It is not enough to put russia on the UN “board of shame”. It is necessary to unite to protect the rights of those who are unable to protect themselves. This was stated by Olha Stefanishyna, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration and Minister of Justice of Ukraine, during her speech at the opening panel session of the Ministerial Conference on the Human Dimension of the Peace Formula, which is taking place in Montreal, Canada, on 30 October.

The event is dedicated to the practical implementation of the fourth point of the Peace Formula, Release of prisoners and deportees, and is aimed at developing practical solutions for the return of prisoners and deportees: prisoners of war, civilian hostages and children.

The Deputy Prime Minister stressed the importance of obtaining complete and verified information, in particular on deported and forcibly displaced Ukrainian children, as well as the application of an inclusive approach and consideration of the interests of vulnerable groups in the context of the implementation of the Peace Formula.

“Ukrainian and international organisations have already documented numerous war crimes against civilians, including abductions, torture and deportations. Since russia’s full-scale invasion, many civilians have been detained by the russian military during ‘filtration’ processes in the occupied territories. According to OHCHR, 91 per cent of the detainees faced ill-treatment, torture and abuse,” said Olha Stefanishyna.

According to her, more than 40,000 people are currently included in the Unified Register of Persons Missing in Special Circumstances, which covers both military personnel and civilians.

“It is not enough to put russia on the UN ‘board of shame’. There are prisoners of war, victims of sexual violence and torture, missing children. These are mostly people who are not always able to speak for themselves, either because they are deprived of this opportunity or because they do not have the strength to speak out. Therefore, it is our common duty to protect the rights of victims, collectively, as a democratic world,” Olha Stefanishyna stressed.

The Deputy Prime Minister announced that the Government of Ukraine has created a register of information on children deported or forcibly displaced in connection with russia’s armed aggression. This will improve the process of collecting, verifying and storing information on such children, facilitate their return to Ukraine and exchange of information with international institutions.

The Deputy Prime Minister thanked the governments of Canada and Norway, which are co-organisers of the ministerial conference, for their leadership and commitment to helping the released and deported Ukrainians.

“I welcome every country represented here today and everyone who is joining our efforts to save the lives of Ukrainians, end their suffering and reunite families who have been forcibly separated,” she added.