INTERNALLY DISPLACED AND CONFLICT AFFECTED POPULATIONS DIGEST FOR SEPTEMBER 2017

beneficiaries received HIGHLIGHTS primary legal aid 2126 ● Resolution #689, adopted in September, ● Misinterpretation of Order #1085, as well court cases are being provides for a number of changes. It ensures as its limitations, continues to prevent some processed IDPs’ rights to withdraw cash from Oschadbank people affected by conflict from obtaining IDP 471 cards at any ATM as well as for IDPs with registration, as well as from receiving targeted specific needs to receive pensions at home IDP payments or pensions. via Ukrposhta. At the same time, it requires all The number of requests for legal aid on social COURT CASES BY TYPE OF ISSUE IDPs who receive social payments or benefits ● payments and payments continues to grow, to pass physical verification at Oschadbank, with 92% of beneficiaries requesting primary not just pensioners like before. The makes Social benefits/pensions legal assistance on the issue in September IDPs’ lives more complicated due to limited 60% compared to 82% in July. capacities of Oschadbanks in regions which are densely populated with IDPs. The procedures ● R2P released a checkpoint (EECP) monitoring Personal for the above changes were not yet developed. report for June-July. 17% documentation

Family IDP REGISTRATION AND 6% unity PERSONAL DOCUMENTATION The total number of officially registered IDPs Limited access to the SMS continues due HLP – except military has gradually increased since July (1,592,982 to high numbers of visitors and insufficient 5% occupation as of 25 September compared to 1,586,135 human/technical capacity of and as of 28 August and 1,580,646 as of 24 July). Luhansk oblast offices as well as in Kharkiv At the oblast level, tangible changes in the and Barvinkivskyi Raion, Kharkiv Oblast. IDPs IDP registration number of officially registered IDPs have can wait up to 6 days to submit documents. It 3% been observed only in Donetsk, Luhansk and takes up to three months to issue international Dnipropetrovsk Oblasts (increases of 4877 and passports. 1009 persons and a decrease of 1998 persons IDPs continue to seek assistance from R2P respectively). Such fluctuations are mostly Job opportunities on issues related to documenting births and 3% due to the continuing verification process, deaths of persons living in the NGCA. removing double entries, re-registration of IDPs whose certificates were cancelled, and Other migration of IDPs between locations due to 3% employment, housing, transportation and service access. The IDP registration issue remains urgent. 19% of beneficiaries request 2% Freedom of movement primary legal assistance with IDP registration. The number of requests for primary and secondary legal aid on document-related issues remains almost the same as in August: monitoring with 9% of beneficiaries requesting and 32% visits respectively. Additional identification of IDPs 456 and other individuals, who obtained their persons received passports in the territory that is now in the information on NGCA remains complicated as the process 1824 protection issues requires additional documents or witnesses. The procedure may take up to two months and there persons with specific are instances of complete or partial absence needs received individual of supplementary documentation confirming 53 protection assistance the person’s identity. As a result people are limited in their access to different services and freedom of movement as State Migration This publication has been produced with Service offices (SMS) withdraw passports for the assistance of the UN Refugee Agency this period in most localities (except Donetsk (UNHCR) in the frame of the project Oblast where passports are not withdrawn for Advocacy, Protection and Legal Assistance the identification period, but only for a short to the Internally Displaced People period to update the passport photo). ID card for young IDP in Kharkiv SOCIAL BENEFITS AND/OR PENSIONS Payment of social benefits and pensions ● In addition, a number of DoSPs in Kharkiv, , charging for “non-activity” remain the main concerns among IDPs. The Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk in Nikolskyi Raion of Donetsk Oblast, fees for number of requests for legal aid on these Oblasts refuse to allocate targeted assistance physical identification in and Lyman issues continues to grow. 92% of beneficiaries to IDPs due to incorrect use of localities listed of Donetsk Oblast). requested primary legal on these issues in Order #1085: while some localities are Access to pensions is hindered in certain while 80% requested secondary legal aid on not mentioned in the list directly, they are ● localities of Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts due these topics. The key causes are related to a administratively subordinated to the localities to limited capacities of local branches of the burdensome verification mechanism aimed or raions included into the list. State Pension Fund and Oschadbank. to reduce payments from the budget, and the There are still cases of deviation from the linkage of such payments to IDP registration. ● Staff of most Oschadbank branches claim procedure of verifying IDPs’ place of actual ● The other reasons are frequent changes in they have not received instructions related residence: there is a recommendation to legislation, absence of unified instructions and to the newly adopted Resolution #689 which confirm residency bimonthly in Veselivskyi procedures, incompetence/disorganization allows IDP pensioners to withdraw cash at Raion of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, compiling among employees of state establishments and ATMs of any bank. housing reports without actual home visits in Oschadbank, as well as a lack of coordination: Bilovodsk of Luhansk Oblast and Nikolskyi Raion ● Aside from IDP registration and payments, of Donetsk Oblast, leaving no notifications the next major issue is the authorities referring requesting IDPs visit the DoSP in Nikolskyi to the list of localities in Order #1085 when Raion of Donetsk Oblast. Moreover, some determining whether to register an IDP or DoSPs conduct home visits with considerable ACCESS TO provide benefits. As such, a number of IDPs delays (up to two months in Novoaidarskyi face new challenges obtaining targeted Raion of Luhansk Oblast) due to lack of fuel for ADEQUATE assistance, and in some cases, difficulty transportation. HOUSING obtaining IDP registration. Thus, Departments Violations continue to occur during physical of Social Protection (DoSPs) do not allocate ● ● IDPs continue to face the same problems identification of IDP pensioners or during targeted assistance to IDPs from localities concerning accommodation and shelter: cash withdrawal at Oschadbank offices: some that are in fact located in the NGCA or along high utility costs and debts in certain locations impose additional requirements the LoC but are not included in Order #1085 collective centres (due to absence of (copies of documents in , (Starolaspa of Boikivskyi Raion, Nevelske, individual utility meters in the sanatorium of and Sloviansk of Donetsk Oblast) or billable Pervomaiske and Netailove of Yasynuvatskyi Dniprodzerzhynsk Metallurgical Commercial transactions from 10 to 50 UAH (insurance in Raion, Zaitseve of Bakhmutskyi Raion, Complex in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast); Bakhmut, , , Novohnativka of Volnovaskyi Raion, Solodke, inadequate living conditions in some and Nikolskyi Raion of Donetsk Oblast, Zhelanne and Karlivka of Marinskyi Raion of collective centres (Three collective centres in Dniprovskyi and Shevchenkivskyi districts of Donetsk Oblast, Zolote-5 and Novozvanivka Pavlohrad of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast whose Zaporizhzhia, Iziumskyi Raion of Kharkiv Oblast, of Popasnianskyi Raion of Luhansk Oblast). budgets lack repair funds. Two collective changing PIN codes in Pokrovsk, Bakhmut, Moreover, some DoSPs in Donetsk Oblast even centres are at risk of closing). Moreover, IDPs Kramatorsk, Druzhkivka and of refuse to register such IDPs. complain about rising rent fees in Kharkiv and in the modular town of Pavlohrad of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. As for the expiring and deteriorating modules in the modular FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT town in Kharkiv, they are partially replaced On 1 September, EECPs switched to autumn The percent of requests for primary legal aid with extra modules and those delivered schedules - working from 7 a.m. till 6.30 p.m., on freedom of movement related issues is from Dnipro; some refurbishment is also which reduces EECP capacity to some extent. constantly decreasing though. However 1/5 carried out. Meanwhile, the number of persons crossing of all beneficiaries requested assistance on ● Collective centre owners continue to evict EECPs remains high, with Marinka and Stanytsia the issue and it remains the second most IDPs who have utility debts. Luhanska being the busiest and Hnutove being frequently inquired about topic. the least busy. Long queues in both directions (up to 1,500 persons) were observed at Stanytsia Luhanska EECP mainly because of slow checks and a temporary decrease in the number of windows (3-6 instead of 8 until mid- September). Also, on 8 September, drivers and persons who crossed Marinka EECP from the NGCA to the GCA informed R2P monitors about very long queues (3 rows of vehicles – up to 500 cars and 700 people). According to them, up to 100 vehicles remained there overnight to cross the EECP. There is information that the lengthy queues were caused by installation Stanytsia Luhanska EECP of new software for registration of people at NGCA checkpoints. On 10 September, Maiorske EECP suspended operations for about 30 The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of «Right to Protection» and can in minutes due to hostilities within the vicinity. no way be taken to reflect the views of UNHCR.

«Right to Protection» in partnership with HIAS For more information please visit For legal assistance please contact us is a Ukrainian not-for profit organization dedicated our website: r2p.org.ua by e-mail: [email protected] to protecting the human rights of vulnerable Should you have any questions, or call our hotline (Mon – Fri from 9:00 to 18:00): categories of migrants – refugees, internally please contact us by e-mail: [email protected] +38 (098) 597 64 72 displaced, stateless and those at the risk Join us on social media: Facebook: right2protection +38 (099) 507 50 90 of statelessness and the undocumented Twitter: R2Protection +38 (063) 496 80 88