On 27 October, 32 Ukrainian legal professionals have started the Council of Europe HELP tutored course “Deportation of Children during Armed Conflicts”. The course will equip the legal professionals with knowledge and skills necessary to address the complex issues of child deportation in conflict zones and to enforce international legal standards effectively.
Various sources estimate the number of unlawfully deported Ukrainian children to the Russian Federation at between twenty and thirty-five thousand. These are estimates, and the true numbers are almost certainly much higher. 1,5 million children are living in the temporarily occupied territories under a repressive regime, they are subjected to brainwashing and militarisation.
The HELP course “Deportation of Children during the Armed Conflicts” was initially developed in response to the Recommendation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe N2253 (2023) calling the Council of Europe member states to prioritise the return of children, their rehabilitation, and safeguard family unity and their Ukrainian identity.
During the course launch in Kyiv, participants learned about current developments in Ukraine’s efforts to return Ukrainian children to Ukraine, with national experts delivering thematic presentations, including:
- Investigation of deportation cases involving Ukrainian children - Yanina Tertychna, Head of the Procedural Supervision Unit, Department for Protection of Children’s Interests and Countering Domestic Violence, Prosecutor General`s Office;
- Child deportation in the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights - Mykola Gnatovskyy, Judge at the European Court of Human Rights;
- Between crime and justice: the struggle to bring Ukrainian children home - Kateryna Rashevska, Lawyer, Regional Center for Human Rights;
- Work of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights in returning deported and forcibly displaced children - Daryna Kozaruk, Chief Technical Expert on the Rights of Returned Children, UNICEF Ukraine (in partnership with the Child Rights Protection Center);
Through a detailed examination of applicable international humanitarian law and international human rights law frameworks, the course provides legal professionals with advanced knowledge of the legal standards governing forced displacement in conflict zones. It equips legal professionals with knowledge and skills to apply these frameworks in the prosecution and adjudication of international crimes, thereby reinforcing accountability for the perpetrators of such egregious violations, to address the complex issues of child deportation in conflict zones and to enforce international legal standards effectively.
This second tutored course includes 11 judges and 21 attorneys from different regions of Ukraine. National tutors Olha Poiedynok and Natalia Milyukhina have adapted the course to Ukrainian legislation and practice.
In addition to the engaging expert discussions and useful insights, the participants had the opportunity to join the National Unity Radio Dictation, symbolically reaffirming solidarity and resilience in defending Ukraine’s future - its children.
The course was launched in cooperation with the National School of Judges of Ukraine and the High School of Advocacy, with the support of the Council of Europe Project “HELP (Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals) for Ukraine, including during wartime - Phase II ” implemented under the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine “Resilience, Recovery, Reconstruction” (2023-2026).
The HELP course “Deportation of Children during Armed Conflicts” is also available in self-learning format on the HELP Platform. With more than 22 thousand Ukrainian legal professionals registered, Ukraine ranks second among the 46 Council of Europe member states. Currently, 39 HELP courses are available in Ukrainian (link here).
