News for members of the EOI

News for members of EOI(3)

Tatiana Moskalkova,

High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation,

Doctor of Law, Doctor of Philosophy, Professor,

Honored Lawyer of the Russian Federation

News for members of the European Ombudsman Institute

for possible use in their work

 

A HUMAN RIGHTS–BASED APPROACH TO THE PROTECTION
OF CITIZENS IN DIFFICULT LIFE SITUATIONS

The European Ombudsman Institute (EOI) is an authoritative European organization founded in 1982 as a scholarly society. Since 1988, it has held the status of an international non-governmental organization and is currently known as the European Ombudsman Institute, bringing together ombudsmen and human rights institutions from European countries.

The High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation (hereinafter also referred to as the High Commissioner, the Federal Russian Ombudsman) became a full member of the European Ombudsman Institute in 2019 and was elected to the EOI Governing Bureau the same year. Since September 2021, the High Commissioner has been a member of the Governing Board of the European Ombudsman Institute.

Alongside the Federal Russian Ombudsman, regional human rights commissioners from the Sverdlovsk and Yaroslavl regions and the Republic of Dagestan also participate in the work of the organization.

Cooperation with the European Ombudsman Institute takes various forms: discussions of pressing human rights issues at EOI meetings and international platforms, exchanges of views on the role of national human rights institutions, and direct assistance to individual citizens.

For example, in 2018, in cooperation with the European Ombudsman Institute, assistance was provided in returning the crew members of the Russian vessel Nord and the Ukrainian vessel YAMK-0041 to their home countries. In 2019, as part of a Russian-Ukrainian prisoner exchange, 35 Russian citizens returned to the Russian Federation.

In February 2019, together with the EOI Vice President N.I.Karpachova,
we visited Ukrainian naval servicemen held at Detention Center No. 2 of the Russian Federal Penitentiary Service (Lefortovo) to assess detention conditions and the quality of medical care provided. As a result of cooperation with the detention facility administration and investigative authorities, three Ukrainian detainees received additional medical treatment in civilian hospitals, including one who underwent surgery funded by the Russian state budget.

During the pandemic, new forms and tools of interaction, experience-sharing, and assistance emerged. We supported one another when families were separated, provided humanitarian assistance to students stranded abroad, and ensured medical aid for those in need under pandemic conditions.

The events of the past decade—especially the COVID-19 pandemic and recent years—have led to a profound transformation of the philosophy underlying the activities of the Federal Russian Ombudsman. Conflicts, mass displacement of civilians, social upheavals, and humanitarian crises required a fundamentally new operational logic from the institution.

The updated model is grounded in humanism, accessibility, and readiness to assist anyone facing hardship. Even in the absence of formal indications of legal violations, such appeals were treated as signals requiring verification, clarification, human support, and coordination with public authorities.

As a result, the institution of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation has effectively evolved into a center for rapid human rights assistance—a state mechanism where individuals could seek help without documents, evidence, or legal formulations, simply by asking: “Help me.”

This approach preserved the legal framework established by the Federal Constitutional Law No. 1-FKZ of 26 February 1997, which defines the High Commissioner as an independent human rights institution tasked with ensuring the protection of human rights and freedoms, while significantly expanding its practical scope.

Human rights work has become more flexible and personalized, yet deeply systemic: on-site inspections, engagement with all levels of government, work with families of missing persons, participation in humanitarian missions, and direct contact with international organizations.

While continuing to fulfill its parliamentary oversight mandate, the Federal Russian Ombudsman increasingly serves as a conduit of humanitarian values and a mediator, assisting individuals in situations where legal mechanisms alone prove insufficient or untimely.

Since the outbreak of the armed conflict, one of the High Commissioner’s priority areas has been the reunification of families separated by war and civilian displacement. Family separation violates the fundamental right to family life, causes profound psychological harm to children, the elderly, and persons with disabilities, and increases the risks of violence and exploitation of minors.

It should be noted that despite the reluctance of European authorities to cooperate and the continuation of divisive rhetoric, the Secretary General of the European Ombudsman Institute, Josef Siegel, carried out a humanitarian act by assisting in the return of two adolescents to their homeland in Luhansk. The minors had previously been taken to Austria by Ukrainian authorities without parental consent. This case demonstrates that Europe still has individuals who prioritize a rational humanitarian approach over politicization of human rights issues, placing ethics, morality, duty, and justice above political preferences when helping people.

In 2025, within the framework of the Istanbul humanitarian agreements, 108 civilians—including adults and minors—arrived in the Russian Federation. After completing necessary procedures, some were immediately reunited with relatives across various regions, while others were placed in temporary accommodation centers in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, the Republic of Karelia, and the Vologda and Smolensk regions. Ukrainian citizens were accommodated in temporary centers of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs in the Astrakhan and Tambov regions. Russian citizens received new passports, while Ukrainian citizens were issued temporary refugee identification documents.

Each arrival underwent comprehensive medical examinations in regional clinics. Where necessary, inpatient treatment and disability status assessments were arranged. Regional authorities facilitated temporary registration, health and social insurance, taxpayer identification numbers, and bank cards, while employment services assisted those seeking work.

Family reunification efforts were conducted individually, taking into account the specific circumstances of each case. In 2025, assistance was provided to reunite 17 individuals with their families, including two minors (5 Russian citizens and 12 Ukrainian citizens), including cases initiated at the request of the Ukrainian side. Examples include the return of an elderly mother to the Smolensk region to reunite with her son; the urgent medical evacuation of a man and his wife to the Nizhny Novgorod region; the departure of a mother and child from Russia to the Kharkiv region of Ukraine; and the reunification of a 9-year-old boy with his mother in the Kyiv region.

On 28 March 2025, the reunification of four families took place at the Novaya Guta border crossing point in the Gomel Region of the Republic of Belarus.

An elderly mother was returned to the Smolensk Region to reunite with her son. A man in need of urgent medical care, together with his spouse, was reunited with his father in the Nizhny Novgorod Region.

From Russia, a mother and her child travelled to Ukraine, overcoming numerous difficulties in order to reunite with the head of their family in the Kharkiv Region. In addition, a nine-year-old boy who had been living with his grandfather in the Moscow Region was reunited with his mother in the Kyiv Region.

Behind these reunifications lies a long journey of endurance, patience, hope, and an unwavering belief in goodness—which, as is well known, ultimately prevails.

A key element of this work is the ongoing contact with the High Commissioner for Human Rights of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, which enables the coordination of humanitarian steps, the exchange of information on separated families, and the organization of reunifications within a framework of bilateral cooperation. The Belarusian side plays a significant role in this process, acting not only as a platform for negotiations and exchanges, but also ensuring the safety of participants, providing legal guarantees, and assisting with transportation. Overall, assistance has been provided for the reunification of 65 individuals with their families, including 47 minors reunited with their parents or legal representatives (10 citizens of the Russian Federation and 37 citizens of Ukraine). In conflict situations, ombudsmen play a unique role in assisting individuals who become hostages to circumstances. Dialogue—even on the most complex issues—has no alternative.

Сommitment to depoliticized, constructive cooperation, independence, and impartiality is a key prerequisite for the effective functioning of the European Ombudsman Institute.

On 24 April 2025, a meeting of the EOI Governing Board was held in Novi Sad, Serbia, where participants adopted a Statement marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. The document emphasizes that the war was one of the greatest tragedies of the twentieth century, leaving an indelible mark on the destinies of European nations and the world. It rejects attempts to revise history through falsification of WWII events and expresses deep concern over the glorification of Nazism and neo-Nazism in any form, affirming the duty to preserve historical truth for present and future generations.

In late October, the EOI General Assembly in Novi Sad approved amendments to the Institute’s Statute, reaffirming its political independence and establishing procedures for excluding members who violate its core principles. Participants noted a decline in adherence to humanistic principles and the spirit of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights within European political circles, stressing the need to return to foundational values of international human rights cooperation.

Restoring the authority of human rights and freedoms as fundamental values—counterbalancing political pressure among states—is both expected and demanded by the modern world.

 

In this context, developing human rights protection standards within such an authoritative organization as the Eurasian Ombudsman Institute will provide a foundation for the work of many international ombudsman bodies.

In the emerging multipolar world, a new type of human rights diplomacy is gaining importance—one that rejects dogmatism, moralizing, arrogance, and didacticism. Every country has its challenges, but every country also has successful experiences in addressing human rights issues; these experiences should form the basis of respectful cooperation and dialogue.

The conceptual reformatting of the human rights sphere rests on a strong moral and spiritual foundation and its philosophical and legal justification. Central to this is the concept of justice. Following Protagoras’ principle that “Man is the measure of all things” and the ancient symbol of scales as a measure of justice, justice should serve as the benchmark ensuring that human rights, as the highest value, outweigh injustice and lawlessness.

The empirical experience of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation, combined with exchanges with international partners, allows us to propose key principles for a new international human rights system: respect for civilizational diversity; expansion of bilateral cooperation; development of regional human rights systems; openness to engagement; political neutrality of human rights work; broad representation and collective decision-making; readiness for compromise; equality and mutual respect among states; and accessible, barrier-free human rights mechanisms.

I am confident that the European Ombudsman Institute, now recognized as a key platform for truth, mutual understanding, and humanism in international human rights efforts, will become a flagship for reviving and promoting the fundamental values enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.