Right to Protection is an NGO dedicatedto protecting the rights of asylum seekers, refugees, stateless andundocumented persons, as well as internally displaced and conflict affected persons.
Category: News
18.06.21
Today we present the report ‘Crossing the contact line’ for May 2021, prepared by the CF ‘Right to Protection’. The report is based on data collected during the monitoring of the situation on EECPs. More statistical data is available on the Eastern Ukraine Checkpoint Monitoring Online Dashboard: https://www.unhcr.org/ua/en/eecp-monitoring-2021
This month, crossing the contact line remained possible only through two EECPs: Novotroitske in Donetska Oblast and Stanytsia Luhanska in Luhanska Oblast, at a level considerably below the pre-COVID period. According to Joint Forces Operation data and R2P monitoring, the number of people crossing the contact line was without significant difference in May compared to April: over 52,000 in both months.
On 31 May, in Donetska Oblast there were 185 people on the list for crossing. About sixty people were waiting from 09:00 on NGCA to arrive at Novotroitske just before the closure. According to them, such a delay on NGCA was caused by a thorough search of personal belongings (cosmetics bags, underwear, first aid kits, etc.), to the point that some people were forced to undress to their underwear for manual inspection.
Reconstruction at Stanytsia Luhanska EECP has begun. It is planned to update the infrastructure of the EECP on the model of Novotroitske EECP (Administrative Service Center, sheds, etc.). In this regard, people face inconveniences: private laboratories were moved closer to the roadway, the benches near the laboratories were removed, there were no sheds and the sidewalk road was broken. The repair work will last until the end of the summer.
During May, 4,392 vulnerable elderly persons were provided with transport support at Stanytsia Luhanska EECP by the NGO “Proliska” e-vehicle.
R2P facilitated 203 requests for crossing through the fast-track procedure and assisted about 1800 persons with installing the “Vdoma” app.
More than 180 internally displaced persons (IDPs) currently live in the compact residence unit (CRU) “Holy Mountains” (“Sviati Hory”). Most of them are elderly people, families with children with disabilities, incapacitated bedridden people. They live at risk of eviction because every year there is a risk of lease non-renewal.
«IDPs are constantly looking for the most comfortable settlement options not to be dependent on external factors and tenant conditions. People are tired of living with the fear that they may be deprived of housing and left in the open. Everyone wants stability and confidence in the future for themselves and their families, »
– shares Natalia Shevchenko, monitor of the CF “Right to Protection” (R2P)
On June 10 our colleagues from the Sloviansk office of the CF “Right to Protection” (R2P) held a group consultation on housing programs for internally displaced persons available in Ukraine. During the meeting, participants received information about the “Affordable Housing” program, the opportunity to receive a soft government loan, as well as on the program for social and temporary housing.
«The Sviatohirsk Territorial Community is currently being reorganized, and its leadership is interested in a long-term solution to the housing problems of internally displaced persons. We are confident that this community will be able to create all the conditions for the registration of those who need social and temporary housing. »
– said Iryna Abramova, the monitor of the Charitable Fund “Right to Protection (R2P).
At the beginning of June 2021, the team of the Charitable Fund “Right to Protection” (R2P) held constituent meetings with the representatives of the Civil-military administrations (CMAs*), which now joined the reform of the territorial organization of power. The meetings took place in the village of Sartana in the Mariupol district, and in the town of Marinka, Pokrovsky district, Donetsk region.
Along with the consolidation, amalgamated territorial communities (hromadas) gained new broad powers in various areas of daily life. This includes the organization of the system of providing educational, medical, administrative, social, and other services. Even in those communities where long-term leaders have been elected as the chairpersons, the government faced significant challenges in organizing the systematic work of the new executive bodies.
During the meetings, colleagues discussed the possibility of implementing the project “Ensuring access to social services in local communities along the contact line”, which is implemented by the Charitable Fund “Right to Protection” (R2P) with the support of UNHCR. According to CMA representatives, implementing such a project will significantly help support the social protection capacity building of the communities and settlements along the contact line and have been significantly affected by the armed conflict. Although it should be noted that the representatives of both CMAs have experience in the field of social services.
«There are lots of problematic issues in the communities where civil-military administrations have been established by Presidential Decree. In addition to the general problems with the exercise of the rights to social services guaranteed by the Constitution of Ukraine, each such community has additional difficulties related to the long-term conflict and the lack of qualified professionals. The project “Ensuring access to social services in local communities along the contact line” will allow CMAs to establish the effective social protection system in order to provide quality social services in the communities within the timeframe specified by the Law of Ukraine.»
– says Oleh Lyubimov, Decentralization Coordinator at CF “Right to Protection” (R2P)
The result of the meetings was the signing of a memorandum on further interaction and cooperation with the leaders of the Civil-military administrations. In the future, there will be very troublesome work: creating working groups, conducting community needs assessments, creating a project model of social services, and, in fact, the implementation of such a model.
* Throughout the process of decentralization, the Marinska CMA was formed out of 8 merged councils (17 settlements), and Sartanska CMA – out of 7 councils (18 settlements), some of which are located close to the line of contact.
«I remember the times when it was quiet and peaceful. First we heard strange sounds, we could not understand what it was until the shells from the sky began to fall on the house. From that moment our tragedy began,» – says with tears in his eyes Hennadii, resident of Vodiane village.
Vodiane is a village in the Mariupol district near the contact line, which was seriously damaged during the war. Now only nine people are living there.
Destructions are everywhere in Vodiane. On one of the photos you can see that grape lianas overgrown all around the house – owners have left it since 2014
«In 2014, shells hit the city market in Mariupol. My son and grandchildren were there. Son covered the children with his own body, rescuing him from the explosion. Since then we hate fireworks. The granddaughter still shudders and cries… While before the war it was a joy. »
— quietly adds Hennadii.
Due to the shelling, Vodiane was left without electricity for a long time, in fact – literally cut off from civilization. The main source of drinking water was and still remains the rainwater, and the one only well in the village, where the city administration recently installed a pump, located in the area that is under fire. However, Hennadii says that by the end of 2020, drinking water was also supplied to them by the employees of ADRA, and now the village administration is negotiating to restore the water supply.
Due to constant shellings the village has problems with drinking water. Volunteer organizations help residents and deliver water to Vodiane
Hennadii’s neighbor Maryna still has trembling hands when she remembers the first bombings. She said that back then they were forced to take security measures: they had to live in basements for a long time, with small food supplies and drinking water of questionable quality and freshness. But there was no choice – their only wish was to survive.
The already difficult situation is complicated by the lack of a medical facility in Vodiane – the simplest medical service is situated tens of kilometers in the nearest village. Moreover, there is no regular transport connection with Vodyane since 2014, so there is almost no possibility to leave the village.
Zoya is a lonely woman who survived the hardest and most terrible moments of the war and is incredibly happy about the visit of the Charitable Fund “Right to Protection” (R2P). She perfectly understands what our colleagues had to go through to find out how the locals live, to provide them with the necessary assistance, and to inform them about the possibility of receiving compensation for the destroyed (damaged) housing – the only road to the village is seriously damaged.
Roads in the village are not easy to get through. And there is only one road to the village – there are mines and explosives all around the road
Smiling sadly, Zoya tells how her goat Zoika runs to the house and hides, signaling that there will be a shelling soon, persuading Zoya to run to a safe place too.
But despite all the horrors of war, people do not lose their unconditional faith that this land is the source of their life energy – the trees, the people, the animals – they all protect, defend and give strength and unshakable hope that every “tomorrow” will be better than today.
And, looking into the eyes of these extraordinary people, you involuntarily charge with their confidence that everything will be fine.
Our colleagues always emphasize that, in order to develop the long term housing solutions, one of the main tasks is to create a regional program of preferential lending for the purchase or construction of housing for IDPs living in the Kharkiv region.
On June 11, a working meeting was held on the issue of the implementation of regional housing construction programs. The meeting was chaired by the Deputy Head of the Kharkiv Regional State Administration (KRSA) Mykhailo Harnam. Specialists of the Kharkiv Office of the Charitable Fund “Right to Protection” (R2P) also joined the meeting.
A number of important issues were discussed during the meeting, including the:
approval and financing from the regional budget of the regional program of preferential crediting for the purchase / construction of housing for IDPs living in the Kharkiv region;
opportunities to allocate funds from the regional budget to the communities of the region for their participation in receiving a subsidy for the establishment of a temporary housing fund for IDPs.
Following the discussion, an agreement was reached to meet again in September 2021 to discuss this issue. It is planned to involve employees of the Department of Finance and the Department of Economics and International Relations of KRSA to discuss in more detail the terms of the regional program.
We hope for further fruitful cooperation with the Kharkiv Regional State Administration and the achievement of positive results!
Due to the restrictions on crossing the contact line, thousands of people are blocked from accessing their permanent residence, visits, or care for family members, collecting social benefits or pensions to which they are entitled, obtaining birth and death certificates amongst other essential needs.
As a result, many NGCA residents decide to go to GCA through the Russian Federation and cross the Russian-Ukrainian International Border Crossing Points in Milove and Hoptivka. This trip necessarily takes much longer than crossing the contact line, and incurs additional expenses, for transportation, and, in many cases, the payment of a fine for illegally crossing the border.
The team of the CF “Right to Protection” (R2P) has prepared the note “Going around the contact line. Information on movements of NGCA residents through the Russian Federation”. This note is based on information collected by R2P at the two border points, through interviews with State Border Guard Service of Ukraine staff, people crossing the border points, and observation, during monitoring visits in April and May 2021.
The offices of the CF “Right to Protection” in Kyiv, Kharkiv and Lviv are open! We provide consultations and other legal support to all refugees who have been forced to flee their countries due to persecution and/or military conflict and massive human rights violations.
Our lawyers and attorneys will advise you on all issues related to the state asylum procedure. In particular, by coming to the office or by calling us, you can get free legal assistance in:
applying to the migration service for refugee status in Ukraine;
obtaining “Dovidka” (Certificate) – a document of asylum seekers in Ukraine;
all-round support of the asylum case and litigation of the case in court (in case of refusal by the Migration Service).
You can also learn from our lawyers:
what kind of assistance is provided by the UNHCR in Ukraine for refugees and asylum seekers,
about other UNHCR partner organizations hosting refugees and what kind of assistance they provide, as well as,
what awaits you in Ukraine, which education, employment and development opportunities you have.
Contact or call us from Monday to Friday from 09:00 to 18:00:
«Sometimes, it seems that a little can surprise me at work, yet some impossible scenarios may arise from time to time. When I speak with our beneficiaries I just don’t understand how they manage to endure and overcome the obstacles that were artificially created by the state.»
– says Ruslan Bereteli, a lawyer of the Charitable Fund “Right to Protection” (R2P).
The story of our cooperation with Mariabegan in the winter of 2020, when a woman came to the Kurakhiv office of the CF “Right to Protection” (R2P) with a request for help. For almost an hour, she, a native of Donetsk city, told how she studied and worked in her hometown, how she got married and gave birth to two daughters. At first, it seemed like a usual life of an ordinary person. Yet there was one moment: for all this time she did not exist legally – in her 31st year, she did not have a passport or any other relevant identity documents. She couldn’t receive birth certificates for her children, couldn’t get an official job, or buy train/plane tickets.
«First of all, we had to confirm the fact that Maria lived on the territory of Ukraine as of 1991. According to my own legal experience at R2P, I have never seen such a motivated client before. Each instruction regarding the collection of evidence was carried out almost instantly: a relative of our client in Donetsk searched for evidence in the school where our beneficiary studied, and in the hospital, where she was registered since childhood. We also were able to receive certificates from the company where Maria’s mother worked. She managed to find the student’s personal file, medical card, certificates, and much more.»
– says Ruslan Bereteli.
The evidence of Maria’s residence in Ukraine as of 1991 was indisputable, and therefore the woman had the right to be recognized as a citizen of Ukraine. However, in court, despite the obvious evidence, a representative of the State Migration Service (SMS) opposed establishing this fact. Leonid Serafimovych, a lawyer of the CF “Right to Protection” (R2P), argued and insisted on the beneficiary’s position, and the court supported our side.
For several months, the Migration Service did not comply with the court’s decision: Maria was not provided with the application form, demanded to provide some non-existing evidence, offered to wait for the head of the service, and so on. The difficult issue of legal support to the State Migration Service of Ukraine department could not be resolved, because once again it was advised to “wait for the SMS head”…
So our lawyers did. CF “Right to Protection” turned directly to the head of the State Migration Service of Ukraine. The case was immediately taken under control, and the documents were accepted. Within three months, Maria received a certificate of belonging to Ukrainian citizenship and later – a passport.
Until now, the woman had to use copies of recently received birth certificates. Now she was able to pick up the originals. Maria also reissued her lost registration number of the taxpayer’s account card. There is a lot of work behind, yet no less ahead – now a woman will have to deal with making a comfortable life for herself and her children: get an official job, apply for social benefits, and more. But, as Maria says:«The passport opens all doors. A truly universal key»
From March 29 to April 30 of this year, the Charitable Fund “Right to Protection” (R2P) researched the access to services provided in the Administrative Service Centres (hereinafter – ASC). Monitors of our organization interviewed 863 people who crossed the contact line in both directions through the Entry-Exit Checkpoints (hereinafter – EECP) “Stanytsia Luhanska” in the Luhansk region and “Novotroitske” in the Donetsk region.
The research was conducted to obtain information on the following aspects of the work of the ASCs:
1) Experience in receiving the administrative services within the 60 years old age group, as persons of this vulnerable group cross the contact line most often.
2) Experience in applying for a passport of a citizen of Ukraine in the form of a card upon reaching the age of 14 (for the first time). In addition to the research on the quality of these services, we have also studied the difficulties in collecting the documents required for the application. The passport confirms the citizenship of Ukraine, and hence the legal relationship between the individual and Ukraine.
3) Sources of information about the state administrative services to improve overall informing about the above-mentioned services.
4) Experience of applying to the ASCs stationed at the Entry-Exit Checkpoints (EECPs) and to the mobile ASCs.
5) The impact of COVID-19 on access to administrative services.
“For a long time we have been researching the freedom of movement across the contact line, and it is pervasive for the Right to Protection Charitable Foundation. The issue of access to administrative services at the EECPs in the Administrative Service Centres (ASCs) is a relatively new topic, as the ASCs have appeared only recently at some checkpoints.
At the same time, our study is very timely, as the Decree of the President of Ukraine “On the implementation of the Decision of the National Security and Defense Council on some issues of intensifying the process of peaceful settlement of the situation in Donetsk and Luhansk regions.”
The first paragraph of the Decree instructs the Cabinet of Ministers to complete the arrangement of the EECPs towards the temporarily occupied territories in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts within three months, complete the development of their infrastructure, establish the provision of humanitarian, logistical, postal, and other services near each checkpoint. In this context, the research prepared by the R2P experts comes in handy, as it points to problematic issues that can be addressed in the process of setting up new Entry-Exit Checkpoints. “
– says the Advocacy Coordinator at R2P Elina Shyshkina
According to the results of the research, we were able to find out that people are mostly satisfied with the quality of administrative services provided in the ASC, but it is important to raise public awareness about administrative services, and the procedure for receiving such services.
At the same time, the lack of an administrative procedure that would facilitate the quick and easy registration of the children born at the Non-Government Controlled Areas, as well as the renewal of birth certificates issued before the armed aggression of the Russian Federation, is a matter of concern. In addition, the administrative procedure for registering internally displaced persons needs to be simplified. Such changes will improve access to obtaining the first passport of a citizen of Ukraine in the form of a card at the age of 14.
Respondents from Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts need the creation, proper functioning, and content of ASC websites (in particular, those operating near the EECPs and mobile ASC); information stands with handouts.
Also, people expressed that they would like to receive the following services at Administrative Service Centres:
registration of residence, vehicles, and real estate;
issuance of a passport, ID card, and driver’s license; registration of subsidies.
ASCs at the EECPs provide mainly informational rather than administrative services. As a result, respondents are sometimes dissatisfied with the quality of administrative services provided to them.
The biggest problem of the respondents who tried to cross the contact line through the EECPs after receiving service at the ASCs is the presence of restrictions on crossing the contact line through the EECPs.
According to the results of the study, the CF “Right to Protection” (R2P) recommends that the Government of Ukraine needs to:
Establish an out-of-court procedure that would facilitate the registration of births of children born at the Non-Government Controlled Areas, as well as simplify the renewal of birth certificates issued before the armed aggression of the Russian Federation, and simplify the procedure for registering internally displaced persons.
Ensure proper access to administrative services for persons crossing the Entry-Exit Checkpoints in the direction of the Government-Controlled Areas. In particular, to continue the opening of ASCs at EECPs and mobile ASCs in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts.
Ensure the provision of primarily administrative, rather than informational services at the ASC near the EECPs.
Create Administrative Service Centres websites, in particular, those EECPs near the contact line and for mobile ASC, as well as set up information stands filled with handouts.
The full results of the research, conclusions, and recommendations of the CF “Right to Protection” (R2P) can be found in the report.
* This document covers humanitarian aid activities implemented with the financial assistance of European Union. The views expressed herein should not be taken, in any way, to reflect the official opinion of the European Union, and the European Commission is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains.
