More than 52 thousand Ukrainians have gone missing since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. These are the results of a new research from open data by Texty.org.ua.
Open Data is the basis for important research. For example, thanks to open data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Texty.org.ua team analyzed the trends of disappearances during the full-scale invasion.
It is thanks to open data that algorithms for searching and notifying wanted persons are created:
- find Ukrainians abroad or in captivity through international and humanitarian missions;
- government agencies, non-governmental organizations and the public cooperate;
- cases of fraud with documents of missing persons are prevented and detected;
- crimes of the occupiers are recorded.
Missing persons
Texty.org.ua writes that information from the Register of Persons Missing in Special Circumstances is not public. However, it is contained in the Ministry of Internal Affairs database “Rozshuk” in a format accessible for analysis. The sample includes information on all persons reported missing throughout Ukraine, even in regions remote from the hostilities.
Analyzing the database, the publication recorded that since February 2022, more than 52 thousand cases of missing persons have been registered in it.
“Information from the Ministry of Internal Affairs on missing persons may not be exhaustive, as relatives do not always apply to official authorities to search for missing persons if they were in the occupied territories,” the study says.
Main categories of missing persons:
- The military is one of the largest categories in the Wanted database. This is evidenced, in particular, by the analysis of photos and the dynamics of its content. Military personnel can be killed or captured, and if the fact of death or capture cannot be confirmed, information about them is entered into the database as persons missing under special circumstances.
- Data on people from the occupied territories who have been abducted, taken or deported to Russia are also entered into the database “Rozskunok” if the National Police of Ukraine receives a corresponding application.
- A person can leave the occupied territories on their own and stay in Russia or one of the Western countries. Ukraine may consider the person missing, although the person is actually in another country without crossing the Ukrainian border.
- Russia does not always confirm the fact that a person is alive and in captivity, or that a civilian has been arrested for certain reasons. This is often the case with the terrorist organizations “LPR”, “DPR” and the Russian occupation forces, which detain a person and “put him/her in the basement” and do not provide any information about it even to humanitarian organizations.
The data in the Register of Persons Missing under Special Circumstances is constantly updated. The Commissioner for Persons Missing in Special Circumstances, Artur Dobroserdov, explains that a person is deprived of this status only if his or her location is established on the territory of Ukraine or European states. Even if Russia confirms the fact that such a person is on its territory, the data about him or her remains in the Register.
What to do
If you have a missing loved one and you cannot locate them on your own, be sure to contact law enforcement:
- National Police – submit an application to the nearest unit or call 102
- Commissioner for Persons Missing in Special Circumstances – call 1698
- Ministry of Internal Affairs – fill out the form on the website (http://wanted.mvs.gov.ua/searchbezvesti)
- National Information Bureau – call the hotline 1648 or write to the chatbot in Telegram (https://t.me/nib_uncp_bot) or Viber
(https://chats.viber.com/nib_uncp_bot)
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