Save the Children "War Has a Negative Impact on Children"
"To Shelter in 47 Seconds"...Sharing Stories of Current Teachers and Children
June 24 marks the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The international child rights NGO Save the Children stated, "Since the invasion, it has been reported that 4 children are killed or injured every day, and the actual number of casualties may be higher," adding, "Living children are also experiencing extreme mental stress."
The appearance of Ukrainian children in an underground bunker avoiding the war. [Photo by Save the Children]
According to the report titled 'A Heavy Toll' published by Save the Children on the 21st (local time), ongoing violence, displacement away from family and friends, and lack of access to education cause psychological distress to children.
The report addresses the adverse effects of the war on Ukrainian children, pointing out that they are exposed to the worst crimes such as torture, sexual violence, and murder. It also revealed that although remote classes are being conducted in various regions of Ukraine, fewer than one in three children have mobile devices to attend these classes.
Save the Children shared stories from local teachers and children in Ukraine, emphasizing the need to provide psychological support to local children and to protect civilian facilities such as schools, homes, and hospitals from the war.
Sophia (a pseudonym), a 16-year-old girl from Kharkiv in eastern Ukraine, has been displaced since the outbreak of the war and currently lives with her grandmother in Zakarpattia in the western region. Although this area is considered relatively safe, when air raid alarms sound, they must go down to a dark and cold basement, and if the alarm sounds while at school, they must quickly find a shelter.
Sophia said, "It takes 5 minutes to run to the bunker and 15 minutes on foot. When there is a power outage, the siren does not sound, so if a missile strike occurs in such a situation, you must reach the shelter within at least 47 seconds." In fact, since the war began, Ukrainian children have spent an average of 920 hours in underground bunkers per person.
Teachers on site also express concern that "children are under great stress." Through an interview with Svitlana (a pseudonym), a teacher working at a kindergarten on the outskirts of Dnipro, Save the Children reported, "When the air raid alarm sounds, children must be evacuated, and to minimize stress during this time, we try to make it feel like play."
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