March is a Human Rights Month in South Africa and organisers would like to draw attention to over 70 000 documented war crimes committed by the Russian Federation against Ukrainians. We would like especially to draw your attention to the forceful deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia.
Ukrainian Government has identified 19,546 of those children; however, their whereabouts in Russia remain unknown. For now only near 388 minors were successfully returned.
In Russia, Ukrainian children are forced to take on Russian citizenship, their Ukrainian documents are destroyed, and their personal data, including their first name, last name, date, and place of birth, are modified. These changes make it almost impossible to identify and reunify these children with their Ukrainian families. Russia sends Ukrainian children to ‘re-education camps’ aiming to eradicate their Ukrainian identity. ‘Re-education’ involves the separation of Ukrainian children from their families, followed by displacement and detention in closed state institutions.
As of February 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) recognised Russia’s continuous failure to comply with the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination as Russia continues its systematic discrimination against people speaking the Ukrainian language.
Russia has militarily invaded Ukrainian territory in February 2014, and has scaled up the invasion to a full conventional war on Ukraine in February 2022.
UAZA partnered with The Voices of Children Organization, which is providing psychological support to children affected by the war. The Voices of Children currently has 60 psychologists providing 24/7 support to children and their families who escaped from Russia-occupied territories, or returned after deportation to Russia, or those directly affected by military activities. You can support the psychological rehabilitation of Ukrainian children affected by war.
Fundraiser below by UAZA in partnership with The Voices of Children NPO Ukraine: https://www.uaza.co.za/donate/
More information on Voices of Children can be found here >>>