UKRAINE/RUSSIA: TEACHERS IN RUSSIAN-OCCUPIED TERRITORIES COERCED TO TEACH RUSSIAN CURRICULUM THROUGH THREATS AND VIOLENCE

Amnesty International has been working to document war crimes and other violations of international humanitarian law since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. All of Amnesty International’s outputs published to date can be found here

Ukrainian teachers in Russian-occupied territories have been faced with the agonizing choice between fleeing their homes or being forced to deliver a curriculum that aims to indoctrinate students with Russian state propaganda, Amnesty International said on the eve of World Teacher’s Day. As the Russian authorities have pushed to reopen schools in the occupied territories of Ukraine as part of a broader effort to consolidate their control, they have pursued full cooperation from the remaining Ukrainian teachers, whom they subjected to emotional blackmail, major threats, house searches, and where none of this worked, physical violence. 

“Ukrainian teachers in Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine have been subjected to threats and abuse to force them to work against their will. They face a stark choice: leave everything behind and flee, or become part of an education system that seeks to indoctrinate children, including by justifying Russia’s war of aggression,” said Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International. 

“Staying in the occupied territories and refusing to be a part of the education system is not an option: abductions, threats, and mental and physical abuse await pro-Ukrainian teachers who refuse to show loyalty and cooperation. It is critical that these serious human rights violations are fully documented and investigated by appropriate national authorities and international bodies and experts, and those responsible are brought to account.” 

Staying in the occupied territories and refusing to be a part of the education system is not an option: abductions, threats, and mental and physical abuse await pro-Ukrainian teachers who refuse to show loyalty and cooperation

Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International

Hiding one’s profession in fear of reprisals 

Teachers interviewed by Amnesty International reported that Russian occupying authorities were actively seeking them out, driven by the urgency to reopen schools and staff them with the same teachers. One way to avoid the occupying authorities’ attention was to conceal one’s teaching profession.  

Svitlana, a 38-year-old teacher of Ukrainian language and literature from the Mykolaiv region, said: “I was very afraid they [Russian soldiers] would discover I am a teacher. Even more so because of the subject I teach. Teachers of Ukrainian and of Ukraine’s history were their main enemies. I explained to my children that they must tell anyone who asks that I was a cleaner at school.” 

Similarly, Olha, a 40-year-old history teacher from the Kharkiv region, expressed her terror when Russian soldiers searched her home: “Once the Russians came to search my apartment. I was petrified they would discover the hidden history textbooks, maps, and all the Ukrainian history literature I had. […] I saw Russian soldiers savaging the school. First thing they did was burn all Ukrainian books, state symbols and maps,” she recalls, recounting the fear that her colleagues who joined the reopened school would inform on her.  

Coerced into cooperation 

Following the invasion of Ukraine and the total disruption of civilian life that ensued, the Russian occupying authorities were determined to reopen schools by September 2022 in all newly occupied regions. They started by summoning all remaining teaching staff in occupied areas to meetings in May 2022 and pressured them to restart work.  

Oksana, a head teacher from the Kherson region, told Amnesty International about one such meeting: “They were trying to convince me for three hours. They did not threaten me but were pressuring me psychologically. They told me that the Kherson region was Russian forever, and that Ukraine had abandoned its fight for us. They promised me a good salary and warned me that sooner or later I would have to agree to work for them as I would not survive without an income. There was emotional blackmail too. They told me I would be betraying my children if I refused to work”. 

Those unwilling to cooperate were told to resign. Still, this did not put an end to the coercion. Representatives of Russian installed administrations would visit unexpectedly those teachers who had resigned, sometimes multiple times a week, and threaten them with continuous unemployment, refusal of social support and medical help, and inclusion on so-called “blacklists” of people not allowed to leave the occupied territories. 

Tetiana, a 56-year-old teacher from the Zaporizhzhia region, told Amnesty International that soon after her refusal to return to work, she was approached by one of her former colleagues: “She said that I did not understand the consequences of my refusal, that I would be sent to dig trenches on the front line and that I would be included in the ‘black list’ and would lose my house. I heard rumours being spread around the village of me being a traitor to my students. Some would advise me not to leave my house at all as I might encounter trouble.” 

Tetiana fled to the Ukrainian government-controlled area. Subsequently Russian soldiers raided her house and interrogated her husband about her whereabouts the very same day. 

Threats, beatings, blackmail and abductions 

When promises of high salaries and promotions or emotional blackmail and threats failed to force a teacher to cooperate, the occupying forces resorted to physical violence and abductions. 

They demanded that I come to the event at school and… ‘endorse’ the school’s operation, posing for pictures with the Russian state symbols. They wanted to use these pictures later [for blackmail], as proof of my cooperation and support of the occupation

Oleksandr, a headteacher and geography teacher from the Zaporizhzhya region

Oleksandr, a 44-year-old headteacher and geography teacher from the Zaporizhzhya region, shared a harrowing experience of being abducted and beaten by armed men for refusing to resume work. “Shortly after I refused to cooperate, four armed men came to my house. Two grabbed me and took me to the car. They hit me with their rifles. Two other men stayed behind with my wife. I was taken to a school back yard and hit again. They called me “Fascist” and “Nazi”. They demanded that I come to the event at school and… ‘endorse’ the school’s operation, posing for pictures with the Russian state symbols. They wanted to use these pictures later [for blackmail], as proof of my cooperation and support of the occupation. They threatened me that those pictures would be enough for Ukrainian authorities to prove my support for occupation and put me in jail.” On the morning of the event, Oleksandr received “a reminder call” from one of his abductors. He had no choice but to attend. 

Background 

Amnesty International has been working to document war crimes and other violations of international humanitarian law since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. All of Amnesty International’s outputs published to date can be found here.