Civilians Freed from Russian Captivity Struggle for Status

After nearly four years in Russian captivity, L, a 54-year-old woman from Donetsk (her name has been withheld to protect her identity) arrived in Kyiv on October 15, 2024, both her mental and physical health in tatters.

However, her sister I (whose identity has also been protected) told IWPR that although Ukrainian authorities were investigating the detention as a possible war crime, the family was struggling to have L officially recognised as a civilian illegally detained by the Russian Federation.

This status would allow her access to state benefits I hoped would go towards the more than 5,000 hryvnias (100 US dollars) she currently spends on monthly medication for treatment for her health problems, including poor short-term memory and issues with her vision, hearing and coordination.

I said her sister remembered little of the years she spent in detention, enduring harsh treatment.

“L only recalls fragmented moments,” she explained, “like sitting in a cold solitary confinement cell with her back and hands black from what was clearly a beating.”

When the Donetsk region was occupied in 2014, L remained in the regional capital with her parents.

Her sister explained that a childhood accident had led to L developing epilepsy, and that she remained vulnerable, with her health issues making it hard to contain her emotions.

“Despite our warnings about the danger, she often posted pro-Ukrainian comments on social media and argued about the occupation with her colleagues at work,” I continued.

On October 19, 2020, L left home to go shopping but did not return. Later that evening, she was brought back to her apartment by representatives of the occupation authorities, who conducted a search and confiscated all electronic devices. They told L’s mother that she had attempted to photograph an “official” building.

Multiple criminal charges were filed against L and she spent the next six months in the notorious Izolyatsia illegal prison. Established on the site of a former Donetsk art centre, the prison was known for its inhumane treatment of civilians and prisoners of war.

“After that, she was held for a year in a pre-trial detention centre, followed by another year of forced treatment in a psychiatric hospital - although epilepsy is not curable,” her sister said.

She continued, “We found a Russian lawyer who worked on my sister’s release and wrote letters everywhere. We received responses about both the criminal cases and her referral for treatment.”

L was released from the hospital in mid-2023, but the criminal case against her was not closed until June 2024. This followed several appeals by her family to the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, who in turn contacted his Russian counterpart.

A series of medical commissions subsequently confirmed the woman was not mentally competent to stand trial. To leave occupied territory, she had to obtain a Russian passport and travel through the Russian Federation and Belarus.

Immediately after L’s return to Kyiv, her sister contacted the police to launch an investigation into the war crime committed against her.

“Prisoners of war are mostly held in the Russian Federation or in territories of Ukraine that have been occupied for a long time,” noted Veronika Plotnikova, head of the Coordination Centre for the Support of Victims and Witnesses, which operates under the auspices of the prosecutor general’s office. “Of course, Ukrainian law enforcement has no access to these territories, facilities or witnesses, which affects the course of the investigation.”

Single Authority

I explained that her sister had not received official status as an illegally detained civilian because her family had secured L’s release on their own, without involving Ukrainian state agencies. She added that this was because the official process for releasing civilians was extremely difficult.

“We have already submitted documents three times to the relevant commission that establishes the fact of a person’s captivity,” the woman continued. “But we were told we need to prove she was detained specifically for her active pro-Ukrainian stance or for attempting to harm the Russian Federation. We are now preparing our fourth application and we hope it will be the last.”

Nataliia Melnyk, coordinator of projects and programmes at the Blue Bird NGO, which supports war-affected individuals, children, and vulnerable groups, sits as a civil society representative on the commission that establishes the facts of captivity.

She emphasised that each case should be analysed individually, noting that the commission followed a specific Ukrainian law that grants special status to military personnel who have been held captive, as well as to certain unlawfully detained civilians.

This applied in particular to detentions resulting from expressing views in defence of Ukraine’s sovereignty or for activities aimed at upholding the independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine.

The 2021 law was amended in January 2022 – just one month before Russia’s full-scale invasion – and has no provision for situations arising in the occupied territories or in Russia itself, nor the arbitrary actions of Russians against civilians.

“The law doesn’t account for people who are simply seized off the street and imprisoned,” Melnyk noted. “There are cases where individuals were detained for violating curfew or on suspicion of relaying Russian military coordinates to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, even when they were innocent. Sometimes, people are detained for no apparent reason at all. They are held in captivity for a period and then released.

“At the same time, many of those detained had participated in protests in places like Kherson, tore down Russian flags, secured vital databases, actively resisting the occupiers. Clearly, the risks they faced were far greater,” she continued. “Without a doubt, all who have been illegally imprisoned need state support; the vast majority of them have endured torture and brutal treatment. But is it fair to grant the same status, with an identical system of benefits and guarantees, to both the soldiers captured while defending our country and the civilians who took no action to protect it?”

Civilians with this official status are entitled to financial assistance from the state. They receive a one-time payment of 100,000 hryvnias (2,300 dollars) upon their release, followed by an annual payment of the same amount for each year they were held illegally. According to official data, about 3,500 people were granted this status in 2025.

In the autumn of 2025, Ukrainian human rights organisations called on the government to designate an authorised body to address the issues of illegally detained civilians. In response, the Cabinet of Ministers approved a procedure for prioritising support to civilians who had not been able to obtain official status.

They can apply for a one-time payment of 50,000 hryvnias (1,150 dollars). To do so, applicants should provide a certificate from the Joint Centre for the Coordination of the Search for and Release of Prisoners of War, which operates under the Security Service of Ukraine.

This document would be issued based on information from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ukrainian intelligence agencies and law enforcement bodies, if the applicant is a recognised victim in a criminal proceeding to confirm that the released civilian was held in captivity as a result of the war. A specially created inter-agency commission is tasked with making the final decision.

However, I said she remained sceptical about how this mechanism will work in practice.

“State authorities should already be working on an effective mechanism to support civilians who are unlawfully detained or who were previously held in captivity,” she said. “There are still many of them in the occupied territories and in Russia. And when they begin to return, this problem will become even more large-scale.”

Project Focus Ukraine Justice Report

Locations Ukraine

Topics Detentions, War crimes, International justice