UNHCR Hotline for conflict-affected persons started to provide free legal counseling

In April, UNHCR has relaunched its free telephone hotline, which now provides legal counseling to those affected by the conflict in eastern Ukraine, including internally displaced and stateless persons. NGO “DonbasSOS” will administer the Hotline.

6 May 2019

UNHCR’s free Hotline 0-800-30-77-11 was launched in 2015 in order to support UNHCR assistance programme to vulnerable people. Hotline users were able to receive detailed information about the programme and provide their feedback on the quality of services, as well as suggest their ideas for improvement.

The scope of services of the Hotline has widen over the years and now operators provide full  information to thousands of people on humanitarian support programmes run by UNHCR and its partners. Starting from April 2019, the users of this service can also receive legal counseling by calling the UNHCR hotline.

“A lawyer is working on the Hotline in order to help people get primary advise on legal issues they have with regard to IDP registration, social benefits and pensions, personal documentation issues, birth and death certificates for residents of NGCA, education issues, inheritance, crossing the checkpoints, and more,” – said Valeriya Poklonska, Head of the NGO DonbasSOS.

For UNHCR, it is important to work directly and continuously with communities and individuals and consult with them to insure their ability to participate meaningfully in decisions that affect them.  

“At UNHCR, we strive to achieve quality and effective protection and assistance for all the people we support, regardless of age, gender and diversity. The Hotline is one component of the feedback mechanism which helps us to make sure that our programmes not only reach vulnerable people, but make real positive impact on their lives,”- said Pablo Mateu, UNHCR Representative in Ukraine.

Feedback from communities and individuals is collected in different manners. Apart from the hotline, UNHCR conducts regular participatory assessments, focus group discussions and interviews with key informants, conducted across the country, supported by the authorities, civil society and international organizations. The latest participatory assessment took place in February-March 2019. During this exercise, UNHCR met with 184 refugees and asylum-seekers, 86 stateless persons or those at risk of statelessness, and 520 IDPs and conflict-affected persons, including men, women, youth, as well as members of the Roma community and persons with specific needs (e.g., persons with disabilities, persons living with HIV). The results of the assessments will help shape the annual and emergency response plan of UNHCR Ukraine, its priorities, programme designs, monitoring and reporting.

Through the Protection Cluster, led by UNHCR, UN agencies jointly work to ensure accountability to the affected population. Implementation of key principles for this work, outlined in the respective document, will be discussed in a series of trainings organized by the Protection Cluster, with the first training held in April in Donetsk NGCA.

 

 

Information about UNHCR in Ukraine

In Ukraine, UNHCR has been working since 1994 to protect the rights of refugees, asylum seekers and stateless persons. Achievements include support to the development of national legislation relating to the rights of refugees, asylum seekers and stateless persons. UNHCR Ukraine has contributed to an effective asylum system in Ukraine, and also provided humanitarian assistance. Since 2014, UNHCR has been supporting the Ukrainian government and the Ukrainian civil society in responding to the forced displacement of around 1.6 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) from the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Donbas in eastern Ukraine. UNHCR Ukraine provides legal, material and social assistance to them directly or in partnership with international and local organisations. UNHCR focuses its activities on strengthening IDP rights and freedoms, improving their living conditions and providing long-term solutions. More information: https://www.unhcr.org/ua

Information about the DonbassSOS

The NGO was established on March 14 in 2014 by a group of activists from Donbas. The NGO is supporting persons residing along the “contact line” and internally displaced persons (IDPs). More than 95,000 consultations have been provided by the Hotline, operated by Donbass SOS; 3,788 persons received support in evacuation from unsafe areas, which was provided in partnership with other volunteer groups. Donbass SOS representatives participated in development of the Action Plan of the National Human Rights Strategy, they have also been involved in development of changes to the laws and regulations related to the rights of IDPs, e.g. co-authors of the proposed law 6692 (pension rights), 6240 (voting rights), changes to the resolutions of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine #505, 365, 1085. The members of the NGO have developed and distributed more than 72,000 printed information materials items like roadmaps for IDPs, booklets on social benefits and on aid programmes. More information: http://www.donbasssos.org

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