Russian occupation authorities in Kherson Oblast force teenagers into labour camps

Ukraine's National Resistance Center (NRC) has reported that the Russian occupation authorities in the city of Henichesk, Kherson Oblast, use a so-called "juvenile affairs commission" to pressure teenagers from "vulnerable" families.

Source: Ukraine's National Resistance Center

Details: Under the guise of patriotic education, teenagers are compelled to perform hard labour in a camp or semi-camp regime.

The NRC said that at the latest meeting of the "commission", the Russians claimed that there is a "need to involve teenagers in volunteering".

Quote: "This means forced labour: children are made to clean streets, plant trees and take part in military-propaganda events, appearing in staged material for Russian media.

Teenagers are coerced into 'labour camps', where they must 'work off' their status as 'troubled'. Refusal is not an option because families face constant pressure and new administrative cases. This is not care but coercion, humiliation and the exploitation of minors to legitimise the occupation authorities."

More details: Particular pressure is reported on boys aged 16-17, who are blackmailed with being placed on military registers. Any "wrong" behaviour can be used to fast-track them for conscription training.

Quote: "Henichesk is a horrific example of how Russia turns social policy into a tool of repression and children into hostages and a propaganda resource under the occupation flag."

Background: Earlier, Ukraine had identified about 400 locations in Russia where abducted Ukrainian children are being held.

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