Crimea has become a hub for deportation of children and a military foothold for the occupiers

On the Day of Remembrance of Children Who Died as a Result of Russia's Armed Aggression against Ukraine, the world was reminded of the fate of children suffering in the occupied territories. Crimea has been turned into a center of systemic influence on children's minds, where military service and Russian identity are imposed on children instead of education.

This was reported by Suspilne.Krym.

At the briefing "Defenseless before the war. Ukrainian children who have been suffering from Russian aggression for 11 years", the Permanent Representative of the President in Crimea Olga Kuryshko spoke about the militarization of the children's environment on the peninsula, the lack of cultural events and the imposition of the Russian army as the only way after school.

Valentyna Potapova, head of the Almenda Center for Civic Education, emphasized that the very idea of Ukraine is erased from Russian school textbooks. From childhood, students are taught the image of a tsarist state where power is infallible and change is impossible. From the age of three, children are involved in projects such as the Eagles of Russia, and from the age of 12 - in the military Unarmy, funded by the Russian state budget.

PHOTO: Suspilne.Krym

Human rights activist Oleksandra Dvoretska, coordinator of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative, said that children are not only taken out of their native environment, but also taught to fly drones, carry out cyber attacks, and by the age of 10-11 are actively recruited to cadet corps.

"Crimea has become a hub for the deportation of Ukrainian children, in particular from the Kherson region," Dvoretska noted.

Leviza Dzhelialova, public activist and wife of political prisoner Nariman Dzhelial, emphasized the humanitarian crisis among children whose parents have become victims of political repression. 253 minors were left without a father.

The President's representative in Crimea, Kuryshko, also emphasized that Ukraine should keep in touch with these children, support them morally and legally, and help them with integration and issuing Ukrainian documents.

In addition, in the annexed Crimea, students are involved in military training conducted by Russian militants. In April, there were 260 cadet classes. In total, 6265 children are undergoing military training in schools. The process of militarization of young people in the occupied regions will only accelerate, as Russia has planned a large-scale campaign to prepare young people for service.

Анна Бальчінос