Ukrainians urge government to ban Russian prisoners of war from making phone calls: petition has gathered enough votes

A petition demanding the suspension of the right of Russian prisoners of war (POWs) to make telephone calls has received the required number of votes. Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers must now consider it.

Source: petition on the official website of Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers

Details: The author of the petition, Inna Turova, stated that relatives of Ukrainian defenders who are currently held in various POW camps in Russia have no information about their health or whereabouts.

"Despite many months of requests and demands, we cannot hear the voice of our defenders to make sure they are really alive. Only a few of us have been blessed with such happiness. We write letters to our husbands, sons and brothers, but we don't even know if they reach them. The ICRC is as silent about this as the Russians are."

At the same time, the author of the petition noted that Russian soldiers who were captured had the opportunity to write and call their relatives for a long time.

Quote: "Our enemies who have been captured have long since [had the opportunity] to write and call their families. And the relatives of our enemies live in peace, knowing about the safe fate of those who came to kill us. They know that Ukraine has enshrined in a government document the right of Russian prisoners of war to have telephone conversations, although this is absolutely not envisaged by the 1949 Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, which guarantees only correspondence."

Details: The signatories believe that the treatment of Russian POWS "must have reasonable limits". Therefore, they demand that the right of Russian POWs to make telephone calls be suspended until Russia provides such an opportunity for Ukrainian defenders.

"The further possibility for enemy POWs to contact their relatives should depend on the Russian policy towards our defenders."

The petition has gained over 25,000 votes since 22 March. The Cabinet of Ministers must now consider it and provide a response.

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