By KYIV. Dec 27 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Relatives of Ukrainian prisoners of war (POW) and those who went missing during the war told the media about their communication with representatives of international organizations, in particular with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the UN, regarding the degree of assistance of these structures in the return of Ukrainians from Russian captivity and visits to the detainees.
Nora Storozhuk, the wife of a POW and member of NGO Voyatsky Release, said that the ICRC staff informed the relatives of the detainees that "in ten months they were able to visit some colonies."
"We waited a very long time. They told us at the ICRC that they visited some places. But this is only 120 people out of 10,000 [Ukrainian POWs, the figure of 10,000 is not official and is given from the words of the relatives]," Storozhuk said.
Answering the question about current communication with international organizations, what hinders the normal process of access to prisoners, transferring letters and facilitating an early exchange, she said, "They always tell us – wait, we cannot influence Russia."
"They tell us that they can’t, that they are not allowed in. But they are organizations that are working not for the first time, and this is not their first conflict and not the first armed aggression in the world … This applies specifically to the UN, the ICRC and the international security system in a broad sense. If it doesn’t work, then we need to come up with something that will work," Storozhuk said, adding that "their weak and inefficient activity has become one of the main disappointments of the outgoing year."
According to the wife of a POW and representative of the military doctors of Mariupol, Svitlana Bohdanenko, who deals with the release of Ukrainian doctors from captivity, international organizations ask her to wait until the end of the war first.
"When we ask, unfortunately, the answers are always only verbal, so as not to take responsibility for the current situation. We do not receive written answers. At first, in some organizations we were told: a doctor should be changed to a doctor, an officer to an officer. Sorry, but where can we find so many doctors? In Mariupol, for example, a lot of doctors were taken prisoner. We are told – well, wait, at the end of the war we will take them away. So, what should we wait for? We cannot wait. All answers go: wait, wait, wait – after the war. And when will it happen?" the woman said.
In turn, the brother of a civilian hostage and member of NGO Civilians in Captivity Illia Honchar said that during the ten months of the war, according to his calculations, they managed to return a maximum of ten such persons.
"They simply do not release civilian, they do not exchange them. We do not know why. Our authorities say that both military and civilians are on the lists for exchange. The ICRC says they are not allowed to visit civilians at detention facilities, prisons in Russia and temporarily occupied territories," he said.
Natalia Lukovska, the wife of another POW and representative of NGO Always Faithful, said the upcoming holidays are just another reason to remind international organizations of the need to intensify work on the release of people.
"We ask our partner countries to influence all kinds of international organizations that are responsible for the safety of our loved ones, namely the ICRC. Christmas is a big holiday that we used to celebrate in the family circle, and now it’s just another reason to remind Ukrainian brave people who are still in the cage of the enemy. Ukrainian families are waiting for a miracle to happen and all prisoners of war to return home," she said.
For her part, the wife of a POW from the 95th Separate Air Assault Brigade, Iryna Latysh, called on the international community to find solutions for the exchange in the all for all format. According to her, during the ten months of the war, more than 35 fighters of the brigade were captured, more than 80 went missing. During all this time, only three servicemen managed to return home.
"While the relevant institutions tell us to pray, not to lose hope, to believe in the best and promise that every prisoner will return home sooner or later – their children are born and grow up, parents, who did not wait until their son returns, die, someone no longer has a home, because it burned down after another missile strike. I call on international institutions to find solutions for the all for all swap," Latysh said.
The press briefing "Christmas in Captivity: Annual Results of the Struggle of Public Organizations and Family Members to Release Ukrainian POWs" was held at the Ukrinform news agency.
