For more than 12 years, the Tracing Service of the Red Cross Society of Ukraine has been helping people not to lose hope. The search network works in close cooperation with its colleagues from forty countries around the world. Irina TSARYUK, head of the Tracing Service of the Red Cross Society of Ukraine, tells about how to seek help.
- Irina Yuryevna, "Zagranitsa" often receives letters in which readers ask whether it is possible to find relatives who have gone missing for any reason, and who can help them with this?
- The Tracing Service of the Red Cross Society of Ukraine is the only service in our country that free of charge searches for and determines the fate of relatives who lost contact during the Second World War, other military conflicts, natural disasters and emergency situations. We also search for those who were repressed and for children who ended up in orphanages. These can be quite recent events - for example, those who lost loved ones during the war in Afghanistan or Chechnya turn to us. At the request of Ukrainians, we search for those who have gone missing abroad. Since all archival information in Ukraine is open, our citizens can contact the archives independently.
- Do you search only for family members?
- Initially, indeed, close relatives of the first degree of kinship were searched for. But time passes, and now we search for a wide variety of relatives. We also accept applications from those who are looking for simply people close to them, for example, a fiancé or fiancée lost during hostilities or forced labor in Germany. Not so long ago we were able to help in a rather unusual case. A very elderly woman approached us. In the postwar period, she ended up in an orphanage in Kiev, then managed to buy a house near Kiev, where she remained living. Now she is lonely and ill; she has no relatives except those friends of distant childhood whom she remembers while looking at photographs. And we were very glad that we managed to help her find them - for the woman, these were her only kindred spirits.
- What is needed for the Tracing Service to start searching for a person?
- We work directly with the person who submits the search application. The fact is that usually only he knows the information that can help. It often happens that due to advanced age or state of health, the person himself cannot come, but sends a family member or another representative. Then we tell him about how the search will proceed and suggest that he give the applicant a questionnaire to fill out.
- What is usually indicated in the questionnaire?
- The fact is that a separate questionnaire form has been developed for each search direction. But in general, it is necessary to indicate all the personal data of the sought person - surname, first name, patronymic (sometimes even a nickname), year and place of birth, last place of residence. It is important to indicate the reason for which the connection was interrupted, and everything that can facilitate the search. Be sure to provide all data about yourself - since we never exclude the possibility of a so-called "cross-search", when the applicant, in turn, is sought by the one he is looking for. Photographs and letters can help in the search process, especially those that indicate the last address of residence of the sought person. But, I repeat, each case is unique, and, unfortunately, general recommendations cannot be given.
- Is it necessary to go to Kiev to submit a search request?
- In every regional center there is a regional organization of the Red Cross Society, where employees responsible for tracing can listen to a person, find out all the necessary information, and help fill out the appropriate questionnaire. Then the completed questionnaire is sent to Kiev, to the National Committee of the Red Cross Society, where the work begins. All information is entered into our card index and database, and you can simply call us by phone to find out how things are progressing. But, of course, you can also come to Kiev to consult directly with our staff.
- How does the search usually proceed?
- We turn to our and foreign archives, cooperate with colleagues from the national Red Cross or Red Crescent Society of the country where the search is being conducted. Every week the service carries out primary processing of about 200 requests, for each of which it is sometimes necessary to make up to two dozen additional requests to various agencies. The difficulty is that most of the archival materials on Ukrainian citizens who suffered as a result of the totalitarian regime and Nazism have not been preserved or turned out to be outside our country. We make a lot of efforts to create our own archive. Today, the name-based card index of the Tracing Service contains more than 220 thousand information units. Each country has its own nuances in work, its own features of access to certain information. Thanks to the financial assistance of the International Committee of the Red Cross and the National Society of Germany, it became possible to create a local network of ten workstations and a server. Our specialists developed special software that significantly increased the efficiency of work.
- What other issues can Ukrainian citizens address to your Service?
- We are also engaged in the search for documents that confirm the stay of Ukrainian citizens in Nazi concentration camps, ghettos, captivity and forced labor. We exchange Red Cross messages between members of separated families. We also find out the location and condition of the graves of defenders of our fatherland who died outside our homeland, as well as military burials of citizens of other states in Ukraine.
- And what issues are not included in the program of activities of the Tracing Service?
- Recently, we have often been approached with questions of the so-called social tracing. For example, a Ukrainian citizen goes abroad to earn money, and after some time contact is lost. His family asks us to help find him. This is very difficult, since the search procedure has not been worked out. After all, as a rule, illegal workers prefer not to register anywhere, and it is extremely difficult to find them. Therefore, in such cases we recommend contacting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.
Tracing of inheritance is the prerogative of Ukrinyurkollegia. The search for persons missing in peacetime is carried out by the Departments of Internal Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine at their place of residence. Genealogical research is conducted by the Ukrainian Legal Collegium. Information about military service before and after the Second World War can be obtained from the military commissariat at the place of conscription or from the Central Archive of the Ministry of Defense of Russia (the city of Podolsk). The Ukrainian National Fund “Mutual Understanding and Reconciliation” deals with the payment of compensation to victims of Nazi persecution. And in general, for each specific case you can always consult with our tracing specialists. More detailed information can be obtained at the address: 01004, Kiev, 30 Pushkinskaya St., National Committee of the Red Cross Society of Ukraine, Tracing Service; tel./fax: (044) 235-10-96; e-mail: [email protected]
The staff of the Tracing Service is small - ten women of various specialties. Among them are engineers, philologists, and translators. What unites them is that the concept of “work” for them is not limited to official duties. Each employee has perfect command of computers, foreign languages, and office work. Search techniques improve from year to year, but the basic principles of work remain unchanged - patience, persistence, and accuracy. Over the years, a special “search” intuition develops. And yet the most important thing is compassion, the desire to help, kindness and responsiveness of all who work in the Tracing Service. Perhaps that is why they are constantly approached with the words: “You are our last hope. We beg you, help...” And they sincerely thank them for understanding and mercy.
By the way
Over twelve years, the Tracing Service of the Red Cross Society of Ukraine has received and processed nearly 445,000 requests. The service archive holds about 146,500 completed cases. The Ukrainian Red Cross has helped 66,000 citizens in their searches. More than 9,000 citizens in Ukraine and abroad have received news from their relatives - Red Cross messages. The Tracing Service has found more than 6,000 graves of Ukrainian soldiers who died in Western Europe during the Second World War.