As a legal entity, it was established in 1992, but it has been working as a human rights protection group in the Ukrainian SSR since 1988 under the Society "Memorial".

Many members of the organization took part in a human rights movement of the 1960s – 1980s.

The Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group was a member of the Coalition "Justice for Peace in Donbas".

Today it is one of the trustees of the Tribunal for Putin coalition, which has recorded over 56,000 war crimes committed on Ukrainian territory since 24 February 2022 by Russia's armed forces.

EU/US Democracy and Civil Society Award (1998) Association of Ukrainian Monitors on Human Rights Conduct in Law Enforcement