On May 22-25, Daria Gerasymchuk, Advisor to the Presidential Commissioner for Children’s Rights and Child Rehabilitation, visited the Republic of Chile. The visit was organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine within the framework of the Stolen Voices information campaign and in pursuance of the President’s action plan Bring Kids Back UA.
During the visit, the Ukrainian delegation held a number of meetings with representatives of the governmental authorities, in particular with the Deputy Minister of Justice of Chile for Human Rights Javier Altamirano Molina, representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as employees of the National Youth Institute of the Ministry of Social Development and Family.
The Presidential Commissioner emphasized the importance of rescuing Ukrainian children abducted by the aggressor country and informed the interlocutors about the work of the National Information Bureau: “Information on nearly twenty thousand cases of abduction, including deportation or forced displacement of children, has been collected from various sources. The names and personal data of 19,456 children have been verified so far, and only 388 of them have been returned.”
Darya Gerasymchuk drew attention to the state portal “Children of War” and shared the stories of Ukrainian children who have been returned.
“Today, there is no global system of child safety in the world – this is exactly what the broken fates of Ukrainian children and their lost lives have proven. We hope for the support of the whole world in our struggle, because it is not only about our children. Today they are Ukrainian children, and tomorrow they may be children of any country,” the Presidential Commissioner noted.
An important element of the visit program was a solemn event with the participation of the Children’s Ombudsman of Chile, representatives of civil society, academia, non-governmental organizations and human rights defenders, organized by the Embassies of Ukraine and Canada in the Republic of Chile.
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Republic of Chile Yurii Diudin thanked for Canada’s important role in creating the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children, which already includes 36 countries, and expressed hope that Chile will play an active role in the work of this coalition.
For reference: The Stolen Voices information campaign, implemented jointly by the Office of the President of Ukraine and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine with the support of the Renaissance Foundation, is part of the Bring Kids Back UA action plan. The goal of the campaign is to inform the international community about Russia’s crimes against Ukrainian children in order to rescue them and protect their rights, stop deportation and forced displacement, prevent the forced transfer of Ukrainian children to Russian families, and take all possible measures to ensure the safe return of Ukrainian children back to Ukraine.
Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs
