Captured documents reveal Russian plans to “re-educate” Ukrainian children
Izyum after Russian strikes (Photo:Command of the Air Assault Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine/Facebook)
Ukrainian law enforcement officers found secret documents abandoned by Russian forces during their retreat from Kharkiv Oblast, which outline plans to “develop” Russian education in the region, press service of the Office of the Prosecutor-General of Ukraine reported on Nov. 8.
A folder with documents was found in the so-called education department, established by Russian occupation “authorities” in Izyum, Kharkiv Oblast. Among the findings are “documents from a meeting on the topic of the support and development of educational systems in Kharkiv Oblast”, with apparent supervision from Russia’s Education Ministry.
According to the report, Russia was planning to issue Ukrainian students with Russian high school diplomas. One of the documents says that “the Ministry of Education should speed up the printing of certificates in (Russia’s) Belgorod Oblast.” Russia was also planning to bring teachers from Russia to Kharkiv Oblast, in particular “historians and writers”, and organize “patriotic education”. Another document states that Ukrainian children “should be guided exclusively by higher educational institutions of Belgorod Oblast.”
The occupation “administration” wanted to send “one or two gifted children” to a camp in occupied Crimea, and students in grades 7-9 to Belgorod. They were also planning to hold propaganda events billed as “recreational.”
The Office of the Prosecutor-General added that they would use the evidence to prosecute collaborators and investigate crimes of Russian education officials.
At the end of October, Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin said Ukrainian law enforcement officers had established the facts that more than 9,000 Ukrainian children were kidnapped and transported to Russia.
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