Thread by @VadymChovgan

About to leave Vienna after a two-day @OSCE conference on torture. Here are my 5 personal take-aways from the conference. About Russian propaganda in Vienna, frustration at the OSCE, accountability for torture, victim support & victim participation. @DIGNITY_INT @UKRinOSCE

Russian OSCE deleg was absent when many spoke about #RussianWarCrimes. It doesn't mean they don't care. Russian propagandists took the task. I'd call them "speak&runners"-they run once got shaming replies. Two "side events" were organized accusing Ukraine of torture (empty rooms)

Many were frustrated with OSCE's helplessness in the Russian war on Ukraine. Some OSCE staff also shared this frustration. The Russian war questions the OSCE raison d'être.Nobel laureate Oleksandra Matviuchuk @avalaina called for a reboot of the Helsinki Process that birthed OSCE

Many NGOs document war crimes without clear accountability strategies. Hundreds of interviews with torture victims are collected, but the end destination of the evidence is often unclear:UA authorities, UN, OSCE, or ICC? Agreed to coop with @zminaUkraine on documenting RU torture

Int'l organizations/NGOs focus on accountability and often forget victims' needs. A victim-centered approach requires more attention. Support victims first, then interview. 'Do no harm' isn't enough. As a minimum, victims need free legal representatives. Good example of @khpg

Almost 10 Ukrainian victims of torture participated in the conference. They shared their stories. They cried. Other participants cried with them. Victims' participation reminds diplomats, civil society, and us all of the cruel reality that should drive diplomatic efforts.

Finally, we presented and widely distributed our new report on torture in Ukrainian prisons on the territories occupied by Russia. Link here: dignity.dk/wp-content/upl…
@DIGNITY_INT @NGO_UWT @EuropePLN @UKRinOSCE @mihr_ua