Improving the humanitarian situation of Ukrainian refugees and displaced persons | WPN World People News

A PACE committee has urged all sides in the conflict in Ukraine to fully respect the Minsk ceasefire and to refrain from the use of force and violence, particularly against civilians.

Approving a report on “the humanitarian situation of Ukrainian refugees and displaced persons” by Jim Sheridan (United Kingdom, SOC), PACE’s Migration Committee said that only a sustainable political solution based on respect for Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity could lead to improvement of the humanitarian situation.

In a draft resolution, the committee also:

• deplored the deterioration of the human rights situation in Crimea
• said the growing number of missing persons was a major concern
• called for the release and exchange of all prisoners of war and persons detained as a result of the conflict
• called for objective investigations into the high number of civil casualties, disappearances and mass graves during the conflict

The parliamentarians commended the Ukrainian parliament on its adoption of a law on the rights of IDPs and related laws, and encouraged the Ukrainian authorities to implement them.

They also noted a number of positive steps taken by the Russian authorities in response to the increased flow of Ukrainian refugees, in particular a simplified procedure for granting temporary asylum and allowing for the issue of work permits.

Source: Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe