Poverty Updates Blog

by Staff 

2022 witnessed several heart-wrenching global events, such as the war in Ukraine. The war took the lives of many and destroyed the sources of livelihood for others. Children caught up in the war experienced chaos, incomprehension, and devastation. In light of this, Russia kidnapped Ukrainian kids away from their parents and their country.

There are many reports that Ukrainian children, most of them without their parents and ranging in age from newborns to 17 years old, were transferred to Russia or Russian-occupied territory. According to human rights advocates and the Ukrainian government, at least 16,000 juveniles were abducted, and the number could reach 400,000. The kidnappings are portrayed in Russian propaganda as charitable rescue efforts to remove youngsters from danger in embattled Ukraine.

How Did Russia Take Ukrainian Children?

Russian forces employed several strategies. Earlier in 2014, Russian-backed rebels in Luhansk halted convoys of numerous children at border crossings, separated them from their parents and guardians, and brought them across the border.

Youngsters were also separated from their parents during the war using deceptive "mandatory evacuations" and filtration camps. Moreover, children from orphanages, hospitals, and schools have been taken by Russian troops.

What do they do to them?

With Russia providing its citizens with between $300 and $2,000 in governmental subsidies for each kid, some are quickly placed up for adoption.

The government has set up photo ops where confused kids are greeted by strangers with teddy bears, gift baskets, and embraces. They are then given expedited citizenship under an order Putin signed in May, 2022—at least 43 re-education camps now house at least 6,000 youngsters.

Some Ukrainian parents in disputed territory consented to send their kids away for brief periods at summer camps that were advertised as being therapeutic. Still, the kids were held captive because they were eager to escape the bombing. They have been sent to camps nearer Alaska than Ukraine, on the Pacific coast.

What harm do these camps evoke?

They want to make the kids into proud Russians by erasing all traces of their Ukrainian heritage. According to the victim's parents, the kids called the camp "a prison." Participants suffered physical abuse, sexual assault, and psychological manipulation after failing to recite the Russian national anthem. One of the parents said that they informed the children that their parents had fled Ukraine and would never return.

What are the developments regarding recovering the children?

The Ukrainian government has requested assistance from other foreign nations and international groups to help retrieve more than the approximately 320 that have already been returned.

Putin stated last month that he intended to extend the "Happy Childhood" program rather than end it, and Russia makes it as challenging as necessary for parents to get their children back. The 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide expressly forbids this crime.