Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets has appealed to the United Nations, the Council of Europe, and the International Committee of the Red Cross regarding the trial in Russia of three teenagers from temporarily occupied Melitopol.
He reported this on Telegram, according to Ukrinform.
"Three children from temporarily occupied Melitopol received harsh sentences. The occupiers sentenced them to 7-8 years in prison… At the time of their detention, they were 16-17 years old. For more than two years they were kept in conditions that cannot be called humane: they were beaten, tortured, and psychologically broken," the ombudsman said.
He noted that the minors were tried as Russian citizens, in a closed trial, without the right to fair defense, emphasizing that they were punished for being Ukrainian.
Lubinets also spoke about the repression Russia carries out in temporarily occupied territories against Ukrainians: "Thousands of children are abducted and deported to Russia. Their documents are changed. They are forced to adopt the Russian language and citizenship. They are militarized. They are made to wear uniforms, participate in training and propaganda activities. They are turned into instruments of war."
Those who remain Ukrainian are punished, tortured, isolated, and intimidated with beatings, threats, and fear.
"This is a systemic policy. These are international crimes against children. These are gross violations of international law – from the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child to the Geneva Conventions. I have sent letters to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the president of the ICRC, and the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, calling on them to document this fact and provide a clear international legal assessment of the actions of the aggressor state," Lubinets said.
The ombudsman also appealed to the international community to do everything possible to ensure that every deported or forcibly displaced, illegally sentenced child is returned to Ukraine.
"We must protect their rights and hold those responsible accountable. The world cannot remain indifferent while Ukrainians are being destroyed before our eyes. We will not stop until every child returns home – alive and free," Lubinets said.
On March 19, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced three Ukrainian teenagers from Melitopol, temporarily occupied by Russia, who were accused of terrorism. Viktor Azarovskyi was sentenced to 8 years and 6 months, Oleh Shokol – 7 years and 6 months, and Denys Vasylyk – 7 years. The trial was held in closed session – without access for independent observers or international organizations.
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