Chernihiv Public Committee for the Protection of Human Rights: 26 years of helping those in need

Publication date: December 26, 2025

Author: Yuliia Bilyk, Communications Manager, Legal Development Network

The Chernihiv Public Committee for the Protection of Human Rights (hereinafter referred to as CPCHR) is a member organization of the Legal Development Network, which has been working for more than a quarter of a century to create a society in which every person feels protected. The team provides free legal assistance, specializes in combating gender-based violence (GBV) and human trafficking, and trains community representatives and stakeholders. Thanks to the support of the GlobalGiving charitable platform, the organization continues its systematic work in 2025, providing assistance to hundreds of people.

A quarter of a century on guard for human rights

The Chernihiv Public Committee for the Protection of Human Rights has been operating since 1999. During this time, the organization has become one of the most authoritative human rights structures not only in the region but also in Ukraine as a whole.

“We provide over 1,200 legal consultations per year. In terms of secondary legal aid, this translates to a 90% success rate in court cases. We also have a number of successful cases in the European Court of Human Rights,” says Iryna Biryuk, a lawyer with the Chernihiv Public Committee for the Protection of Human Rights.

The organization is a co-founder and member of the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union, a member of the Legal Development Network, the Human Rights Education House, and the NGO Coalition to Combat Human Trafficking, which is headed by Natalia Kulikova, program director of the Chernihiv Public Committee for Human Rights.

Most of the NGO’s specialists have international experience in internships or training on human rights protection abroad. The organization works closely with courts, police, and prosecutors.

Help is available to everyone

The organization’s team consists of ten specialists: an executive director, a program manager, an accountant, a financial director, a communications manager, two case managers, two lawyers, and an expert on gender-based violence in the Kharkiv region.

“The team is small, but the work we do is global. We work not only in the Chernihiv region, but also extend our influence to the Sumy and Kharkiv regions,” notes Iryna Biryuk.

In neighboring regions, specialists/organizations conduct informational and educational sessions on combating gender-based violence. People from anywhere in the world can seek legal assistance and receive comprehensive professional advice.

“We do not take into account the place of registration or residence, social status, or income level — we help everyone,” emphasizes Iryna Biryuk.

At the same time, the Chernihiv Committee does have certain limitations in its work. Lawyers do not work on criminal cases where a person is a suspect or defendant, nor do they provide defense in cases of administrative offenses.

How people learn about the organization

Every year, the organization holds between 100 and 200 informational and educational sessions in various locations: police training centers, educational institutions, employment centers, safe spaces, modular towns, and places where displaced persons live in compact communities.

“At events, we always tell people that we have lawyers who provide free legal assistance. Word of mouth works very effectively. People who have already contacted us advise their friends, relatives, and colleagues to do the same, because we: a) helped them, b) did it for free, and c) won the case. Some say, ‘We didn’t know that you could get something for free in this life, and that it could be something of such high quality,’” recalls Iryna Biryuk.

People are also referred to the organization by state bodies and institutions. In particular, police units responsible for combating domestic violence often refer victims to the Chernihiv Committee.

Alarming statistics from the GBV

According to Iryna Biryuk, the issue of gender-based violence has gained momentum during the years of full-scale war. However, statistics tell a different story. While the number of reports of violence to the police increased in 2022-2023, it decreased dramatically in 2024-2025.

“What does the decrease in the number of reports indicate? It indicates that many women have left the country and have not returned to their abusive partners, that many abusers have been mobilized, and that there are many abusers who continue to commit violence against their loved ones, but they are hiding at home from mobilization and blackmailing their wives: ‘If you call the police, I will be mobilised, I will die in a month, and you will be the only one to blame for it’. That is why all this is tolerated,” explains Iryna Biryuk.

As a lawyer, Iryna Biryuk notes that cases of violence are becoming even more brutal.

“I have been working in the organization for 11 years, helping people. Sometimes it seems that I have seen everything and nothing can surprise me. But again and again, there are cases that are not just surprising, but shocking,” notes Iryna Biryuk.

During information campaigns, NGO experts constantly emphasize that if a partner hits, then it is definitely not about love, and raising children with physical punishment is not normal.

“Gender-based violence, including domestic violence, is a cycle of violence that must be broken. If this is not done, it will repeat itself. American researcher Leonora Walker has studied the mechanism of the cycle of domestic violence. If it happened once, it will definitely happen again, a second, third, and fifth time. Children who witness violence will later model the behavior of either the victim or the abuser and pass this shameful phenomenon on to future generations,” emphasizes Iryna Biryuk.

A new life without violence

The NGO provides comprehensive assistance to victims of gender-based violence: providing them with medical, psychological, and humanitarian assistance, legal support, and even support in starting their own business. The Chernihiv Committee has hundreds of success stories in its collection. Iryna Biryuk cites one such story as an example.

A woman, a resident of a small town who had suffered from domestic violence for many years, turned to the CHC. The abuser was her husband, the father of her children. The fact that the woman received sympathy did not help — the abuser still did not allow her to live in peace. Since the man was one of the influential people in the community, the woman had no support from her close circle.

“At her own risk, she decided to put an end to this situation and contacted our organization and the police. One day, she called the police, who issued an emergency restraining order prohibiting her husband from approaching her or the children for 24 hours. During that time, she gathered what she could and left for Chernihiv. We hid her in Chernihiv for a while. Then, together with our partner organizations, we sent her to Kyiv, where she underwent rehabilitation,” says Iryna Biryuk.

Due to prolonged exposure to a stressful environment, beatings, and psychological pressure, specialists/officials discovered many chronic diseases in both the victim and her children. The woman decided not to return home and to start a new life in the capital.

“She retrained, started working in a completely different field, helping other people. Now she lives a different life, often calls us and says that she does not regret asking for help,” says Iryna Biryuk.

Human trafficking — a danger close at hand

As the experience of the CHR shows, the issue of human trafficking has become even more relevant in the context of war. This is because many people have lost their health, their jobs, their homes, or their homes have been damaged. As a result, people accept risky job offers without reviewing the terms and conditions.

“Sometimes people confidently say, ‘I won’t end up in a human trafficking situation because I don’t travel abroad.’ This is a myth. According to statistics, most people who end up in such situations are in Ukraine, and they are men. Most often, it is a case of labor exploitation,” says Iryna Biryuk.

Training for stakeholders

To combat child trafficking and human trafficking, the organization conducts training sessions for stakeholders in communities.

“We bring everyone together: so that the police know where to redirect calls; so that child services know how and when to respond to violations of children’s rights; so that social service centers know which agencies and institutions to contact and in which cases. Our task is to ensure that everyone works together as a chain. After all, if one link is missing, help is not provided as it should be,” explains Iryna Biryuk.

“The legislation we have in Ukraine is one of the best, but its implementation is actually one of the worst. That is why we educate people so that they know and understand the powers of each structure and act in accordance with national legislation,” emphasizes Iryna Biryuk.

Legal assistance in wartime

In addition to exacerbating the painful problems of peacetime, the war has added a number of other challenges. Residents of frontline communities are turning to the CHRG with questions about how to apply for compensation for destroyed or damaged property and how to obtain legal payments for internally displaced persons to cover utility bills.

One of the NGO’s recent complex cases concerns a family whose relative was killed during a ballistic strike on Chernihiv. The Pension Fund refused to pay the family the benefits they are entitled to by law.

“I filed a lawsuit with the administrative court. The case is open, and a court hearing has been scheduled. Only time will tell what happens next, whether we will succeed in winning and bringing this case to a logical conclusion. These cases are difficult, and people are desperate. When they turn to lawyers, they spend significant amounts of money on services to prepare their claims. We help them free of charge,” emphasizes Iryna Biryuk.

GlobalGiving: Stability and Confidence

Over the years, the Chernihiv Public Committee for the Protection of Human Rights has become a real stronghold for thousands of people who have found themselves in difficult circumstances. Although the organization itself is sometimes going through tough times, it never stops working.

“Our organization is 26 years old, and whether there is funding or not, we still help people,” says Iryna Biryuk.

Flexible funding from GlobalGiving in 2025 has become a guarantee for the NGO to continue its stable work.

“This funding is about stability and confidence in the future. It is an opportunity to hold regular events, make regular visits to communities, and help more people without hindrance,” emphasizes Iryna Biryuk.

With the support of GlobalGiving, the organization holds one informational and educational event per month, which always includes open communication between people and lawyers. Participants in the events can receive assistance on the spot or get answers to their questions. During the month, lawyers provide more than a hundred individual consultations.

Given the current instability, the Chernihiv Committee does not dare to make long-term plans for the future. At the very least, the organization strives to continue providing legal assistance, conducting informational and educational events, working with communities, and training community representatives.

“Our wish for the new year is to add at least one more lawyer to the organization so that we can help even more people and continue to protect the most vulnerable, striving for the victory of truth and justice,” concludes Iryna Biryuk.

This material was created by the Legal Development Network with the support of the international charitable platform GlobalGiving. The content of this publication is the sole responsibility of the Legal Development Network.

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