From 26 to 30 January 2026, a delegation of Ukrainian juvenile and war crimes prosecutors participated in a study visit to Bogota, Colombia, dedicated to strengthening the investigation and prosecution of crimes against and affecting children (CAAC) and victim-centred justice.
The visit was organised by Global Rights Compliance (GRC) in partnership with the Office of the Chief Prosecutor of the Special Jurisdiction for Peace, as part of GRC’s work supporting domestic authorities to strengthen accountability for international crimes through the application of international law.
Why did this exchange matter?
“It’s been a privilege to bring together prosecutors from Colombia and Ukraine to discuss one of the most important areas of international justice: crimes committed against children. These crimes strike at the very core of humanity, and require responses that centre the dignity, agency and healing of children. They leave deep, long-lasting scars not only on individual victims, but on families, communities, and entire societies. The study visit created space for exchange, joint reflection, and mutual learning, contributing to the institutionalisation of child-sensitive and victim-centred justice approaches for children affected by conflict.”
— Ruby Mae Axelson, Gender & Child Justice Lead at GRC.
Colombia has developed one of the world’s most advanced transitional justice systems, integrating truth, justice, reparation and non-repetition, with strong child-sensitive and victim-centred components. Over decades of responding to armed conflict, Colombian institutions have built innovative approaches to ensure justice by placing victims, including children, at the centre of justice processes.
Ukraine, meanwhile, is confronting an unprecedented scale of international crimes affecting children in the context of Russia’s war of aggression, including forced deportation, attacks on education and recruitment and use of children in hostilities. Ukrainian prosecutors and investigators are leading domestic efforts to ensure accountability for these crimes, developing significant expertise under exceptional conditions.
Bringing together practitioners from both jurisdictions resulted in a unique peer-to-peer exchange between two countries pioneering domestic justice and accountability efforts for conflict-related crimes. Through this activity, GRC facilitated a space for joint reflection, mutual learning and sharing of practical tools that can strengthen child-centred approaches to investigations, prosecutions and victim participation in the Ukrainian context.
Throughout the week of working sessions, participants explored and discussed the topics of child-sensitive case building, structural investigations based on patterns of crimes, early reparations and restorative justice approaches, as well as protection and support systems for child victims and witnesses.
The programme also included an intensive working session and field visit with the Unit for the Search of the Missing and Disappeared (UBPD), where participants explored the institution’s victim-centred and result-oriented approach to locating persons disappeared in the context of armed conflict. The delegation also visited Fragmentos in Bogotá, a collective memorial and symbolic reparations initiative developed with survivors of conflict-related sexual violence, allowing the participants to learn about survivor-led initiatives and the role of such reparation in the transitional justice processes in Colombia.
“Despite significant differences between Russia’s war against Ukraine and the non-international armed conflict in Colombia, we face similar challenges in investigating and prosecuting international crimes. In particular, these include building cases based on patterns, properly involving victims and survivors in the justice process, and creating conditions for effective reparations. The experience shared with us by our Colombian colleagues allows us to look at our own approaches from a comparative perspective. It also helps us to identify in advance the risks we may face in the future. Professional dialogue between representatives of different jurisdictions is not only an exchange of practices, but also an opportunity to compare approaches and strengthen the capacity of the national justice system. Such interactions create the basis for more effective international cooperation and better results for all parties.”
— Anna Sosonska, War Crimes Department, OPG.
As part of the study visit, on 29 January, GRC, together with the Office of the Chief Prosecutor of the Special Jurisdiction for Peace, El Colegio de México, and Xavierian Pontifical University, one of Colombia’s leading higher education institutions, organised an International Seminar on Technology-Facilitated Crimes Against Children.
GRC continues its support to the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine in strengthening the investigation and prosecution of conflict-related CAAC cases and advancing child-centred accountability efforts.
GRC is part of the Atrocity Crimes Advisory Group for Ukraine (ACA). The ACA is a multilateral initiative established by the United Kingdom, the European Union, and the United States to support and assist Ukrainian law enforcement and prosecutors in investigating and prosecuting international crimes committed during a full-scale war.