Accountability in times of crisis - Lessons from Ukraine

Since the beginning of the Ukraine war, civil society has undertaken unprecedented attempts to document atrocities and war crimes committed in Ukraine. It is the first time in history that such an attempt has been launched even while the war is still ongoing.

In order to ensure accountability for war crimes, committed atrocities must be recognised and, ideally, the alleged perpetrators must be prosecuted, also to deter others from committing similar crimes. But there is another dimension to accountability that focuses on what happens when the war ends and on strengthening post-war societal cohesion. 

Together with experts in human rights law and civil society leaders, we will explore insights on the current situation in Ukraine and the need for accountability in times of crisis. We will examine current efforts to ensure criminal accountability and how they can help shape a more just and accountable future in Ukraine.

Welcome remarks by Andrew Gilmour, Executive Director, Berghof Foundation

Speakers will include: 

• Timothy Snyder, Richard C. Levin Professor of History, Yale University
• Ambassador Beth Van Schaack, Ambassador-at-Large for Global Criminal Justice, United States Department of State
• Ambassador Christoph Heusgen, Chairman of the Munich Security Conference
• Sevgil Musaieva, Chief editor, Ukrayinska Pravda
• Ibrahim al Olabi, Barrister, Guernica 37 Chambers

Moderated by Janine di Giovanni, Executive Director and Co-Founder, The Reckoning Project.

We look forward to involving you in our conversation. You can send us your questions via email prior to the event, or join our discussion on X (previously Twitter) and Instagram.

This event will be held in English and will be livestreamed from Berlin, Germany.