About our
project

Where Are Our People? is a global advocacy campaign initiated by the PR Army, an independent NGO of Ukrainian communication professionals. The campaign is aimed at uncovering forced deportations of Ukrainians to the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus by Russian occupation forces.

Since 24 February 2022, from 2.8 to 4.7 million Ukrainians have been forcibly deported, states Human Rights Center ZMINA. According to the data of the President’s Commissioner for Children’s Rights, about 250,000 children were abducted from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine to the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus. They have been torn from their families and homes simply because they are Ukrainians — a nationality Russia’s leader openly says he wants to eliminate. A monstrous crime against humanity is happening now in today’s Europe.

Where Are Our People? has been active in advocating the topic and raising both civil and political awareness, resulting in a range of media publications and the implementation of sanctions against people involved in the forcible deportation of Ukrainians. Last year, the campaign received financial support for its activities. The team created a website, compiled the deportees’ accounts, and disseminated them to the media; developed an interactive map illustrating the locations where the deportees were involuntarily stationed; held two press conferences dedicated to the topic; and conducted in-depth historical research on the deportations of Ukrainians spanning from the Tsarist era to the USSR period and continuing through the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

Given the increased civil and political focus on the issue and some initial actions taken by decision-makers to address Russia’s forced deportation of Ukrainians, the team behind the Where Are Our People? campaign is contemplating taking further steps to advocate for the cause.

OUR RESULTS

In November 2022, together with our partners in France, Pour l’Ukraine and the Union des Ukrainians de France, we held a press conference on the issue of deported children, which resulted in raising the issue in France and attracting the attention of international organisations, including the International Criminal Court. Early in the investigation, we provided information on child deportations to the ICC through Emmanuel Daoud, a partner at VIGO and an ICC consultant.

In February 2024, as part of our advocacy trip to the USA, Ukrainian children who had been returned from deportation testified at the United Nations for the first time. This marked a historic moment, as victims of war crimes in Ukraine directly addressed the UN. PR Army together with Builders Ukraine, called on the UN to take action to secure the return of all Ukrainian children deported by Russia.

We’ve facilitated over 700 publications on Russia’s forced deportation of Ukrainians and civilian histages in top global media outlets including The New York Times, Le Monde, 60 Minutes, The Atlantic Council, Reuters, The Guardian, Corriere de la Sera, and many others. The total reach of our materials exceeds 17 mln people.

30+ people involved in the deportations were sanctioned in the EU and the US based on our research and data.

During December 2023 – June 2024, together with partners, we documented 250 cases of deported individuals and compiled 105 dossiers on individuals and organizations involved in these deportations.

We’ve established partnerships with Ukrainian and international government bodies, NGOs, human rights organizations, universities. Together, we’ve organized dozens of events in Ukraine and around the world, including: an event of forcible passportization of Ukrainians in the occupied areas in the Ukraine’s Ombudsman Office; a webinar “The Forcible Transfer and Deportation of Ukrainian Children by Russia: Search for Solutions” in partnership with Georgetown University’s Global Child Challenges Group; a round table “Political prisoners of the Kremlin: what happens to Ukrainians who are kept behind bars by Russia?” in Kyiv.

Implemented advocacy campaigns and meetings including with NATO, European Comission, US Congress, UN, French delegation, ex-Secretary of NATO and British politician of the Labour Party George Robertson and many others.

What can you do

Advocate for aid to help Ukraine. The only way to stop deportations and repatriate the people is for Ukraine to win this war and for Russia to acknowledge its defeat and enforce the repatriation of all deportees.
Raise the issue of forcible deportations and civilian hostages in all discussions about Ukraine and peace negotiations. The repatriation of all deported Ukrainians must be a non-negotiable condition for ending the war.
Pressure the ICRC and UN agencies as the primary guardians of humanitarian law and human rights to be present in filtration camps, prisons, and deportation sites, ensuring full access to all deported Ukrainians and civilian hostages.

Any initiative to spread information about the deportation
is welcome. We will be very grateful if you join the campaign
and contribute to the return of Ukrainians home.

We cannot leave our people in captivity of the enemy.
We won’t stop until we get an answer —