Russia’s abduction of Ukrainian children and the subsequent deprivation of their Ukrainian identity may amount to the crime of genocide.
This was stated in an interview with Ukrinform by the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Special Rapporteur, Member of the Riksdag (Swedish Parliament) Carina Odebrink.
“Yes, I think we could speak about genocide. And the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and Russia’s children’s ombudsman, Maria Lvova-Belova, underscore the seriousness of these actions,” she said, commenting on the issue.
The OSCE PA Special Rapporteur also expressed her belief that Putin will eventually face a trial in The Hague.
“Yes, I firmly believe it’s possible – and I must, because losing hope would be devastating. There is so much to worry about today: Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, the situation in the Middle East, and the very real threat to the international rules-based order. So we need to have faith in our international institutions. The fact that the ICC has issued arrest warrants for Putin and the children’s ombudsperson is incredibly important, and we must stand by that. If we don’t, we risk silently accepting what is happening,” Odebrink said when asked if she believed that Putin would be tried in The Hague.
She pointed out that with each passing day, children deported from Ukraine, “who may have been given new names, new identities, and forbidden to speak Ukrainian”, are losing a part of who they are.
“A year in the life of a child is a very long time. And I think Putin understands this. The longer they stay, the more they forget where they come from. That’s terrifying,” the OSCE PA Special Rapporteur added.
Along with this, she called for not forgetting the 1.7 million children who still live in the occupied territories with their families: “They have also suffered deeply from this war. So, although my report focuses on deported children, we must remember that all Ukrainian children suffer.”
As Ukrinform reported, earlier in May, COO of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative, Daria Zarivna, stated that the number of Ukrainian children deported by Russia could be much higher than the officially known number of 19,546.
Source: Abduction of Ukrainian children by Russia may be considered genocide - OSCE PA Special Rapporteur
