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On February 19th, in the Churchill Room of the British Parliament, as part of the event "Echoes of Tragedy: Testimonies on Russia's War in Ukraine," Veronika Sheldagaieva, Chair of the Children's Creative Council of the "Voices of Children" Charitable Foundation, spoke. She shared with members of parliament, government officials, diplomats, and human rights activists of Great Britain about the horrors of life under Russian occupation. We present her speech below.
My name is Veronika, and I am 16 years old. I am from Kherson, a city in Ukraine that was militarily occupied by the russians in March 2022. I lived under the military occupation for 7 months.
At the beginning of the occupation, people took to the streets to protest against the invasion, against russia. My teachers and friends were among those who protested, but then the russians started shooting at the protesters.
In the early days, people in a state of panic emptied all the food from the shops, and later, food was rarely replenished. Some farmers from the villages attempted to bring in provisions, but the russians halted them at checkpoints and confiscated half of their supplies. The queues for bread were endless. My parents stood in these queues for a long time. We couldn’t find toothpaste anywhere, and yeast was being exchanged by people as if it were as valuable as gold. I remember how my parents used to divide the groceries at home to make them last as long as possible so that there would be enough for everyone. It was like in the Soviet Union.
At the checkpoints and even on the streets, russian soldiers would check people's phones. If they found anything pro-Ukrainian, they would send people to their makeshift prisons. We called this "being taken to the cellar".
During the occupation, I ran my own volunteer educational online project. One day, an unknown woman messaged me on Telegram and said that it was clear from my posts that I had a pro-Ukrainian position, and that I should follow certain safety rules. I was very scared because if some stranger found my contact, anyone from the russians could do it. People there live in such a paranoid state constantly.
In the early months Ukrainian communication networks were already blocked. For a while, people lived entirely without communication, which is very difficult for a modern person. We couldn't even find out about the danger, because there were no air raid sirens in the city. It was a state of complete uncertainty.
The russians held a pseudo-referendum, going door-to-door with guns and ballots. Obviously, those who refused to participate in it — were in great danger. Yes, with weapons in their hands, the russians even came to my relative's apartment.
The russian soldiers came to my school and threatened the management to force them to side with the russian occupiers. They told the parents that if their children refused to attend the occupied schools under the russian curriculum, they will be deprived of their parental rights and the children will be sent to orphanages. I didn't go to their school. So I was very afraid that they could take me away. When someone knocked on the door, I used to hide.
Eventually, my family and I decided to leave. There was never a safe way out of the occupied city. We were scared to leave, but it was equally risky to remain there. The occupation authorities organised metal rafts that were pulled across the Dnipro River by the motorboats. It was a very rickety construction. After my family and I used it, a rocket hit it within half an hour.
Now I live on the other side of the frontline and none of this is in my life anymore. All that's left are the memories that make me stronger. Despite all the horrors I experienced under the military occupation, I hold onto hope. I believe in the world that helps Ukraine, I believe in Ukraine and I believe in Ukrainian teenagers. We fight, we believe and we are strong.
From February 19th to 21st, delegations from the "Voices of Children " Charitable Foundation, Civil Network OPORA, and ICUV - International Centre for Ukrainian Victory, with the support of the Embassy of Ukraine to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, are conducting a series of events in the Parliament of the United Kingdom to commemorate the second anniversary of russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The main purpose of these events, collectively called "Echoes of Tragedy: Testimonies on Russia's War in Ukraine," is to highlight the devastating impact of the war, focusing on the experiences of civilians and the genocidal nature of the war.
As part of the events, there will be a screening of the short documentary film "What Have We Lost," produced by teenagers from the "Voices of Children" Foundation as part of an art therapy course, as well as a panel discussion. Ukrainian experts and witnesses of war crimes will discuss the experiences of children, the suppression of Ukrainian culture and identity by russia in the occupied territories of Ukraine, and what can be done to hold russia accountable for these crimes.
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