Postponement of mobilisation and release from captivity: issues related to civilian prisoners of the RF discussed at the Office of the President

On November 13, 2024, ZMINA took part in a meeting at the Office of the President with the families of civilian Ukrainians who are illegally detained in the Russian Federation or in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.

Meeting with families of civilian prisoners chaired by Iryna Vereshchuk. Photo: Office of the President

Families of civilian prisoners attended the meeting and representatives of the authorities and NGOs, including the Human Rights Centre ZMINA, represented by the Advocacy Director, Alena Lunova and the Head of the War Crimes Documentation Department, Yelyzaveta Sokurenko.

The need to legislate the right to postpone mobilisation for civilians deprived of their personal liberty by Russia and the issue of finding and releasing illegally detained Ukrainians were key topics of the meeting.

“Resolving the issue of mobilisation of those civilians who were illegally detained by the RF is a very acute issue. There are not many such released persons, but for them, being captured again is equal to death. Military personnel who have been released from captivity have the opportunity to choose whether to continue their service. Released civilians should have the same right to choose during mobilisation,” Lunova said.

Photo: Office of the President (photo)

One of the state’s priorities is the return of civilian Ukrainians held captive by the Russian Federation. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a possible mechanism for their return with the involvement of representatives of the public sector and international partners.

According to the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, a state strategy for the return of civilians should exist and is already being developed. Considering the impossibility of exchanging illegally detained civilians for prisoners of war, the state, together with its partners, is looking for other ways to ensure the return of all Ukrainians home.

Earlier, human rights defenders developed an analytical note for civilian prisoners and their families explaining how the law on the protection of the rights of civilian hostages works. You can read the analytics here.