Ukraine

Covers the period from April 2001 to March 2004.

Population: 48.9 million (10.4 million under 18)
Government armed forces: 295,500
Compulsory recruitment age: 18
Voluntary recruitment age: 17 (for officer trainees)
Voting age: 18
Optional Protocol: signed 7 September 2000
Other treaties ratified (see glossary): CRC, GC AP I and II, ILO 138, ILO 182

The minimum recruitment age for officer trainees, who were considered members of the armed forces, was 17. Orphans and other children were admitted to military schools from the age of 12 or possibly even younger. Legislation protected under-18s from participation in direct hostilities.

Context

There were persistent allegations of torture and ill-treatment by law enforcement officials, which appeared to be widespread. In 2003 the National Human Rights Ombudsman stated in her report to parliament that in the previous two years about 12,000 people had complained of torture or ill-treatment, mostly in the context of interrogation for the purpose of extracting a confession. Many detainees suffered serious injury from such treatment, and some died as a result.1

Government

National recruitment legislation and practice

The constitution provides for conscription, stating that "Defence of the Motherland, of the independence and territorial indivisibility of Ukraine, and respect for its state symbols, are the duties of citizens of Ukraine" (Article 65).2 Under the 1999 Law on Military Duty and Military Service, the minimum age for conscription is 18.3

The minimum age for voluntary applicants for officer training at military school is 17.4 Trainees are considered as members of the armed forces once they take the military oath of allegiance.5 In May 2001 Ukraine reported to the UN Committee on the Rights of Child that 17 was the minimum age for voluntary recruitment under the Law on Universal Conscription and Military Service, and 18 the minimum age for participation in hostilities.6 In September 2001 Presidential Decree No.1053 raised the minimum age for voluntary recruitment to 18 for men and to 19 for women.7

There were reports of hazing8 of young conscripts. In 2001 the UN Human Rights Committee and the UN Committee against Torture urged Ukraine to strengthen measures to end hazing, prosecute offenders, and eradicate the culture which encouraged its practice in the armed forces.9

Military training and military schools

"Military-patriotic" training of young people was given increased emphasis as part of a move towards a fully professional, volunteer military by 2015. Such training aims at developing positive attitudes towards professional military service as a "constitutional duty".10 In the final two years of secondary school, students attend a weekly "Defence of the Motherland" class that is reportedly less militaristic than under Soviet rule.11

There are at least six military schools, including the Naval Institute in Sevastopol, Vasilkiv Air Force College, Mykolaiv Military Motor College, the Zabolotny Vinnitsa Medical College and schools in Kiev and Bojarka. Some of these schools were said to have recently altered their entrance requirements to admit children younger than 12. One was specifically for orphaned children.12 All were inclined to admit children from deprived backgrounds.13

There appeared to be a number of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) for young people with a "military orientation". Their activities had received press coverage. Reportedly located in western Ukraine, they operated unofficially and on their own initiative, in violation of a legal ban on such organizations.14

1 Amnesty International Reports 2002, 2003 and 2004, http://web.amnesty.org/library/engindex.

2 Constitution, http://www.president.gov.ua.

3 Child Soldiers Coalition interview with Ukraine mission to NATO, 4 March 2004.

4 Correspondence with Ukraine Air Attaché to the United Kingdom (UK), 8 March 2004; Ministry of Defence, http://www.mil.gov.ua.

5 Child Soldiers Coalition interview with Ukraine Military Attaché to the UK, 3 March 2004.

6 Second periodic report of Ukraine to UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, UN Doc. CRC/C/70/Add.11, 18 May 2001, http://www.ohchr.org.

7 Ministry of Defence, http://www.mil.gov.ua (Professional army, Conditions of acceptance on service on contract basis).

8 An institutionalized system of extreme physical abuse and psychological humiliation inflicted over an extended period on the most recent or junior conscripts by longer-serving conscripts or senior soldiers. While not formally condoned, lack of supervision allows the practice to continue unchecked. The precise form it takes may vary from one army to another, but its essential features are that it is systematic, continual, status-related, and usually carried out by those who have previously been its victims.

9 Amnesty International Report 2002.

10 Presidential Decree about the State Program of the Armed Forces of Ukraine transition towards the manning on contract basis, http://www.mil.gov.ua.

11 Confidential source, March 2004.

12 Ukraine Military Attaché to UK, op. cit., Ukraine mission to NATO, op. cit.; Ministry of Defence, http://www.mil.gov.ua (Military education).

13 Confidential source, op. cit.

14 Ukraine Military Attaché to UK, op. cit., confidential source, op. cit.

Disclaimer:

This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.