“The Thread Connecting with Those Currently Under Temporary Occupation.” The Story of “Donbas SOS”

 

Village is launching a series of articles about organizations that help people leave occupied territories for areas under Ukrainian control and adapt to a new life. 

 

This story focuses on “Donbas SOS.” The project’s lead coordinator, Violetta Artemchuk, shared how “Donbas SOS” evolved from a small group of activists, who themselves were forced to leave Donetsk, into a potent ecosystem that helps thousands of people escape temporarily occupied territories and find a new path in life.

 

 

Our organization was founded back in March 2014 by activists from Donetsk who were part of the Euromaidan movement. Due to persecution, they were forced to leave for Kyiv. The initial goal was to support others like themselves. They helped people find jobs and housing, as well as resolve various social issues—in other words, supporting their own.

When armed hostilities began in Donetsk Oblast, hotline consultants assisted people in evacuating and identifying safe routes. After parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions were occupied, this area of work continued to grow and evolve.

Areas of Activity

Today, “Donbas SOS” focuses on providing advisory and legal support to those affected by the war in Ukraine. This includes internally displaced persons, citizens in temporarily occupied territories, and people living in close proximity to combat zones. Our priority is advocating for their interests at the legislative level.

Up until 2016, we engaged volunteers. However, we moved away from this practice because if someone does not remain in the context permanently, their qualifications tend to decline. Our operators and lawyers undergo continuous training and skill improvement, which would have been difficult to sustain with volunteers.

We consciously chose not to provide psychological assistance. If we receive such requests, we simply redirect them to partner organizations. For more in-depth legal consultations, we forward inquiries to our hotline lawyers. If court representation or document processing is required, we have secondary legal aid lawyers who deal with this. Another part of our team focuses on information work, because we have widely followed social media platforms.

However, some issues cannot be resolved through simple consultations—they require changes to legislation.

When we identify these gaps, we formulate proposals and participate in the development of legislative initiatives to defend the group of people we work with.

A constant challenge is finding funding, as our organization is not state-funded. We are always seeking donors. Most commonly, we have international partners who have recognized the value and potential of our work. This has become somewhat easier now as more people have come to know us, but in the beginning, it was difficult to convince why we needed funding.

In 2014–2015, people affected by the war often expected us to solve their problems entirely for them. At the time, society was not accustomed to taking responsibility. When we told people that instead of shouting, they should go somewhere and submit a formal request or application, it often frustrated them—they thought we should do it on their behalf.

It was challenging at first, but over time, we began to notice a shift. People from temporarily occupied regions, displaced people from Donetsk and Luhansk, started to change. We did not work with Crimea due to its unique situation, as other strong organizations focused on that area. Instead, we concentrated on Donetsk and Luhansk regions. I believe that civil society played a key role in helping this population—those who experienced internal displacement—not only to avoid losing themselves but to grow.

By 2019–2020, people no longer said, “Do this for us.” Instead, they began to listen to advice on what they could do themselves. Their legal awareness had significantly improved.

However, this was not solely our achievement—it was the result of the efforts of many civil society organizations and donors who invested in development.

In 2022, we encountered a new wave of displaced people and saw the same patterns emerge. People from Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia regions, when calling us, were unprepared to solve problems on their own. Gradually—and although it is deeply saddening that the occupation continues—first- and second-wave displaced persons are increasingly realizing that they too have a role in resolving their issues. We can guide them, provide a roadmap, but we cannot act on their behalf. These were critical challenges we had to overcome.

Education

There are many different stories. For example, young people from temporarily occupied territories can apply to Ukrainian universities through a special admission procedure. One particular case stands out: a 17-year-old girl from the occupied part of Donetsk region, who had spent nearly her entire life under occupation, decided to enroll in a university on territory controlled by Ukraine.

The admission process was far from simple. When she sought details from state hotlines, the information she received was confusing. As a result, she nearly abandoned the idea of applying and considered staying where she was. However, we stepped in to help, and it turned out the process wasn’t as complicated as it had been made to seem—state agencies had simply explained it poorly. Step by step, we guided and supported her, and now she is a first-year university student. Her mother told us, “We’re so grateful because, without your help, we wouldn’t have been able to leave.”

 

 

Consultations about university admissions are a highly seasonal activity for us. This year, over a three-month period, we assisted 545 people with admissions-related consultations. Not all of them decided to proceed, but it is around 2% of our total consultations, which is not a huge number, though we hope it will grow in the future. Even so, it’s already a positive result.

Sometimes, people contact us, begin working with us, and then disappear. We don’t impose—we understand they may have chosen a different course of action. However, we know for certain that out of the 545 individuals we assisted, around 50 successfully enrolled. The rest disappeared from our radar, but they still received all the necessary information.

Today, the conditions for students from temporarily occupied territories have eased somewhat—they can now apply to universities remotely.

Although the process of leaving occupied territories has become more challenging, significantly more teenagers are enrolling in universities than last year—double the number compared to 2022, when the full-scale war began.

Students now have the option to submit their documents and attend classes online without having to leave the occupied territories immediately. They are required to provide the original documents only a year later. This gives them time to plan and prepare for their departure. However, the situation remains more complicated for young men.

Key Issues

When discussing the key issues faced by internally displaced persons, it’s essential to start with the challenges experienced by citizens living in occupied territories. This is currently our primary focus, and the situation is dire.

These issues persist and grow more acute with every passing month. While we firmly believe in de-occupation, it’s important to understand that these challenges will only intensify after the territories are liberated.

The primary challenge lies in verifying documents issued in temporarily occupied territories. This includes the recognition, nostrification, and apostillation of such documents. People are living, being born, and dying in these areas without proper legal documentation, which creates significant obstacles to accessing state services and asserting their rights.

For instance, obtaining a Ukrainian birth certificate for a child born in occupied territory currently requires a judicial procedure. Parents or their representatives on Ukrainian government-controlled territory must prove in court that the child was indeed born. While the process isn’t complex, it’s impossible to simply register the child at the Civil Registry Office. The Office refuses such registrations because they would contradict existing legislation. Only after a court decision can the child be registered.

When people hear they need to go to court, they often abandon the process. This is a major problem because we risk losing these citizens. We cannot accurately determine how many Ukrainian children have been born under occupation, nor can we track how many may be deported or taken away.

Issues with obtaining birth and death certificates are critical and legally complex. Together with our partners, we are advocating for a simplified registration process, enabling individuals to confirm their Ukrainian citizenship through the Civil Registry Office.

Another significant problem is the recognition of diplomas obtained in occupied territories. Understandably, such diplomas cannot simply be accepted in Ukraine, but the knowledge they represent aren’t necessarily invalid. Currently, there’s a law allowing individuals from non-government-controlled areas to confirm their qualifications by traveling to Ukraine, taking exams, and receiving appropriate certificates. Doctors, builders, engineers—these professionals exist, and we need their expertise.

For example, a trauma surgeon from Donetsk, who had graduated from Donetsk Medical University, moved to Ukraine and found out that his diploma wasn’t recognized. He was told, “Start over from the first year of study.” He is now in his second year, despite already having practical experience as a doctor. This isn’t just an educational issue—it’s about an adult being forced to restart their life. This process takes time and resources, making it hard for such individuals to support themselves.

This issue will remain critical in the future after de-occupation. Once territories are liberated, there will be many people with diplomas whose qualifications won’t be quickly validated. This will place enormous strain on the system, budgets, and infrastructure. We’ll need to address both birth certificate registration and access to education simultaneously.

The occupied territories are home to as many as five million people, including approximately 800,000 children born there. If all of these individuals are required to go through court proceedings to confirm their documents, the judicial system will be overwhelmed.

A similar issue will arise with diplomas/medical documentation. Many people will come from occupied territories with medical records that won’t be automatically recognized. For example, someone who has been declared disabled may have to undergo new tests to confirm their diagnosis. This could be a life-or-death matter, particularly for patients with cancer or other serious illnesses. This isn’t just bureaucracy—it’s about real human lives that demand immediate solutions.

The entire system of documentation in occupied territories is extremely complex and requires a comprehensive approach. However, unfortunately, many issues remain unregulated at the legislative level. One such issue is assistance for internally displaced persons. The legislation in this area is opaque, and many people are unable to receive adequate state assistance, even though they are in dire need of it. The lack of a clear policy for providing assistance that takes into account the real needs of displaced persons creates additional challenges.

Another issue is pensions for internally displaced persons. They must prove that they are not receiving pensions from the Russian Federation, which is an absolutely discriminatory requirement. This is a problem of mistrust that only complicates the process of providing assistance and support. Legislative issues continue to arise, but we persist in working on their resolution.

Ministry of Unity

With the onset of the full-scale invasion, the workload has significantly increased, and more people are seeking assistance. Speaking of positive changes, it’s worth noting that the situation has improved. In the early years, when we approached government agencies, we often heard the question, “Who are you?” We were misunderstood, overlooked, and not taken seriously. Every time we proposed some initiatives, the authorities didn’t understand what we were talking about or who we were at all.

Now, if we talk about positive changes, I can say that government agencies and central executive authorities responsible for specific issues have started to hear us. Not all of them, of course, but many are now willing to cooperate. This is also a big step forward.

The number of requests increases each year. Before the full-scale invasion, we received around 2,000–2,500 requests per month. Now, that figure is about 5,000 requests.

As for our achievements, one of the important advocacy successes is the recent fight to preserve the Ministry of Reintegration. It was a long and complex issue in which we actively cooperated with our partners and colleagues from other organizations. The key point is that when several structures speak about the same thing, it sounds much louder. Together, we advocated for keeping the single body responsible for reintegration. From September to November, we held meetings with international organizations and lawmakers, emphasizing the importance of this ministry.

 

 

Although we didn’t have much faith in success, on December 3rd, a new Ministry of National Unity was created. We don’t yet know exactly what its functions will be, but the very fact of creating this body is a great success for us. There was no loud announcement—even the Ministry of Reintegration, when it was dissolved, did not comment on it. But we didn’t stay silent, and our civic activism brought results.

Another important point that should not be overlooked is the recently passed law, which required employees of state-owned enterprises to declare their relatives living in temporarily occupied territories.

This was clearly a discriminatory decision. We worked to ensure that this law was not signed, and the president vetoed it.

But now, unfortunately, the work is getting a bit more difficult. We feel that the issue of temporarily occupied territories and their citizens is slowly being pushed to the background. It is unclear when the territories will be de-occupied. Therefore, the government feels it is easier not to address these issues. But we cannot allow this problem to be forgotten. People live there, and the state must reach out to them, care for them, and remember them.

At the moment, unfortunately, many people from the occupied territories are afraid to seek help. They do not understand that the state does not punish them for obtaining Russian passports, as they did so not out of a desire to betray, but out of necessity. For example, one woman who contacted us had received a Russian passport because, without it, she would not have had access to water in her occupied village. For her, this was the only way to secure essential resources, but she did not know that this did not make her a traitor, as she lives in complete isolation, without access to truthful information.

This is a very important issue—we need to make it clear to these people that they are not traitors, that they are not alone, and that they remain part of our country. We try to respond to every request from the occupied territories because each person who reaches out to us, despite fear and danger, is a thread connecting us with those who are currently under occupation. We work with these individuals very carefully because every word we say can be crucial for them.