Ukraine’s Draft Law No. 13597 on Combating Discrimination: Gender Stream Publishes Legal Analysis and Recommendations

In Ukraine, crimes motivated by prejudice against a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity or other protected characteristics do not always receive an adequate legal response. Attacks may be classified as ordinary hooliganism, while discriminatory motives remain unexamined during investigations. Such practices undermine access to justice for victims and increase the risk of impunity.

Draft Law No. 13597, “On Amendments to the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offences and the Criminal Code of Ukraine Regarding Combating Discrimination”, registered in the Ukrainian Parliament on 4 August 2025, seeks to address these gaps.

Gender Stream, a Ukrainian civil society organisation working on human rights, gender equality and LGBTIQ+ rights, has prepared a comprehensive legal analysis of Draft Law No. 13597. The report examines the proposed amendments, assesses their compliance with international human rights standards, identifies legal risks and offers recommendations for strengthening Ukraine’s anti-discrimination legislation and its response to hate crimes.

Why does Ukraine need stronger anti-discrimination legislation?

The shortcomings of existing legal protection against discrimination and hate crimes have been documented by Ukrainian human rights organisations and international institutions.

According to Vartovi, a monitoring and analytical platform tracking incidents motivated by intolerance against LGBTIQ+ people in Ukraine, 52 such incidents were recorded between 2022 and 2025.

Gender Stream’s report also examines official prosecution statistics concerning Article 161 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code, which addresses violations of equality.

According to the data analysed in the report, between 2022 and 2025:

• 531 criminal offences were recorded under Article 161;
• 233 cases were referred to court;
• 149 proceedings were closed on grounds provided for by law.

These figures highlight challenges in investigating and prosecuting discrimination-related offences. However, the available statistics do not provide a sufficiently detailed breakdown of the protected characteristics involved, making it difficult to assess the effectiveness of protection for specific groups.

The need for reform has also been recognised by the European Commission. Its 2025 Ukraine Report highlighted gaps in the country’s criminal legislation concerning hate crimes, including the insufficient recognition of sexual orientation and gender identity.

Strengthening anti-discrimination legislation is therefore also relevant to Ukraine’s EU accession process and its broader international human rights commitments.

What did Gender Stream’s legal analysis find?

The Gender Stream expert team examined the proposed amendments to Ukraine’s anti-discrimination legislation, Criminal Code and Code on Administrative Offences.

The report identifies several key findings.

Explicit recognition of protected characteristics is an important improvement. Draft Law No. 13597 proposes expressly including sexual orientation and gender identity in the legal definition of discrimination. Gender Stream supports this direction while highlighting the importance of precise terminology and consistency across different areas of national law.

Hate crime provisions require greater legal clarity. The proposed amendment to Article 127 of the Criminal Code, concerning torture, risks creating ambiguity about the role of intolerance as an aggravating motive. The report recommends recognising this motive as an independent aggravating circumstance, regardless of whether the offence is committed by an individual or a group.

Provisions concerning digital materials need clearer definitions. The proposed wording of Article 300 includes the broad category of “other digital materials”. Without sufficient clarification, this could lead to inconsistent enforcement and disproportionate interference with freedom of expression.

Administrative liability for discrimination must be clearly defined. The proposed Article 188-58 of the Code on Administrative Offences requires more precise descriptions of prohibited conduct to ensure legal certainty and safeguard victims’ access to effective remedies.

The analysis also examines proposals to expand the powers of Ukraine’s Parliamentary Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsperson). Gender Stream recommends considering the establishment of a separate independent equality body with clearly defined enforcement powers.

Gender Stream’s recommendations for legislative reform

Based on its findings, Gender Stream has developed recommendations addressed to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, the Cabinet of Ministers, the judiciary and law enforcement authorities.

The key recommendations include:

• introducing explicit legal definitions of multiple discrimination, discrimination by association and denial of reasonable accommodation;
• ensuring that sexual orientation and gender identity are expressly recognised as protected characteristics;
• revising criminal and administrative provisions to eliminate ambiguity and improve legal certainty;
• guaranteeing access to state-funded secondary legal aid for victims of hate crimes motivated by sexual orientation or gender identity;
• strengthening the training of law enforcement officers, prosecutors and judges on identifying and investigating discriminatory motives.

Gender Stream emphasises that reforming Draft Law No. 13597 should lead to effective legal protection against discrimination, clear and enforceable provisions, and stronger compliance with Ukraine’s international human rights obligations.

The report is intended to support evidence-based legislative advocacy and may serve as a resource for policymakers, legal professionals, civil society organisations and human rights defenders working on anti-discrimination policies and LGBTIQ+ rights in Ukraine.

About the analytical report

The report “Analysis of Draft Law of Ukraine No. 13597” was prepared as part of the advocacy work of Gender Stream, Fulcrum (Tochka Opory) and Ukrainian LGBT Military, supported by the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

The expert team included:

• Anna Popova, legal analyst — legal analysis of Draft Law No. 13597;
• Olha Poliakova, gender expert — methodological supervision and research coordination;
• Hanna Lytvynova, lawyer — expert review and legal verification of the findings.

The full Gender Stream legal analysis of Draft Law No. 13597, including detailed findings and legislative recommendations, is available in the attached report.