A worrying article in The Independent at the weekend was brought to our attention by several VB readers.
As many of you will already be aware, since 1991 a charity called Chernobyl Children’s Life Line (CCLL) have been bringing children from the radioactive zone to the UK each year.
The Isle of Wight has been fortunate enough to host much-needed breaks from affected areas for the young people, but changes to Visa restrictions has meant that many children are now being denied access to the UK.
Shockingly, ten of the 17 young people due to come to the Island earlier this year were told the night before, that they’d not be making the trip afterall.
Respite offer huge benefits
It’s reported that the month long respite from radioactive affected areas could help to improve life expectancy of the children, who are more prone to terminal illness and medical complications.
One particular story that struck a chord with us was that of ten year old Vladislav.
Vladislav Shpachuk, 10, who lives just 110km from the site of Chernobyl, was one of those told his holiday was cancelled. He suffers constant headaches and his family cannot afford to take their doctor’s advice of spending a month a year out of the contaminated zone. His mother, Svitlana Shpachuk, said that the night before he was due to leave, “he was there, sitting on his suitcase. He told us he would wait until the early morning for the minibus to collect him to the airport. Then we got the phone call to say his visa hadn’t come through. We were terrified of how to tell him, and when we did, he was crying and asking ‘why me?'”
Child safety
Barbara Woodward, head of international group of the UK Border Agency told The Independent “This is not about red tape, this is about safeguarding vulnerable children. As part of this we seek assurance that parental consent has been granted and that appropriate reception arrangements are in place.”
But all host families are CRB checked by the charities involved, who say that all records are made available to the UKBA.
It seems unclear as to why the Visas are being denied, or why they are now costing £70 per child when they used to be free.
Read the Independent article in full
Chernobyl Children’s Life Line
Image: Timm Suess under CC BY-SA 2.0
