As talks regarding the Russia-Ukraine war are set to get underway, one Irish charity has said Ukrainian victims of war are 'afraid of being forgotten.'
With the war ongoing, and ensuing humanitarian crises in Ukraine, Irish based charity One 4 Humanity aids victims of armed conflict, with particular focus on disabled children in the country.
Ex-Munster rugby player Shane Leahy is co-founder of the charity. He joined The Pat Kenny Show on Wednesday, having just returned from the city of Kherson.
Ukraine
“There wasn’t a half an hour that went by that there wasn’t a series of shelling. [Russia are] intensifying activities, not in any way reducing them.
“It’s indiscriminate shelling. It is all civilian population in Kherson.
“There's a significant number of children still there.”
Mr. Leahy brought in pictures to the studio that some of the children from Kherson had painted, explaining how the children are currently in a nuclear basement facility - a Cold War relic.
“Life has to go on; it's been going on for three and a half years, [the war] has become a part of their life.
“[The facility] is where they’re safe, unfortunately, and there are very few places in Kherson that are safe.
“You’d be dispirited because of the war itself but it's incredibly uplifting to be able to help people in circumstances like that and they’re incredibly appreciative of it.
“I think everybody wants an end to the war at this point. I think they would accept some land loss for peace, and it's a horrific price that they’re paying over there—so the sooner it ends, the better.”
Dmytrivka village, Kyiv region, Ukraine - April 13, 2022: Destroyed private houses during active hostilities in Ukraine.He believes Ukrainians are worried about the conflict falling away from the front pages.
"They’re worried about being left behind, particularly as talks go on elsewhere excluding them,
“As it moves down the news items, it gets harder to secure even weapons or medicines or anything for the frontlines."
Dr Lyudmyla Zakharchenko has been living and working in Ireland for over 25 years, and told Pat that she is 'constant fear and anxiety'
“In the last few years, we have developed the trauma project with UCD to train up medics and frontline responders [in Ukraine].
"We’ve had eight visits to Ukraine so far, basically twice a year and so far we’ve trained up to 600 medics, paramedics and frontline responders and they train up to 25,000 others over there."
Professor Chris Fitzpatrick expained how the project has helped civilians receive training for when they are outside a hospital environment.
“The request came in from Ukrainian colleagues shortly after the war, [asking if we] could set up a programme that focused on the management of severe haemorrhage and provide both the kit and the training to undertake this technique.
He explained the technological advancements that they undertook to maximise their assistance, developing a material that is similar to the resistance of bones that could be transported to Ukraine.
“In order to enhance the teaching capabilities, we developed a simulation programme in UCD—we 3D print the bones that will be used by the paramedics, and we bring them out to Ukraine.”
Mr. Fitzpatrick described the people that they came across on their project, commending their resilience.
“We have met such skilled individuals; the vast majority probably had no medical experience before the war, coming from a variety of backgrounds like teachers, barmen, receptionists”
“And suddenly they find themselves in these situations, and they’re out on the front line—they learn really quickly.
“No one complains about the geopolitical situation; they just focus on the here and now."
Written by Cara McHugh
