,,On February 21 2018 the Permanent Representative of ARC Boris Babin and the officials of the Departments of International Relations and Law Analysis of the Mission took part in  the Steering Committee Meeting of the Project “Strengthening the Human Rights Protection of IDPs in Ukraine” took place in Kyiv.

Among the participants who attended the meeting, were, high representatives of the Ministry of Temporarily Occupied Territories and Internally Displaced Persons of Ukraine, the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine, Special Advosor to Council of Europe’s Secretary General for Ukraine, the Representative on IDPs of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, leading civil society organizations and the Project team

The project realized in 2016 -2017  was aimed at development of   the protection system of IDPs by  means of  improving national legislation regarding the rights of IDPs in line with the Council of Europe standards.

During the final meeting it was presented main achievements of the Project along with the current state of implementation of the Work Plan and pointed out the draft laws developed for strengthening the rights of IDPs, emphasized the current practice of European Court of Human Rights in the context of the issues.

Ms. Ganna Khrystova, Senior Project Officer introduced the members of the project, the main activities within the project and the results achieved. The Permanent Representative expressed the position of the Mission on implementation of the Project and stressed on necessity for the Project to be continued for the period 2018-2019.

Boris Babin emphasized the urgent problems of IDPs from Crimea in particular the problems concerned certification and providing administrative services, aspects of legal transportation from the administrative boundary line and equipment of check points and efficient monitoring of human rights of IDPs in order to avoid the  human rights discrimination despite their background.

The Mission is taking all possible measures within its competence in ensuring the legal protection of IDPs’ rights, supporting them with all kinds of aid, coordination of their humanitarian needs, realization their rights in order to receive administrative services in mainland Ukraine. At the end the members determined the current social problems of IDPs, emphasized the aim and further steps of their common activities, in particular the implementation of the current and already  drafted Laws and amending legislation.

“The Action Plan for Ukraine in the next years” added by the issue of Human Rights Protection of IDPs from  the TOT and approved by The Council of Europe on February 21 within a new project of the Council of Europe is optimistic in outlook in general and  particularly for the Mission’s activity.