As Dariya Zarivna, adviser to the head of the OP and operational director of the Bring Kids Back UA program, noted during her speech at the UN Security Council, the aggressor country Russia refuses to reveal the location of 20,000 children abducted from Ukraine.
Points of attention
- Russia is withholding information on the whereabouts of 20,000 kidnapped Ukrainian children, defying international laws and efforts for their return.
- The forced imposition of Russian citizenship on abducted children from Ukraine has led to discrimination and limited access to essential services like healthcare and education.
- The International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children, launched by Ukraine and supported by 41 countries, has successfully brought 1,022 children back home.
- The Montreal Commitment aims to ensure the safe return of all abducted Ukrainians, with a specific focus on children, in response to Russia's aggressive actions.
- The documentary 'Mutilated Childhood' sheds light on the harrowing experiences of children affected by Russia's war on Ukraine, underscoring the urgent need to protect their rights and bring them justice.
Russia refuses to disclose information about children abducted from Ukraine
Russian officials systematically refuse to provide information. But to give you an idea, the commissioner for children's rights in Russia, Maria Lvova-Belova, boasted that she had "resettled" more than 700,000 Ukrainian children in Russia, Zarivna noted.
According to her, one of the examples is the story of 10-month-old Maryna Prokopenko, who was kidnapped by the Russian occupiers from a children's home in Kherson.
After the child was forcibly deported to Russia, she was given a new name, her place of birth was changed and she was given up for adoption to the family of State Duma deputy Serhii Myronov.
Zarivna also emphasized that at least 16 children are killed or injured every week due to Russian armed aggression in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, according to Kateryna Rashevska, legal expert of the Regional Center for Human Rights and member of the Bring Kids Back UA International Expert Group, 1.5 million children remain in the Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia.
Forcible imposition of Russian citizenship is a purposeful policy of the aggressor state. Children without Russian documents face discrimination even in access to medical care, not to mention educational and other services in the occupied territories, said Rashevska.
What is known about Ukraine's steps to return children abducted by Russia
Together with Canada, Ukraine launched the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children, which was joined by 41 countries and the Council of Europe. Thanks to the joint efforts of the coalition members, it was possible to return 1,022 children home.
Also, an important step on this path was the adoption of the Montreal Commitment aimed at the return of all captured and deported Ukrainians, especially children, at the conference on the humanitarian dimension of the Peace Formula, which took place on October 30-31 in Canada.
In 2023, Online.UA released a documentary about Russia's abduction of children from Ukraine "Mutilated Childhood"
The film contains real stories of children and their families who suffered from Russia's war against Ukraine, comments of leading scientists, psychologists, lawyers and experts on the protection of children's rights.
The heroes of the tape went through Russian captivity, torture, abduction to a health camp, some were separated from their parents during the so-called filtering measures.
