Ukrainians who have fled their homes to escape Russia’s invasion have received better treatment than those displaced by other ongoing wars.
Europe’s top human rights group gave this statement on Thursday. It called on member states to support all equally.
The Council of Europe’s anti-racism commission (ECRI) said “admirable efforts” have been made to support Ukrainians. But it said treatment of people from Ukraine had varied. A big factor was ethnicity. For instance, accommodation conditions offered to Roma with Ukrainian citizenship were lower quality than those offered to other Ukrainians in the same situation.
The African Union said it was disturbed by reports African citizens in Ukraine had been refused the right to cross borders.
ECRI added that differences were also observed in the quality of reception centres and services provided to Ukrainians. They were better than those compared with refugees from elsewhere.
Asked if there was more solidarity towards Ukrainians because most were white, ECRI’s chairperson Bertil Cottier said: “When people are more or less like you, it’s always easier.”
ECRI said all displaced people should be offered adequate support. This should be irrespective of their nationality, skin colour or religion.
According to ECRI, anti-Ukrainian hate incidents have been reported but overall the public discourse remained of solidarity and support. Hostile narratives, including by politicians, were more prevalent against people from other parts of the world.
There are around 6 million displaced Ukrainians across Europe.
With inputs from Reuters
