Congress of Local Authorities at the Council of Europe discusses russia's violations of the rights of Ukrainian children
Kyiv • UNN
russia's attack on Ukraine has resulted in numerous violations of children's rights to safety, health and education, including abductions and forced deportations, which were discussed during the session of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe.
Violations of the rights of Ukrainian children caused by russia's attack were discussed by members of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe during a meeting in Strasbourg. This is reported by the Council of Europe website, according to UNN.
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Darya Gerasymchuk, Commissioner of the President of Ukraine for Children's Rights and Rehabilitation of Children, reported to members of Congress on numerous violations of children's rights to safety, health, and education caused by the russian federation's aggressive war against Ukraine. She emphasized that only alleged crimes can be investigated, and the real extent of children's rights violations remains unknown. Therefore, she called on local and regional authorities across Europe to support the work of Ukrainian national authorities and UN bodies in reporting and documenting violations of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and, in particular, in identifying children abducted and forcibly deported by the Russian Federation.
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The Congress participants also heard testimony from the mayor of Chuhuiv, Kharkiv region, Halyna Minaieva. She said that Chuhuiv, like many other municipalities in Ukraine, suffers from constant shelling by the russian federation. She described the specific measures taken by the local authorities to meet the needs of the children who remained in her community. These include providing emergency mobile psychosocial services to children and their caregivers, supporting teachers in providing psycho-emotional relief through art classes and sports clubs, and restoring infrastructure to ensure children's safety. She urged members of Congress to continue to support local and regional authorities in Ukraine.
Adults start wars, and children suffer the most. We, adults, must do our best to preserve the mental and physical health of every child
Members of the Congress pledged to protect the rights of children in Ukraine. The Co-Rapporteurs, Gunn-Marit Helgesen from Norway and Martine Dishburg-Nickels from Luxembourg, reaffirmed the solidarity of the Congress with Ukraine and called on members to make full use of the Cities for Cities platform, which aims to bring together Ukrainian and other European municipalities to build strong partnerships and support the country's post-war recovery.
