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On June 4, 2025, Ghent University hosted a discussion on “Protecting the rights of Ukrainian children: prospects and challenges”. The event was organized by the Ukraine Plus Knowledge Centre (Eureast Platform, Ghent University) and Anti-Discrimination Centre Memorial Brussels and is dedicated to the rights of Ukrainian children in a situation of war and migration. The discussion aroused great interest: more than 40 participants included students, experts, representatives of the Ukrainian community and Belgian public.
Two leading experts from Ukraine spoke about the situation of children in war-torn Ukraine and violations of the rights of abducted children trapped in Russia.
- Yevhen Zakharov, head of the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, a leading expert on the projects “Voices of War” and “Tribunal for Putin” (T4R), devoted his presentation to the legal aspects of the problem, in particular, to proving the war crimes of the Russian army and authorities against Ukrainian children (abduction, forced displacement, indoctrination and militarization) in the context of the Geneva Conventions and the UN Convention on the prevention and punishment of the crime of genocide.
- Tetiana Semikop, head of the public movement “Faith. Hope. Lyubov” (Odesa), presented a profound overview of the war-related problems faced by Ukrainian children, as well as various services responsible for children’s rights protection. She talked about different categories of children and difficulties in obtaining education, providing qualified medical care, social and psychological support.
As an introduction to the panel discussion, an animated documentary “How I went to my sister” was shown; it is about the fate of a Ukrainian teenager from Donbas, who managed to leave the occupied territory and go to Europe.
The panel discussion focused on the situation of Ukrainian children, adolescents and youth in Belgium, in particular, their education and integration into Belgian society, as well as their return and reintegration into Ukrainian society. Ukrainian students Lisa and Maria, who came to Belgium as minors and are now studying in Belgium, spoke about their vision of the situation and the experience of integration. In particular, they expressed their wishes for obtaining internships and employment in Ukraine with the support of the EU, to be able to apply the knowledge gained in Europe for the reconstruction of Ukraine. Pax Cristi representative Annemarie Gielen stressed that both the European Union and Ukraine need to make more efforts right now to prepare the return of children and adults to post-war Ukraine, and plan measures to support and integrate those who have returned. Merel Selleslach, a researcher at the Flemish Institute of Peace, noted that the planning of such measures was the focus of a study that the Institute has prepared for the parliaments of Flanders and the EU; it takes into account the opinions of various experts. Maria Yasenovska, an expert at the European Disability Forum, stressed that even greater support measures are needed for the return of people with disabilities, whose special needs must be taken into account by the EU authorities when discussing their return to Ukraine.
After the presentations of the speakers and panelists, a lively discussion with the audience took place. In particular, Yevhenia Lutsenko, Vice-President of ADC Memorial, Taisiya Nakonechna, an activist of the Ukrainian community, Oksana Kozlova, an activist of the Belgian Committee of the European Solidarity Network with Ukraine, expressed their questions and comments.
The event ended with a visit to a photo exhibition of young photographers from Ukraine who received their education in Belgium. The exhibition is symbolically called “Where is/was my Home”; in their works, the photographers reflect on their experience of emigration and integration and their ties with their native country.
The organizers of the event would like to express their special gratitude to the Ghent Ukrainian community for their help and to Taisiya Nakonechna personally for translating the speakers’ presentations.