— How do you assess the military situation in Donetsk? Are there any changes in comparison with the previous years when you were here?
— Of course, in the past few weeks, people have felt a share of calmness, because they can gradually return to normal life. But there are other dangers besides shooting. People are now more likely to suffer from unexploded ordnance. In particular, farmers during land cultivation. This is a big problem. We also understand how severe the consequences are. Therefore, today we consider it necessary to focus on solving them.
— Where did you manage to be on this trip (the conversation took place during the visit of Florence Gillette to Donetsk on August 17)?
— This is the first time when I was not in Donetsk for a long time. The periods between trips are usually shorter. Coronavirus pandemic made adjustments to our working realities, so I arrived as soon as the opportunity arose. But let me remind you that the staff of the Donetsk office of the ICRC did not stop working on this territory for a day. I visited an outpatient clinic in Gorlovka, where the premises are being renovated with the support of the Red Cross. I was in the Kuibyshevsky district of Donetsk, where our representatives were distributing humanitarian aid, in addition, I visited the prosthetic and orthopedic center, which also underwent major repairs with the assistance of the ICRC.
— Did you manage to hold meetings with the leadership of the Republic?
— I was not able to meet with Mr. Pushilin (Head of the DPR), on this my visit he, unfortunately, was busy. However, I want to note that we have met more than once before, and I am sure we will definitely talk in the future. At the same time, I met with Daria Morozova (DPR Ombudsman). We discussed the problem of missing persons in connection with the conflict. At a meeting with Aleksandr Oprishchenko (Minister of Health of the DPR) we discussed the cooperation and assistance of the ICRC to medical institutions in the fight against COVID — 19.
— You said you came as soon as possible. Is this due to the improvement in the situation with COVID — 19 in the Republic?
— The coronavirus pandemic has brought new humanitarian challenges not only in this territory, but around the world. If we are talking about regions where the problem of COVID — 19 is associated with the problem of an ongoing armed conflict, as in the Donbass, then these humanitarian challenges are much more acute.
To combat the spread of the disease, certain measures were introduced, they are inevitable. The restrictions entailed economic and social consequences, and here it is very important to find and maintain a balance — how to implement these measures and not harm society. We have managed to establish cooperation with all bodies and structures responsible for the application of these measures and in general in this territory.
— It is known that the ICRC is in favor of strengthening the search for missing persons and promised assistance in this matter. To intensify the process, it was proposed to create a certain mechanism. At what stage is this work today?
— This is one of the most difficult consequences of any conflict. The Red Cross has been working in this direction for several decades, and we have good experience. It mainly concerns rendering assistance to the families of the disappeared, namely: in terms of exhumation, organizing funerals, overcoming economic difficulties for families who have lost loved ones. And, as you rightly mentioned, the ICRC is indeed helping to develop mechanisms aimed at clarifying the fate of missing persons.
This is a laborious and long process. To give you an idea of the time frame, the remains of 13 people who went missing during the 1992-1993 conflict were found in Abkhazia last week. They were identified and given to relatives. We hope that the Abkhaz example will not befall Donbass, and we do our best for this. As for the mechanism. We help in the creation of tools for the registration of missing persons, we work with the departments of forensic medical examination, we provide consultations on the treatment of remains, the principles of their accounting.
Source https://dan-news.info/bez-rubriki/o-propavshix-bez-vesti-novyx-proektax-stojkosti-naroda-donbassa.html
