Running to bomb shelters, nothing new for Ukraine’s schoolchildren

There have been a staggering 1,614 recorded attacks on Ukrainian schools up to the end of last year says the report from the UN human rights office OHCHR – part of a legacy of death, injury, disability and family separation.

Children’s educational attainment level has plummeted during the unrelenting hostilities, “diminishing their future educational path and ability to realize their full potential in employment and beyond.”

Furthermore, children living in the four regions annexed by Russia in breach of international law, are “especially vulnerable” following the imposition of a Russian school curriculum.

Propaganda exercise

“Military-patriotic training is prioritised, and children are exposed to war propaganda,” Liz Throssell of the Office for Human Rights told journalists in Geneva on Friday.

“Children are also completely restricted from accessing education in the Ukrainian language and have been imposed with Russian citizenship,” she continued.

The horrifying impact on Ukraine’s youngest extends way beyond the classroom. As the report unveils, a verified 669 children were killed and 1,833 injured since February 2022, with the actual numbers likely much higher.

With hundreds of thousands of internally displaced and close to two million children living outside the country as refugees, many of them separated from a parent, High Commissioner Volker Türk said “their rights have been undermined in every aspect of life, leaving deep scars, both physical and psychosocial.”

OHCHR confirms that at least 200 children have been transferred to Russia, or within occupied territory in eastern Ukraine – “acts that may constitute war crimes,” Ms. Throssell insisted.

However, due to lack of access, the full scale of these incidents cannot be properly evaluated, the UN official stated.

‘Drastic wartime experiences’

“It is clear that Ukrainian children have endured a wide range of drastic wartime experiences, all with serious impacts – some as refugees in Europe, others as direct victims, under continued threat of bombardment, and many subject to the coercive laws and policies of the Russian authorities in occupied areas,” UN human rights chief Türk said.

“As our report makes clear, acknowledging and addressing violations are essential to ensure a future where all Ukrainian children can reclaim their rights, identity and security, free from the enduring consequences of war and occupation,” he added.