Published on March 3, 2022
Czech Ombudsman Assured Ukrainian Consuls and Ukrainian Ombudswoman of his Active Assistance and Support to Ukrainians Affected by the War
In letters to the Ukrainian ombudsman and both Ukrainian consuls in Brno Czech public deffender of rights strongly condemned the invasion of their country by the Russian Federation. At the same time, he assured them that he would help Ukrainians in the Czech Republic to the maximum extent possible and provide them with support in their difficult situation.
"We will endeavour to resolve all suggestions and questions related to the ongoing war conflict in Ukraine with the appropriate urgency and in the shortest possible time so that aid can reach specific people as soon as possible," Ombudsman Stanislav Křeček wrote to the Ukrainian consuls. Since the first day of the war, Ukrainians have been contacting the ombudsman with questions about their stay in the Czech Republic. Lawyers have been helping them to navigate through the wealth of rapidly changing information.
The Ombudsman's Office has added a bar in Ukrainian to the header of its website with a reminder of important links to, for example, the websites of ministries and authorities. It also plans to prepare several information leaflets for Ukrainians on various life situations.
The Ombudsman also responded to a request from the Asylum and Migration Policy Department of the Ministry of the Interior for volunteers to assist with the registration of incoming Ukrainians at contact points. "We will also allow our staff to assist in registering Ukrainians at the contact centres themselves, even during their normal working hours. At the moment, it is crucial that families fleeing the war do not have to spend long hours in queues because of administration," said Pavel Pořízek, head of the Ombudsman's Office.
The Office's lawyers also approached universities in Moravia and asked them to distribute the Interior Ministry's questionnaire for registering students as volunteers.