Final Report IIS-2024

The Struggles of Ukrainian IDPs:

A Call to Stop Destruction

Problem Statement

Since the start of the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Armed Forces on the 24th of February

2022, the number of Ukrainian refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) has become

ever more urgent. Between the time of 2022 and the present, almost 8 million estimated

refugees and around 7 million IDPs have been affected by the war,1 creating the largest refugee

crisis since the Second World War. Women, children, the disabled, and the elderly have been

the main demographic of refugees,2 as Ukrainian men aged 16-60 cannot leave Ukraine due to

mandatory conscription.3 Those able to seek refuge outside of Ukraine either go to neighboring

countries such as Poland, Romania, or Belarus, some even go to Russia. Ukrainians who are

internally displaced go to Lviv, another city in Ukraine. These journeys often entail the

separation of families, xenophobia, emotional and sexual abuse, and sometimes even

imprisonment.

1 Amnesty International, “Amnesty International Report 2022/23: The State of the World’s Human Rights,”
Amnesty (Amnesty International Ltd, 2023),
https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/europe-and-central-asia/ukraine/report-ukraine/.
2 International Organization for Migration (IOM), “Ukraine — Internal Displacement Report — General Population
Survey Round 14 (September – October 2023) | Displacement Tracking Matrix,” October 2023, 3,
https://dtm.iom.int/reports/ukraine-internal-displacement-report-general-population-survey-round-14-
september-october.
3Закон України "Про військовий обов'язок і військову службу" (Law of Ukraine on Military Service and Military
Duty Obligors), October 11, 1992, with subsequent amendments. Article 22.
Analysis

Even before the invasion led by Russian forces, Ukraine had political turmoil which caused

displacement of Ukrainians.

In February 2014, Crimea, a part of Ukraine, was invaded by the Russian Federation. Following

the invasion, a referendum was carried out to conclude whether the Autonomous region of

Crimea should stay in Ukraine or become a Russian federal subject. The results showed that

95% of voters wanted to join Russia, which led to the annexation of Crimea in March 2014. Due

to the fact that the referendum was illegal under Ukrainian law,4 the Ukrainian government and

many UN member states did not recognize the referendum, considering it to be in violation of

international law. Furthermore, a resolution condemning the referendum in the UN Security

Council was vetoed by Russia on the 15th of March, 2014, cementing Russia’s intention to take

over Ukrainian land.

Because of the annexation imposed by Russia in Crimea, around 50,000 IDPs have been

reported since 2021.5 However, the number might be bigger because of Crimeans not

registering with authorities due to fear of reprisals from the Russian government, as it might be

estimated that around 100,000 Crimeans have been forcibly mobilized.

4 Constitution of Ukraine, Article 2.

5 “Denys Savchenko, CrimeaSOS: From Three Volunteers to a Network Working with 73 IDP Initiatives - UNHCR
Ukraine,” UNHCR Ukraine, March 29, 2021, accessed December 3, 2023, https://www.unhcr.org/ua/en/32243-
denys-savchenko-crimeasos.html.
As a consequence of the war, the Ukrainian economy has taken a great hit, which is a factor in

the internal displacements and most likely could cause global consequences. One of Ukraine’s

most important exports is agricultural products that supply the global market with oilseeds and

grains. Since the invasion, Ukrainian ports have been under naval blockade from Russia,

seriously disrupting global supply chains, which in turn could impact global food security, for

example in Afghanistan.6 Locally, the destruction of power and water installations has deprived

80% of the population in Kyiv of running water, prevented heating during winter for millions of

Ukrainians, and caused huge blackouts to happen regularly,7 a definite reason to migrate in

search of security.

The destruction of the environment caused by Russia, specifically in the Kakhovka reservoir, is a

factor to take into consideration when discussing forced migration in Ukraine. Labeled an

“ecocide” by some,8 the mass destruction of the dam consequently brought flooding to 80

neighboring towns and villages,9 resulting in the loss of 58 lives and displacement of

approximately 20,000 people. The destruction has also given concern to the infrastructure of

the affected areas. Due to the flooding, municipal networks and irrigation systems used for

agriculture have been completely ruined, worsening the situation for flood-affected

communities.10
6 Center for Preventive Action, “Instability in Afghanistan,” Global Conflict Tracker, August 2023, accessed
December 3, 2023, https://www.cfr.org/global-conflict-tracker/conflict/war-afghanistan.
7 Amnesty International, “Amnesty International Report 2022/23: The State of the World’s Human Rights,” 380.
8 Eugene Stakhiv and Andriy Demydenko, “Ecocide: The Catastrophic Consequences of Kakhovka Dam
Demolition,” Vox Ukraine, July 19, 2023, accessed December 3, 2023, https://voxukraine.org/en/ecocide-the-
catastrophic-consequences-of-kakhovka-dam-demolition.
9 Miryam Naddaf, “Ukraine Dam Collapse: What Scientists Are Watching,” Nature 618, no. 7965 (June 9, 2023):
440–41, https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-01928-8.
10 World Health Organization: WHO, “WHO Steps up Its Humanitarian Response in Southern Ukraine Following
the Destruction of the Kakhovka Dam,” World Health Organisation, June 13, 2023, accessed December 4, 2023,
A possible solution to counter the human insecurities mentioned above would be to accelerate

peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia. The actors involved are Ukraine, Russia, and

the UN, specifically Secretary-General António Guterres as a ‘middleman'. The UN, as

mandated,11 is there to calm tensions between the actors and act as an ‘honest broker’. This

solution, although general, is possibly the best way of stopping more violations of human rights

and forced migration from happening. However, given the fact that peace negotiations

between Ukraine and Russia have been ongoing since the 24th of February 2022, it is

acceptable to say that it could take a crucial amount of time until a conclusion is made. Because

of this, another solution comes to mind.

This solution would be to call for a ceasefire of Russian destruction of Ukrainian land and stop

the naval blockade caused by Russian forces, once again having the UN alleviate tensions

between the two countries. This solution would be internationally and locally beneficial:

Internationally, it would alleviate food insecurities around the world, as Ukraine would be

physically capable of exporting again. Locally, farmers could produce agricultural products for

the Ukrainian population again, alleviating internal food insecurity.

https://www.who.int/europe/news/item/13-06-2023-who-steps-up-its-humanitarian-response-in-southern-
ukraine-following-the-destruction-of-the-kakhovka-dam.
11 United Nations Charter, Article 1.
 Bibliography

Amnesty International. “Amnesty International Report 2022/23: The State of the

World’s Human Rights.” Amnesty. Amnesty International Ltd, 2023.

https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/europe-and-central-asia/ukraine/report-

ukraine/.

BBC News. “Crimea Referendum: Voters ‘Back Russia Union.’” BBC News, March 16,

2014. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26606097.

Center for Preventive Action. “Instability in Afghanistan.” Global Conflict Tracker, August

2023. Accessed December 3, 2023.

https://www.cfr.org/global-conflict-tracker/conflict/war-afghanistan.
UNHCR Ukraine. “Denys Savchenko, CrimeaSOS: From Three Volunteers to a Network

Working with 73 IDP Initiatives - UNHCR Ukraine,” n.d.

https://www.unhcr.org/ua/en/32243-denys-savchenko-crimeasos.html.

International Organization for Migration (IOM). “Ukraine — Internal Displacement

Report — General Population Survey Round 14 (September – October 2023) |

Displacement Tracking Matrix,” October 2023. https://dtm.iom.int/reports/ukraine-

internal-displacement-report-general-population-survey-round-14-september-october.

Naddaf, Miryam. “Ukraine Dam Collapse: What Scientists Are Watching.” Nature 618,

no. 7965 (June 9, 2023): 440–41. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-01928-8.

Stakhiv, Eugene, and Andriy Demydenko. “Ecocide: The Catastrophic Consequences of

Kakhovka Dam Demolition.” Vox Ukraine, July 19, 2023. Accessed December 3, 2023.

https://voxukraine.org/en/ecocide-the-catastrophic-consequences-of-kakhovka-dam-

demolition.