In July,4 2018 the Permanent Representative of the President of Ukraine in ARC Borys Babin and his First Deputy Izet Gdanov met with the Representative of the UNHCR in Ukraine Pablo Mateo during his three-day working visit to Kherson region. The working meeting included the authorities of the Azov Black Sea Regional Directorate of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, of the Directorate of the State Migration Service in Kherson Region, the representatives of non–governmental organization “The Tenth of April” from Odessa and Kherson.
During the meeting a great range of challenges of IDPs from Crimea and the citizens of Ukraine, residing in Crimea, particularly the issuance of the passports and crossing the check-points were discussed. In this context the First Deputy Head of the Directorate of the State Migration Service in Kherson region Yana Agapkina informed the members of the meeting about the statistical data of 2017 and 2018 taking into account the increased staff facilities of the Regional Directorate offices and opening of a new office of the State Enterprise “Document” in Kherson on the 30th of May 2018.
The Chief of the new office of the SE “Document” pointed out that opening of this office significantly relieved social tensions. As the result only in June 2018 the office provided services for more than thousand of Ukrainian citizens from the temporarily occupied Crimea. Representatives of the State Migration Service pointed the Mission’s contribution into the decision and coordination of the activity of the governmental and self-governmental bodies to open the Administrative Service Centers in the districts, adjacent to administrative boundary with the temporarily occupied peninsula.
Borys Babin emphasized that current task of the Mission was to simplify the legal assistance procedure provided to the citizens from the temporarily occupied Crimea.
Pablo Mateo told about the humanitarian mission of UNHCR in Ukraine and agreed that the occupying authorities of the state-aggressor were fully responsible for realization the Crimean residents` rights in the territory under their temporarily control. And there is a need for additional inspections due to the destructive activity of the occupying authorities. The Permanent Representative Borys Babin noted the main activities of the Mission in the Human Rights protection in accordance with the adopted Plan of Urgent Activities in Counteraction of Russia’s Aggression from the Temporarily Occupied Territory, particularly the on the draft laws submitted to the Parliament.
After the working meeting held in the Mission, the representatives of UNHCR and the non-governmental organization “The Tenth of April” visited the new office of the SE “Document” where they witnessed the European level of the administrative services available for the citizens from the temporarily occupied Crimea.
In July 5 the Permanent Representative Borys Babin together with the Representative of the UNHCR in Ukraine Pablo Mateo, with representatives of the offices of the non-governmental organization “The Tenth of April” visited the check points “Kalanchak”, “Chaplynka” and “Chongar”. During their visit it was emphasized the urgent issues of the check points equipment (light, sheds, pedestrian paths) as well as it was inspected the implementation of humanitarian aid provided previously by the UNHCR. In addition, it was discussed the prospects of extra funding for the “Chongar” and “Kalanchak” check points to be equipped. The extra funding had been provided by the decision of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine in 2018.
Throughout his visit to school in Novooleksiivka village Pablo Mateu met with its director, the Head of Kherson Regional Mejlis of Crimean Tatar People Lenur Lumanov, who showed computer class provided by the UNHCR. The computers are used for the external studying of the Crimean children as well as teaching by the Crimean Tatar Language.
In the framework of Pablo Mateo’s visit to Kherson region the meetings with authorities of the regional governmental and self-governmental bodies were scheduled