168. Forced transfer of children to Russian Federation territory
Oleshky (Kherson)
LOCATION: Oleshky (Kherson)
DATE: October 10, 2022 – April 2023
NUMBER OF WITNESSES: 4
SUMMARY: Children from a residential facility in Oleskhy, which supports children with special needs, were taken to Crimea and the Russian Federation without parental consent. Their movements within the Russian Federation and territories occupied by Russian forces were then kept secret.
WITNESSES
The Witnesses of the incident were male and female civilians, including an orphanage employee, a post office employee, and a factory worker. All of the Witnesses were related to the Victims.
VICTIMS
The Victims of the incident were male and female children of the Witnesses, all of whom were disabled and attended the institution in Oleshky. There were also adult-aged students from the institution’s “youth department” who were also forcibly deported.
ALLEGED PERPETRATORS
as described by the Witness(es)
The perpetrators included the occupier-appointed director of the Olehsky institution, other orphanage directors, the children’s rights commissioner of the Russian Federation, and deputies of the State Duma of the Russian Federation. Other perpetrators were the leaders of administrations established by Russian forces, including the head of the “Department of Labor,” the head of the Russian “humanitarian mission,” the head of the “Department of Education and Science” of the occupied Kherson.