Civilian Surveillance in the War in Ukraine: Mobilizing the Agency of the Observers of War

Abstract

The war in Ukraine sees local and foreign civilians play active roles in the conflict, mainly through the participatory gathering and sharing of intelligence and open-source investigations of alleged human rights violations and war crimes. These surveillance practices seen in the war in Ukraine are not novel. Vigilantism campaigns have normalized since the War on Terror, while open-source information is increasingly recognized as a legitimate tool for human rights and international criminal justice investigation. Yet, their importance in the war in Ukraine highlights the agentic power of civilian surveillance. The proliferation of digital technologies empowers civilians to become inevitable actors in all spheres of politics, including war. However, across these practices, I argue that the Ukrainian government and its Western allies harness this agency as operational and narrative weapons. Patriotism and morality are pushed forward to mobilize individuals to participate in the war despite the risks that vigilantes and open-source investigators have to assume: risks of retaliation by Russian forces and lost independence.

Protection of the Civilian Population from Human Rights Violations through European Mechanisms in Wartime

“…Khen (2023) focuses on the role of civil society and non-governmental organisations in documenting violations and assisting victims. According to Hogue (2023), the war in Ukraine since 2022 is important for understanding the transformation of European human rights protection mechanisms in the context of a large-scale armed conflict. Kalashnikova and Chorna (2023) analyse in detail how approaches to international protection have changed due to the war, pointing to the need for reforms in the European Court of Human Rights system and other international institutions.…”