As part of the initiative of the President of Ukraine Bring Kids Back UA, the joint efforts of the Ukrainian Network for Children's Rights and the volunteer initiative "Humanity" managed to return two teenagers — 17-year-olds Alena and Artem — from the temporarily occupied territory.
Points of attention
- Ukraine successfully returned two teenagers, Alena and Artem, from Russian-occupied territories with the help of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative.
- Alena risked her safety to continue studying at a Ukrainian online school in the occupied territory, while Artem chose to leave to avoid potential conscription into the Russian army.
Two Ukrainian teenagers returned from TOT to Ukraine
In April, a teacher contacted the Ukrainian Network for Children's Rights hotline and reported that her student, Alena, remained in the occupied territory. The girl was looking for an opportunity to leave in order to pass the National Secondary Education Test and enter a Ukrainian university.
Despite the constant danger, the risk of exposure, and unstable mobile connections, Alena secretly continued to study at a Ukrainian online school. The family carefully concealed this, as their acquaintances were already being persecuted for teaching their children the Ukrainian curriculum.
Together with the volunteer initiative "Humanity", specialists from the Ukrainian Network for Children's Rights worked for almost two months to organize a safe departure route for Alena and her grandmother. Today, they are already in the territory controlled by Ukraine.
17-year-old Artem was also returned to the territory controlled by Ukraine. The boy wanted to leave before reaching adulthood due to the risk of being drafted into the Russian army.
After completing the 9th grade, Artem was no longer able to study at a Ukrainian school online due to the lack of stable internet. At the same time, he deliberately refused to study at a Russian school. Because of this, the boy was in de facto social isolation for more than two years — he stayed at home almost all the time and practically did not go outside.
Having found contacts from the Ukrainian Network for Children's Rights and the "Humanity" initiative, Artem decided without hesitation to leave to start a new life in the controlled territory of Ukraine.
Ahead of them lies the process of adaptation and reintegration. They will receive the necessary psychological support, assistance with documents, and guidance to restore a stable and safe life.
Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian children and youth still remain under the control of the Russian Federation. Russia systematically creates conditions that limit freedom of choice, increase pressure, and make it difficult to leave. We will not stop until every Ukrainian child returns home.
To learn more about Russia's abduction of Ukrainian children, watch the documentary "Damaged Childhood," created by Ukrainian independent media and video production company Online.UA:
