Chernihiv Chernobyl survivors fight for their rights

Chernihiv disabled Chernobyl residents suffering from thyroid cancer continue to fight for their rights. Despite the court rulings, local officials are still in no hurry to implement them.

Let us recall the essence of the case.

This category of citizens is disabled Chernobyl residents who, as children, received radiation iodine to their thyroid gland as a result of the Chernobyl accident.

According to the order of the Ministry of Chernobyl of Ukraine No. 48 dated March 22, 1994, these citizens were classified as “victims” of the consequences of the Chernobyl disaster. And after reaching adulthood, they developed thyroid cancer and received the status of “victims”.

In 2010, the departments and administrations subordinate to the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine were instructed to look for ways to save money.

In December 2010, the Main Department of Labor and Social Protection of the Population of the Chernihiv Regional State Administration (GUPSZN) sent letters to the municipal medical and preventive institution “Chernihiv Regional Center for Radiation Protection and Population Rehabilitation” and the municipal medical institution “Regional Center for Medical and Social Expertise (hereinafter referred to as the Regional Special Center for Medical and Social Expertise and Regional MSEC No. 1). In these letters, the heads of the State Pension Fund of Ukraine in Chernihiv Oblast asked the chief doctors of the aforementioned institutions to cancel their previous expert conclusions on the causal relationship with diseases associated with the impact of the Chernobyl accident and to change the disability groups associated with the impact of the Chernobyl accident to a general disease for more than 70 residents of the Chernihiv region. The heads of these medical commissions, without examining the patients and studying the medical records, agreed to this.

From January 2011 to May 2012, the above-mentioned commissions, without having legal grounds, canceled their previous decisions at their meetings and sent them to the pension fund. These circumstances gave grounds to the Department of the Pension Fund of Ukraine in Chernihiv Oblast and its subordinate structures not to pay pensions for this category of citizens in full, and the State Pension Fund of Ukraine – to take away benefits from these Chernobyl survivors. And later, illegally withdrawing from them the certificates of persons who suffered as a result of the Chernobyl disaster, category 1.

This situation forced Chernobyl residents to turn to the country’s leadership, sectoral ministries and courts in search of justice.

The Ministry of Health of Ukraine and various judicial authorities recognized the actions of Chernihiv regional officials as illegal.

In particular, this is stated in the court decisions (according to – ):

– “The Chernihiv regional special commission of the LCC did not have the right to cancel its previous expert opinions” – cases: ; ; ; ; ; ; ;

– “To recognize the actions of the “Chernobyl” commission under the Chernihiv Regional State Administration as illegal” – cases: ; ; ; ; ;

– “To declare unlawful and cancel the order of the head of the Chernihiv Regional State Administration dated 18.05.2006 No. 220 on the creation of a regional commission to establish the status of citizens affected by the Chernobyl disaster” case

equal” – cases: ; .

Their verdict is unequivocal: the illness and disability groups of these citizens are directly related to the impact of the accident at the Chernobyl NPP. Therefore, citizens of this category have a legal right to benefits provided for in Article 20 of the Law of Ukraine “On the Status and Social Protection of Citizens Affected by the Chernobyl Disaster”.

According to human rights activist Igor Ushkevych, despite all the court decisions, local officials are still in no hurry to implement them. The Chernobyl survivors have not yet received their certificates or inserts, nor have their benefits been restored. Therefore, in order to achieve a final solution to the problem, the Chernobyl survivors and human rights activists intend to continue fighting at all levels to resolve this problem, and at the same time to hold the negligent officials responsible for this situation accountable. After all, for some reason, such a conflict on such a scale has not arisen in any other region of Ukraine except Chernihiv.