In photos: Helena Christensen meets internally displaced older people in Ukraine
UNHCR High Profile Supporter Helena Christensen travelled with UNHCR to Ukraine in March 2017 to meet elderly persons displaced by the recent conflict in the east of the country.
In times of conflict, older people are at heightened risk of being forgotten, abandoned and neglected. When fighting led to civilian deaths and destroyed large swathes of buildings, including hospitals, and houses in Donetsk region, east of Ukraine in 2014, most of the young families fled. Less able to make this journey were the region’s older and vulnerable residents who stayed in their damaged homes or moved into collective shelters, convinced that they would soon return home. At the time of Helena's visit, of the estimated 1.6 million people internally displaced by the conflict 900,000 were over 60 years old.
The gallery below includes some of Helena's portraits of the individuals she met during her visit.
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Helena photographs Lina, 78, and her husband Prokofiy, 86, in Slovyansk, eastern Ukraine. Their home was shelled in June 2014, forcing them to leave and move in with relatives. They have now been able to move back to their home following repair work by UNHCR and partners. © UNHCR/Hector Perez -
Helena's portrait of Lina, 78 and her husband Prokofiy, 86, in Slovyansk, eastern Ukraine. © UNHCR/Helena Christensen -
Helena's portrait of Fedoriv - who has been displaced by conflict in eastern Ukraine - at an emergency centre for older people near Kiev. © UNHCR/Helena Christensen -
A former hospital in Slovyansk, which was heavily damaged during the conflict. © UNHCR/Helena Christensen -
Helena talks to Vera, an 80-year old former schoolteacher. She was lucky to escape with her life when her house was hit by shelling in 2014, but has since been able to return home following repairs carried out by UNHCR and partners. © UNHCR/Hector Perez -
Helena's portrait of Vera, an 80-year old former schoolteacher. When her house was shelled during the conflict in 2014 she had an extremely lucky escape, as her bedroom was completely destroyed moments after she got up from bed. She has now returned to her home - which she originally bought in 1969 with her late husband - following repair work by UNHCR and partners. © UNHCR/Helena Christensen -
Helena shares a cup of fruit tea with Vera in her recently repaired home. © UNHCR/Hector Perez