PM: Rights of IDPs are protected by Government's decision

On Monday, October 20, the Ukraine's Parliament has passed a law ensuring the legal basis for the determination of the status of internally displaced persons and their legal guarantees in the new place of residence, determining temporary accommodation, payment of social commitments and providing appropriate assistance to internally displaced persons. 

Discussing the bill, Prime Minister of Ukraine Arseniy Yatsenyuk has reminded that the Government introduced the procedure of registration of internally displaced persons: "Now such a person comes to the Social Protection Department, receives a certificate and, according to this document, gets all social benefits."

The Government has also decided to create the single state register of internally displaced persons. The adoption by the Parliament of this bill is necessary so as to regulate the operation of this register.

The Prime Minister said that the personal data of internally displaced persons containing in the register "will be used in order to enable a person to get a job, salary, pension as well as temporary accommodation."

Arseniy Yatsenyuk has also recalled that the Cabinet of Ministers approved the introduction of payments for internally displaced persons: "Per family - up to UAH 2,400 per month, for a disabled person - UAH 884, for an able-bodied one - half of that."

He has particularly emphasized that payments to internally displaced people would be implemented only if they are registered at the employment agency.

According to the Prime Minister, now 420,000 people have been registered as internally displaced persons, the amount of benefits for six months will equal UAH 2 billion. In this case, after the decision of the Government to provide additional benefits, there is an increase in the rate of registration: "Last week – for three days plus 6%."

Arseniy Yatsenyuk appealed to the MPs to support the draft law “with a clear indication that the volumes of funding is provided and determined by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine”, “We will pay now what we can pay".

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister reminded that the Government had allocated UAH 25 million as the first tranche to cover expenses for lodging in the resorts by the IDPs from the Crimea and Donbas.

The Prime Minister stressed that approval of this bill would enable receiving of donor funds from our western partners to support the internally displaced persons, "This will give an opportunity for the European Union, the United Nations, G7 countries to provide additional financial resources to assist the internally displaced persons".

While the discussion of the bill Arseniy Yatseniuk stressed, "If the law is not backed, the rights of internally displaced persons have been secured by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine. All the three resolution have been approved. The Government officially declares: the rights of internally displaced persons are protected by the decisions of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine on registration of internally displaced persons, reimbursement, employment and social status".

According to Arseniy Yatseniuk, the bill provides an opportunity “to legalize the status of internally displaced persons".

In the latest development, the Parliament has failed to adopt the draft amendments to the Law of Ukraine On employment (No. 2770), which stipulated for financing of public works from the employment fund. Before the discussion of the bill Arseniy Yatsenyuk urged, "Now people are suffering from unemployment. We are asking to make changes into the relevant law and to provide for an opportunity to finance community service from the employment fund, including participation in the Wall or the European Rampart project, rehabilitation of infrastructure Donetsk and Luhansk".

According to the Head of the Government, the bill would have afforded to employ another 45 thousand people.

One more document, not voted for by the Verkhovna Rada, has been the draft amendments to the law on vacations, which contained that employee who has been forced to relocate, shall have the right to have such period of temporary absence from work included into the seniority in order to assign salary rates.