The Parliaments of the world help in returning deported children, – the Vice Speaker Olena Kondratiuk
25 July 2023, 16:59
The Parliaments of the world help to return illegally deported Ukrainian children by adopting resolutions and ensuring constant publicity about these crimes of russia.
This was stated by the Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Olena Kondratiuk in the second part of an interview with the Telegraph online edition.
The Vice Speaker recalled that Slovakia was the first country whose Parliament adopted a resolution condemning the deportation of children by russia.
“I received a delegation of women parliamentarians from Slovakia. We discussed the issue of deported children with them, and then they suggested that we adopt a resolution at the level of Parliament. This is how the first resolution in support of this issue appeared. And the understanding that this problem needs to be spoken about loudly. I went on a working visit to Bratislava and thanked my colleagues from the rostrum of the Parliament for such a crucial initiative,” said Olena Kondratiuk.
According to her, following Slovakia, the parliaments of Poland, Iceland, France, and the European Parliament adopted their resolutions. In addition, the parliamentary assemblies of the Council of Europe and the OSCE adopted documents condemning russia’s actions to abduct Ukrainian children.
“We would like to reach out not only to European parliaments, but also to the Global South and African countries through the issue of children,” said Olena Kondratiuk
She reminded that the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is involved in the work of the Coordination Council on Child Protection and Safety. According to the Decree of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi of 5 July 2023, Olena Kondratiuk, as the Vice-Speaker and representative of the Parliament, was included in its membership.
The Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine also stressed the importance of involving ambassadors in the return of Ukrainian children: Roberta Metsola, the President of the European Parliament, Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, and speakers of parliaments around the world.
“We are working on organising a summit of EU parliamentary speakers in Poland for September,” said Olena Kondratiuk.