Author:
Yuliia Didenko
For the past several years, we have been documenting the consequences of Russian occupation for children and families. Forced deportation of Ukrainian children, colonization of occupied territories by Russian citizens, destruction and appropriation of cultural heritage, prohibition of Ukrainian education, militarization and political indoctrination of children, seizure of private property in occupied Crimea—these are not isolated incidents but a deliberate policy of the Russian Federation.
Our Foundation, together with the Regional Center for Human Rights and the Ukrainian Child Rights Network, has submitted a joint statement to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
Our Foundation, together with the Regional Center for Human Rights and the Ukrainian Child Rights Network, has submitted a joint statement to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
Seven Practices Used by the Occupation Authorities
In our statement, we highlighted seven key practices through which Russian authorities systematically violate the rights of Ukrainians.
These actions are systemic, coordinated, and constitute violations of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, as well as international humanitarian law. They may amount to war crimes.
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Deportation and forced displacement of children are accompanied by changes to their names, backgrounds, and forced adoption by Russian families. Children are deprived of Ukrainian citizenship and forced to take Russian citizenship.
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Total destruction of Ukrainian education in the occupied territories—textbooks are confiscated, the Ukrainian language is banned, and Russian educational standards are imposed.
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Instead, children are forced to study in cadet and paramilitary classes, participate in “re-education” camps, where Russian ideology is imposed, and children are prepared for war.
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Russians destroy and appropriate Ukrainian cultural heritage. They conduct illegal excavations, seize hundreds of thousands of cultural artifacts, and transfer museum collections to Russia.
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They turn Ukrainian museums and cultural institutions into tools of Russian propaganda to justify the war.
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Occupied lands are colonized by Russian citizens, especially teachers and cultural workers, incentivized through federal programs.
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At the same time, Russians illegally confiscate the private property of Ukrainians—since 2014, thousands of land plots and homes have been seized in Crimea; since 2020, Ukrainians have been completely banned from owning land in so-called “Russia’s border zones.”
These actions are systemic, coordinated, and constitute violations of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, as well as international humanitarian law. They may amount to war crimes.
Call to the International Community
We call on the UN Committee to include our recommendations in its concluding observations to the Russian Federation.
Only coordinated and decisive steps by the international community can stop Russia’s attempts to permanently change life in the occupied territories of Ukraine. Every day of delay means new crimes against children, new victims, and another step toward the destruction of Ukrainian identity.
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The international community must create a mechanism for the return of all abducted children and ensure their reunification with their families.
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Russia must stop political indoctrination and the militarization of education, and abolish its educational standards on Ukrainian lands.
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Ukrainians must regain access to their native education and culture in the occupied territories.
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All cultural assets must be returned to Ukraine, and Russians must compensate for the damage and stop using our cultural institutions for their propaganda.
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We ask to halt the colonization of Ukrainian lands by Russian citizens, return unlawfully confiscated property to Ukrainians, and exclude Crimea from the list of “border zones of the Russian Federation.”
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Russia must implement all decisions of the European Court of Human Rights and other international obligations regarding Crimea and aggression against Ukraine.
Only coordinated and decisive steps by the international community can stop Russia’s attempts to permanently change life in the occupied territories of Ukraine. Every day of delay means new crimes against children, new victims, and another step toward the destruction of Ukrainian identity.
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