ‘tapes’), photographs of searches and of cash before they have been assessed by a court creates a premature public perception of a person’s guilt.

  2. Preventive measures and excessive bail: Bail is often set at amounts hundreds of times above the statutory limits (hundreds of millions of hryvnias), turning it from an alternative to arrest into de facto detention. Insufficient account is taken of the danger of being held in the Kyiv pre-trial detention centre during missile attacks without adequate shelters.

  3. Formalism of judicial review: The mechanism for challenging notices of suspicion remains effectively inoperative owing to the absence of a statutory standard of ‘reasonable suspicion’.

  4. Problems with trials in absentia (in absentia): The practice of treating a person as ‘on the international wanted list’ solely on the basis of a detective’s internal decision, even when their address abroad is known and they take part in hearings via video link.

  5. Use of specialists’ opinions: Attempts to ‘legalise’ non-procedural specialist reports by means of forensic examinations ordered at a later stage.

  6. Plea agreements: Plea agreements are approved by the same panels of HACC judges who subsequently hear the cases of other co-defendants on the merits, which violates the requirement of objective impartiality of the court.

3. Respect for the rights of vulnerable groups (Section #11)

• Authors: Serhii Miasoiedov, Nataliia Dorofieieva, Nataliia Isaieva, Iryna Yakovets, Oleh Dymaretskyi, Iryna Honcharova, Sviatoslav Sheremet.

• Link to the report file:
  Права людини в Україні у 2025 році та у першій половині 2026 року. Порушеня прав людини представникiв вразливих спільнот України
  Human Rights in Ukraine 2025 and the First Half of 2026. Rights of Vulnerable Groups

• Key issues: The impact of martial law, mobilisation processes and stigma on specific communities:

  • Sex workers (SWs): A rise in rights violations (69% of respondents had experienced violations), high levels of violence from clients and the police, and corrupt blackmail made possible by the existence of administrative liability (Article 181-1 of the Code of Administrative Offences). The report stresses the need to decriminalise consensual adult pornography (draft law No. 15294) and to reform Articles 301–303 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

  • People who use drugs (PWUD) and OST patients: Disruption of the continuity of opioid substitution therapy (OST) during forced mobilisation, the lack of clear medical protocols for military units, and the removal of patients directly from hospitals without a proper military medical commission assessment.

  • Women living with HIV (PLHIV): Discrimination in healthcare facilities (525 recorded cases), disclosure of confidential diagnoses, and problems of domestic violence. The report advocates the decriminalisation of unintentional HIV transmission (the repeal of Article 130 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

  • The LGBTIQ+ community: Despite growing public tolerance (78% of Ukrainians support equal rights) and a number of positive judicial precedents, a legislative vacuum persists: the law on registered civil partnerships (No. 9103, a requirement of the ECtHR in Maymulakhin and Markiv v. Ukraine) has not been adopted; SOGI (sexual orientation and gender identity) grounds have still not been included in the list of aggravating circumstances in the Criminal Code; and the introduction of ICD-11 to depathologise transgender identity continues to be delayed.