Kyiv demands Red Cross visit notorious prison

BBC News.com ^ | October 14, 2022 | Oliver Slow

[Timber Rattler]

Ukrainian officials have urged the Red Cross to conduct a mission to a notorious prison camp in the Russia-occupied east of the country.

The Ukrainian president's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, demanded that the Red Cross (ICRC) visit the Olenivka prison in Donetsk within three days.

"We just can't waste more time. Human lives are at stake," he tweeted.

Last month, the Red Cross tried to secure access to the camp, but said it was denied by Russian authorities.

In a statement on Friday, the ICRC said: "We want to stress that our teams are ready on the ground - and have been ready for months - to visit the Olenivka penal facility and any other location where POWs are held.

"However, beyond being granted access by high levels of authority, this requires practical arrangements to materialize on the ground. We cannot access by force a place of detention or internment where we have not been admitted."

The Olenivka prison has been under the control of Russian-backed authorities in Donetsk since 2014, and conditions are said to be extremely poor.

[Timber Rattler]

Apparently word is out that the Russians are doing some awful things to Ukrainian POWs and getting ready to do even worse when they lose control of the territory.

[McGruff]

There Zelensky goes demanding things again. Sounding like a spoiled child.

[Krosan]

I have very little hope for the big NGO-s doing the right thing. They have been staffed with people for a while, whose only essential qualification is hating the western world and carrying water for our enemies.

It’s a travesty, really. They’re all trying to help Russia while hiding the dirty things that Russians do.

Small situation-specific NGO-s are still good and I know my donations go to the right place.

[Timber Rattler]

Since Ukraine and Russia are both signatories to the Geneva Convention, does Zelensky not have the right to demand that the Red Cross and Russia live up to their obligations concerning POWs?

[Waverunner]

I am sure things are not good in the “Notorious prison”.
Military troops are not prison guards.
As a journalist, my questions would be
1. Was the prison “ notorious” when the separists Ukrainians ran it during the period 2014-2022?
2. Had the red Cross visited it regularly during the period 2014 -2022?
3. If so, is the report available?
4. What was the prisons reputation prior to 2014?

Using a word like notorious with no history or supporting facts fringes on propaganda. The BBC is a government funded news organization and thus has a higher bar to prove it’s statement. Much like NPR,VOA, or even now the Washington Post, the editorial boards are not composed of classic journalists ( if there are any left on the planet).

Journalism is about reporting all the facts, to give as full an accounting as possible so people may make informed decisions.

[cranked]

Memo: Those Hollywood prop managers and green screen masters hired by ZelesnkyyIdiot need to be paid more money.

[dforest]

He is just throwing soggy mud and hoping it sticks.