As of early October 2024, over 65,000 Ukrainians were recognized as missing, prisoners of war, and illegally imprisoned civilians. Such data is contained in Resolution 2573 of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. The Coordination Headquarters reports that 3,767 people were released within the framework of the mutual exchange procedure, and only 168 of them are civilians.
“The Association of Relatives of Political Prisoners of the Kremlin is a non-governmental organization that supports the families of civilians who are illegally imprisoned, and those who have suffered from the Russian Federation’s armed aggression and seek justice and the restoration of basic social protection.
With the support of the International Renaissance Charitable Foundation, this organization conducted a thorough study of the procedure for proving the fact of illegal imprisonment by civilians who were released outside the procedure of mutual releases. During the presentation of the study, the participants discussed the algorithm of actions for establishing such facts by those civilians who were released from the Russian Federation’s illegal imprisonment, but independently – not as part of official mutual releases or so-called exchanges.
Kateryna Levchenko, head of the legal department of the Association of Relatives of Political Prisoners of the Kremlin, said that the study revealed a number of problems faced by illegally imprisoned civilians, as well as those released outside the mutual releases procedure. In her opinion, this is primarily due to the irrelevance of the Law of Ukraine “On social and legal protection of persons whose deprivation of personal liberty as a result of armed aggression against Ukraine has been established, and their family members.”
“As a result, citizens whom the state failed to protect and who were imprisoned, after their independent release, find themselves in unequal conditions compared to those who were released with the assistance of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War. Therefore, their right to social protection, which includes medical care and psychological support, is limited, and the procedure for proving the fact of illegal deprivation of personal liberty, due to its excessive duration, complexity, and bureaucratic nature, turns into a retraumatic experience for such people,” said Kateryna Levchenko.
Doctor of Political Science, expert of the Center for Civil Liberties Mykhailo Savva emphasized that the prepared analytical material offers a systematic approach to the legal and social protection of people who have returned from captivity.
“Ideas for changes to Ukrainian legislation, which is now a serious obstacle to protecting these people’s rights, are very important. In particular, the study highlights the need to simplify procedures and create institutional responsibility for supporting illegally imprisoned civilians. Without a systematic reform of the legislative framework and the work of commissions, thousands of affected citizens risk being left without protection and support,” the human rights activist said.
The recommendations that human rights defenders provided to state institutions include updating the Law of Ukraine “On social and legal protection of persons whose deprivation of personal liberty as a result of armed aggression against Ukraine has been established, and their family members,” as this document was adopted before the start of the full-scale Russian invasion and does not take into account current realities. The amendments should expand the list of civilians who may be recognized as illegally imprisoned.
Attention was also drawn to the Commission for establishing the fact of deprivation of personal liberty as a result of armed aggression against Ukraine. It is recommended to regulate its work, especially in terms of meeting the deadlines for considering applications and providing a reasoned response to the appeal.
As for the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, it can develop a procedure for the treatment of illegally imprisoned civilians, which would provide for a simplified procedure, on a par with persons released as a result of mutual releases, restoration of documents, receipt of medical care and psychological support, and assistance in establishing the fact of deprivation of personal liberty as a result of armed aggression against Ukraine.