On 18 May 2018, representatives of the Ukrainian Society in Switzerland Pawlo Dlaboha and Oleksandra Telychko participated in the Annual Diaspora Forum “Diasporas as Partners for Development in a Globalized World” that was organized by the Parliamentary Network on Diaspora Policies of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and the International Organization for Migration in Geneva, Switzerland.
In his statement, Pawlo Dlaboha focused the audience’s attention on the ongoing conflict in Ukraine calling it a “silent” war, as it continues to be largely absent from international media headlines and political agenda. He also reminded the participants of the human cost of Russian aggression against Ukraine – 11,000 killed and many more wounded, 1.6 million internally displaced persons, and 3.4 million in dire need of humanitarian assistance and protection. He noted that many of those people are facing tough daily choices of whether to save on food, medicine, shelter, heating or their children’s education.
Nonetheless, the response of the international community is undermined by lack of funding and low awareness of the gravity of the situation in Eastern Ukraine. Pawlo Dlaboha also underscored the significant efforts of the Ukrainian diaspora, led by the UWC, in advocating during various international forums for more political and humanitarian support for Ukraine.
“The Ukrainian World Congress hopes that such conferences will raise awareness of the humanitarian crisis in Eastern Ukraine caused by the hybrid war of the Russian Federation, and expresses gratitude to our delegates from Switzerland for highlighting this important issue during the Diapora Forum,” – stated UWC President Eugene Czolij.
