Effective legislation regulating importation, registration, reception and provision of humanitarian aid in Ukraine has appeared to be unprepared for modern realities in conditions of anti-terror operation. Several millions of Ukrainian citizens/forced migrants and Ukrainians living on the occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions and in Russia-annexed Crimea need humanitarian aid. International donor organizations are ready to assist Ukraine in prevention from humanitarian catastrophe, however, effective legislation and numerous bureaucratic barriers almost make importation and registration of humanitarian aid to Ukraine impossible in required volumes.
Acknowledging the problem, the Head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee for Affairs of Veterans, Combatants, Anti-Terror Operation Participants and Disabled People Oleksandr Tretiyakov and Committee’s member Hlib Zahorii have initiated large-scale work on the amendment of the humanitarian legislation.
On April 16, the Committee hosted a broad working meeting dedicated to the start of joint work over the legislative regulation of issues as to humanitarian aid with the participation of members of the Committee, representatives of the Presidential Administration, Government and the largest donor organizations-representatives of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, World Health Organization Bureau in Ukraine, Danish Refugee Council, and international organizations — Doctors Without Borders, People in Need, Caritas, etc.
“The Law of Ukraine “On humanitarian aid” does not work. There is political will to immediately introduce efficient legislation. The issue requires only technical regulation. We intend to elaborate new comprehensive Law on humanitarian aid, set precise, clear and equal rules on importation, registration and reception of humanitarian aid from both international and domestic organizations,” the Head of the Committee said.
In order to regulate these issues as soon as possible the participants of the meeting decided to establish a workgroup under the Committee to immediately launch elaboration of new legislative act in this field and make it in line with international experience to simplify the work of international and Ukrainian donor and charity organizations.
“The document we are starting to work on must become new multipronged Law allowing us to avoid simple amending of the effective Law. The reason such approach is being applied is the fact that effective regulation base boils down to control of reception, provision, registration, distribution and use of humanitarian aid. Moreover, it is not in line with the Resolution of the UN General Assembly and terms of the International Humanitarian Law. After the adoption of the new Law on humanitarian aid, Ukraine will become clearer for international donor organizations we are very interested in today. These organizations will not face difficulties and barriers in going through certain administrative filters they are facing now. In turn, the population needing humanitarian aid will be provided with it more rabidly and at a greater scale,” Committee member Hlib Zahorii said.
Head of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Ukraine Barbara Manzi has also pointed out the necessity for immediate legislative settlement of the issues of humanitarian aid in Ukraine, and expressed readiness to along with other colleagues provide practical assistance in elaboration of new legislation. She noted that the core Committee has to coordinate all the legislative acts regulating the issue of humanitarian aid as Ukrainian practice shows that different ministries and bodies initiate own regulating bylaws, which often contradict each other and complicate provision of humanitarian aid itself.
The decision on official establishment of the said workgroup will be taken at the next meeting of the Committee.