06-04-2011

Supreme Council strengthened migration policy approving the amendments to the laws that regulate the status of the foreigners staying on the territory of Ukraine. Besides, the number of motives have enlarged that permit to deport a foreigner from the country as well as increased fines for violation of the registration terms. On the experts’ opinion, the amendments do not correspond to international standards.  

Supreme Council made changes in the law “About legal status of foreigners and persons without citizenship”, Crime Code and Code about administrative deliquesces.  Some amendments were proposed by the President Viktor Yanukovych and taken into consideration by the Parliament.  The majority of changes intensify the rules on entrance and stay of foreigners on the territory of Ukraine. Now persons who cannot financially secure themselves with stay in Ukraine will not be able to enter it. According the same considerations foreigners who already live in Ukraine can be deported. 

The list of reasons has also expanded out of which a citizen from another country arriving for work or studies can be deported.  It will happen, for example, if a foreigner arriving for work or studies do not appear at university or place of work in a specified time. Also the term is shortened during which he/she is obliged to leave Ukraine after adoption of decision on deportation. Before this term comprised 30 days, so now it is 5. At the same time foreigner cannot be sent back to the country where he can be subjected to tortures or his life can be threatened with danger. 

Sanctions for illegal transportation of the foreigners through the state budget of Ukraine have also been intensified. Before, the punishments for such actions were in the form of imprisonment for the period of 2 to 5 years, so now this term is from 3 to 8 years. For the violation of the rules and terms of registration a fine is now foreseen in the sum of 200 to 500 tax-exempt minimums (from 3400 to 8500 UAH), before it was 20-40 tax-exempt minimums (340-680 UAH).

All-Ukrainian Association (AUA) “Svoboda”, the political programme of which contains an item about naturalized Ukrainians’ deprivation of citizenship in case if they commit a crime, regards the accepted measures to be insufficient. “How can you speak about some intensification as we still have open borders with Russia and Belarus, where the main flow of migrants come from?” – declared the deputy of the head of AUA “Svoboda”, Andriy Mokhnyk. He thinks that the main problem in the field of migration legislation is “bribes in the system of MOI and closeness of the system of Ukrainian citizenship granting”.

Press-secretary of UNHCR in Ukraine Maksym Butkevych expressed his regret that Ukrainian side did not take into account recommendations of UNHCR concerning the specified document. “Law in its present form does not approach Ukraine neither to European nor to international standards in the field of protection of human rights but it rather creates a danger to violation of human rights who arrive to Ukraine in the search of asylum”, – he declared.  

Iryna Fedorovych, coordinator of project “No borders” of organization “Centre Social Action” keeps the same opinion. According to her words, law can be used aiming at “intimidation and harassment of foreigners’ rights”.”Power should not shake air showing that it solves the problems of migrants well, but learn international experience on this issue”, – I.Fedorovych regards.

Source: http://helsinki.org.ua/index.php?id=1302087173

05-04-2011

Administration of SSU in the region disclosed and stopped the activity of organized criminal grouping which adjusted smuggling of illegal migrants from Southeast Asia through the state border of Ukraine. This year in the end of March the workers of SSU detected nine citizens of Afghanistan without any documents identifying them in a private house in the village of Esen, Uzhgorod district. Three members of the grouping participating in the transportation of “illegal migrants” were arrested – two residents of Transcarpathia and one inhabitant of Lviv.

The Investigation Department of SSU in Transcarpathian region filed a criminal suit concerning the members of the grouping in accordance with the signs of the crime foreseen by Part 2 Article 332 (illegal smuggling of persons through the state border of Ukraine) of Criminal Code of Ukraine. This Article specifies imprisonment for the period of 3 to seven years.

Source: http://www.ua-reporter.com/novosti/102360

01-04-2011

Three potential illegal migrants – citizens of Algeria – were rejected in entering the territory of Ukraine. Foreigners flied into the airport “Boryspil” by transit through Rome. They called themselves as representatives of Algerian Court Corpus on Kickboxing who were going to Lviv to participate in the seminar on single combat. They presented a printed paper from Internet about announcement of this action as confirmation of their words. However, border guards established that this seminar finished already five days ago.The foreigners will be returned by reverse flight to a country of departure.

Source: http://pvu.gov.ua/control/uk/publish/article?art_id=109032&cat_id=48886

31-03-2011

The officers of State Border Service of Ukraine detected four citizens of Turkey in the airport “Boryspil”– three men and a woman – who were going to fly out of the country to European Union having forged documents. The foreigners arrived by flight from Istanbul with their real passports. In Ukraine, transit passengers planed to get on the plane to Copenhagen and Hamburg with forged special passport of the citizens of Turkey.

As violators informed each of them paid €1 000 to “benefactors” who provided them with forged passport and tickets to Denmark or Germany with transfer in Kyiv.

Source: http://pvu.gov.ua/control/uk/publish/article?art_id=108955&cat_id=48886

31-03-2011

In the end of March Ternopil law enforcement agents detained five illegal migrants.

At about 10 p.m. the car was moving to the western border, stopped at the petrol station nearby the district centre Zbarazh, Ternopil region. While the workers of auto service were serving the car driven by 25-year-old foreigner unknown persons climbed out of the truck and ran in unknown direction.

The law enforcement agents are establishing now what made illegal migrant to act in such a way. Probably the conditions of several-day trip were unbearable, lack of food or some other reasons. There was pregnant woman among the detainees who had to give a birth to a baby soon. Probably just she who did not bear the durable trip and needed medical aid. Anyway, illegal migrants cut out the awning in the truck and ran in different directions.

Ternopil policemen learnt about the escape of the illegal migrants. They detained two runaways at the highway where foreigners intended to stop passing transport. Three more persons connected with human traffic were found in the forest at night by the workers of Subdivisions on Fight against Crimes.

The foreigners did not have any documents identifying them.

25-year-old driver of the car transporting illegal migrants crossed custom border of Ukraine in the area of check point “Porubne” in Chernivtsi region. Conditions of people’s transporting are impressive. The woman and four men stayed in a small specially equipped hiding place where they had meals and slept at least four days.

Vehicle was taken by policemen to terminal of customs in Ternopil. Administrative protocols were drawn up concerning illegal migrants.

Source:http://www.mvs.gov.ua/mvs/control/main/uk/search/img/common/uk/publish/article/515397?search_param=%D0%BD%D0%B5%D0%BB%D0%B5%D0%B3%D0%B0%D0%BB%D0%B8&searchForum=1&searchDocarch=1&searchPublishing=1

28-03-2011

Action against racism in Kyiv

A group of seven young persons attacked Pakistani and Hindu on March 24 at 9 p.m. in the very centre of Kyiv nearby the building of National Conservatory named after Chaikovskyi. Assailants were beating the foreigners silently not asking for money or valuable things. According to the words of eyewitness, policemen being 50 m before the incidents did not hurry to help in spite of cries. Pakistani Salman Ahmed arriving to Kyiv for international conference on ecologic standards a day before has such injures as broken nose and cut lip. Indian businessman Zuber Chogla’s nose is also broken and there is haematoma under the eye who has been engaged in affairs between Ukraine and India in the course of ten years. They stayed in the hospital till March 28.

The incident happened when the group of foreigners were walking along the market place and came up to the conservatory in order to take some photos. The suffered men, Ahmed and Chogl dropped behind their friends for some meters when they were attacked from the back. Ahmed said that he fainted and came to himself in the pool of blood.

“They did not demand anything from us, they said nothing and just beat us, – he recollects the details of ill-fated evening. – I do not have any explanation as the colour of the skin and shape of eyes.”

The criminal case as to this incident was opened because abused persons refused to go for identification of suspected persons. “We were attacked from the back, it was dark and we did not almost see these guys”, – Hindy Chogl stated.

Investigative officer refusing to tell his name as he does not have a right to give comments says that such incidents take place every day.

Ukraine does not have accurate statistics neither of the number of crimes committed on race basis nor complaints about racist attacks as well as the number of complaints according to which court decision was made.   In answer to inquiry of Amnesty International about racist crimes in November 2009 Ministry of Interior declared that only 2 cases of such a kind were registered in the course of 9 months of 2009.

However, Heza Macgill, investigator from Amnesty International — international movements supporting the stopping of gross violations of human rights is sure that the number of these crimes was much bigger.

«Besides, there is no adequate statistics in Ukraine, majority of the foreigners either do not wish to retell about racist attacks not to have problems with police in future as they do not have documents permitting them to stay legally in the country or they do not believe that police will help”, – says Macgill.

Macgill remembered the incident of the year 2007 when black-skinned student from Zaire was attacked by the group of football funs. Police car slowed down passing by seeing the beaten student but did not take any evidences advising him to stay at home. Majority of foreigners from the risk group [those having different colour of skin and shape of eyes] do not go out of the house in the evening and avoid the potentially dangerous places…

Source: http://www.kyivpost.ua/ukraine/article/v-centre-kieva-izbili-pakistanca-i-indusa-miliciya-bezdejstvovala.html

28-03-2011

Five Somalis (four men and a woman) hiding 2 km from the line of the state border were detained by the border guards of Chop Detachment at night. Uninvited guests were managed to find in the dark with the help of thermal imager by detail of department “Velykyi Bereznyi”. Detained foreigners did not have any documents calling themselves the citizens of Somalia being of the age from 22 to 26 years old. Africans were delivered to border subdivision. They told that they were moving towards the border being accompanied by the men in masks. After many hours of walking the guides ordered illegal migrants to hide and wait for them, however they did not come back. But Somalis were found by the law enforcement agents. The personalities of detainees and also the circumstances of illegal trip are now under investigation.

Source: http://ua-reporter.com/novosti/102085

25-03-2011

Two women were detained by the border guards in the airport of Kharkov during the check in for the flight to Istanbul. They presented the documents of citizens of Moldova for passport control, however in the course of deep investigation two more passports for travelling abroad of Russian Federation were found being partially forged. 59 and 27-year-old ladies explained that they had bought these forged documents in order to get to Turkey, because last time competent bodies of this country made a mark on entrance ban for the period of 5 years.

At the present moment detected passports are confiscated and representatives of Airline Company refuse to transport the citizens of Moldova.

Source: http://pvu.gov.ua/control/uk/publish/article?art_id=108699&cat_id=48886

25-03-2011

The officers of Department of border Police of Slovakia detained on Wednesday, March 23 at Slovakian-Ukrainian border in the area of the district Snyna nearby the village Novа Sedlica two children – illegal migrants. One of them was sent to hospital in Snyna as to his health state.  Under age illegal migrant’s illness was diagnosed as extreme emaciation and dehydration…

The boys will be placed at the orphan asylum – was informed by Agnesa Kopernytska, Slovak Mass Media press-secretary of Border Police Administration in Sobrantce. An investigation takes place on the circumstance of the border cross.

At such an intensive transfer of illegal migrants through the border in Transcarpathia into European Union only one question arises – do we really have border service, SSU and MOI. As the matter is about massive illegal transfer of children through the border with evident danger for their life…

Source: http://ua-reporter.com/novosti/102001

22-03-2011

Illegal migrant, 20-year-old citizen of Uzbekistan, was detected on the board of Turkish vessel arriving to the port “Yuzhnyi”(Odessa) from Italian one “Ravena”. The officers of SBSU informed the representatives of agents firm about the passenger “stowaway”. The border guards used measures watching him not to run out of the ship. During the talk with the Uzbek, Ukrainian law enforcement agents established that he got on the boar on February 14 at night and was hiding in the false-pipe. He hoped for the boat under the Turkish flag would come into one of the ports of that country soon where Uzbek planned to be employed. At night after two nights after entering the vessel “stowaway” came out of hide in the search of water and food, and at that very moment he was noticed by the members of the vessel crew.

On the way from Russian port “Novorosiysk” to Italy the vessel stopped for outer raid of the port Istanbul. A lawyer from Embassy of Uzbekistan in Turkey arrived to illegal migrant and issued him a document for return to Uzbekistan. Till that moment the migrant had only the Xerox copy of the passport, the rest of the documents he lost.

The competent bodies in Italian port refused him in permission to land. During the period when the vessel was at Ukrainian port illegal migrant was under constant control of the border guards. At the present moment the voyage of the Uzbek goes on. Today the vessel started from the port “Yuzhnyi”.

Source: http://pvu.gov.ua/control/uk/publish/article?art_id=108447&cat_id=48886