UN reports over 400 detentions in occupied territories of Ukraine
According to reports from the UN and its monitoring mission on human rights in Ukraine, residents in occupied territories face forced passportization, persecution for pro-Ukrainian views, secret detentions, deportations, and confiscation of property.
Since 2022, Russia has enacted at least 16 laws and decrees that restrict the rights of Ukrainians in these occupied areas, as noted by BBC News Ukraine.
In educational institutions, a Russian version of history is taught, and the use of the Ukrainian language or expressions of sympathy towards Ukraine can be perceived as “extremism.”
One method of Russification is the enforced passportization: Ukrainians are compelled to obtain Russian citizenship in order to access healthcare, services, jobs, and property ownership.
The UN monitoring mission has documented over 400 detentions in occupied territories for charges of espionage and treason. However, the actual number of individuals held without communication with the outside world remains undetermined.
Journalist Andriy Dihtyarenko, who hails from a temporarily occupied area of Ukraine, stated in a comment to Politico that these combined measures are gradually eliminating the possibility of openly showcasing Ukrainian identity.
Despite forced passportization, many residents of occupied territories continue to retain their Ukrainian passports, often hiding them under floors or burying them in gardens. “This is their little ticket to freedom,” he remarked.
- The aggressor country, Russia, began its war against Ukraine in 2014, when it occupied Crimea and parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. On February 24, 2022, Russia initiated a full-scale invasion of Ukraine from the north, east, and south.
- Currently, most of the territories in Luhansk and Donetsk regions, parts of Zaporizhzhia, Kherson (left bank), and Dnipropetrovsk regions, as well as Crimea, are under Russian occupation. Some border areas of Kharkiv and Sumy regions, along with the Kinburn Peninsula (Mykolaiv region), are also occupied. However, on June 25, Ukrainian forces raised the flag of Ukraine in the latter area.
