Amnesty International report documents deportation and forced adoption in Russia of Ukrainian children

Since the Russian invasion began on February 24, thousands of Ukrainian civilians have been forcibly transferred to Russia or occupied areas. A report published Thursday 10 November by Amnesty International focuses in particular on the fate of unaccompanied, separated or orphaned children, deemed “particularly worrying”. Like the elderly or disabled, they are “more exposed to the risk of forced transfer”says the human rights NGO, which denounces a “war crime, even a crime against humanity”. Unable to leave on their own, these children find themselves trapped in the hands of the Russians, deprived of their nationality and forcibly adopted.

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The figures are difficult to establish. “Unfortunately, no one knows the exact number, but so far Ukraine has identified 10,764 children [séparés de leur famille] located in Russia and the occupied territories”asserts to World Oksana Filipishyna, independent expert on the protection of children’s rights and former representative (2012-2022) of the Ukrainian Defender of Rights for the Respect of the Rights of the Child and the Family. This figure is itself the result of calls from parents who are looking for their child, in particular from the regions of Mariupol, Zaporizhia and Kherson.

Banned from Russia, Amnesty International was unable to go there to question the forcibly transferred minors, but the organization relied on the testimony of those who were able to leave or of their relatives. According to the NGO, the children transferred to the Donetsk region – partially occupied by the Russian army – appear to have been initially placed in several hospitals and other establishments in the region. “They generally said they received a decent diet and benefited from some structured daily activities”, relates the document. Older children said they were offered the opportunity to participate in educational programs – classes “patriotic education” – and to stay in recreational camps or other temporary accommodation in Russia.

Systematic character

Russian law prohibits the adoption of foreign children. In May, however, Russia simplified the procedure for applying for Russian citizenship for orphans. “This law can facilitate the absorption of children (…) into Russian society in a way that fundamentally denies their rights to choose and preserve their nationality”, alarms Amnesty International. It also testifies to a “State policy on the part of the Russian authorities regarding the deportation of certain Ukrainian children”denounces the NGO.

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