Hanna, a journalist from Ukraine on sisterhood, human rights advocacy, and peacemaking

Written by Hanna Shchydlovska in honour of the International Day for Women Human Rights Defenders

Content warning: The following article contains descriptions of war practices that might be upsetting or disturbing to some audiences.

“Strengthening the resilience of each other”

“Since 2022, the Kherson region has been partially occupied. On the right bank of the Dnipro River, there is free Ukrainian land, and on the left bank, there are Russian occupiers. The distance between the left and right banks ranges from 500 m to 5 km. From the left bank of Kherson, the occupiers shell the right bank of the region and the city with mortars and artillery. The Russian army also drops guided bombs and missiles on Kherson and hunts civilians with unmanned aerial vehicles.

Despite the danger, there are quite a few women working in our media. Three of us, including myself, work directly in Kherson and the surrounding region. We leave our families and children in neighbouring, safer areas and come to work under fire. Here, we communicate with our fellow citizens and raise their voices through our stories. We are the first to interview those affected by shelling, highlight the activities of volunteers, and their assistance to the most vulnerable categories of residents.

We tell stories about children whose childhoods are spent in basements and about women who unite to support and help each other.

We film stories and write about the work of many city services that keep it functioning. Last year, we made a documentary about demining the fields of Kherson. In it, we showed the work of combat engineers and brave Kherson farmers who cleared their fields themselves and have still been growing bread under the threat of shelling ever since.

We have taken first aid courses, we have military first aid kits, and body armour. But Russian drones filled with explosives fly in the sky above the city. For them, a person in body armour, especially one with a “Press” sticker, is target number one. That’s why we often walk around the city in ordinary clothes so as not to attract attention.

It may seem impossible, but cultural life continues in Kherson today. Performances and film screenings, art events, lectures, concerts, and master classes are now taking place in shelters.

Through our articles, videos, interviews, and documentaries, we not only bear witness to crimes against humanity but also assert our right to a normal life. After all, a city where people keep the streets clean and the flower beds blooming despite the shelling is one with a strong will and desire to defend its rights and freedoms.

In a group of human rights defenders from other countries, brought together by the organization Justice & Peace, I saw this same desire for freedom and justice. I was particularly impressed by the strength, courage, and determination of the women human rights defenders, each with their own experiences of struggle. Despite our different stories, I noticed many similarities, felt a spirit of sisterhood, and was imbued with the Bantu African philosophy of “Ubuntu.”

The feeling of deep connection at the Shelter City human rights sessions inspired me to create. My inspiration led me to write a poem-letter addressed to a colleague and friend from the Kherson region, in which I share my realization of how each human rights defender strengthens the resilience of another.