Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner quits European Ombudsman Institute in protest
Ukrainian Supreme Rada Human Rights Commissioner Dmitry Lubinitsa announced that he was leaving the European Ombudsman Institute (EOI) after two Ukrainian children were smuggled from Austria to Russia by a member of the organisation, reports Ukrainska Pravda.
In a video message posted on Facebook on Wednesday, the Ukrainian ombudsman demonstratively tore up his IEO membership card. "I have sent an urgent letter to the members of the European Ombudsman Institution about leaving the organisation. This step was the result of the fact that two Ukrainian children who were on the territory of the Republic of Austria due to Russian armed aggression have been taken to the territory of the Russian Federation by a human rights activist from the European Ombudsman Institute," explained the Ukrainian Commissioner for Human Rights.
Dmitro Lubinets underlined that these actions represent a violation of the Geneva Convention for the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War. The Ukrainian official believes that forcibly sending children to Russia, in this case involving an Austrian official, is "a sign of genocide". According to the Ukrainian ombudsman, the IEO has not carried out an internal investigation, and the organisation's president did not respond to Lubinets' questions. "I have appealed to colleagues who are members of the Institute to consider the possibility of an immediate withdrawal from the organisation and to condemn the actions of its leadership," stressed Dmitro Lubinets.
