from Ukrainian citizens blocked in the buffer zone at the Dariali (Verkhni Lars) checkpoin
from Ukrainian citizens blocked in the buffer zone at the Dariali (Verkhni Lars) checkpoin
The Issue
We are 97 citizens of Ukraine.
Most of us were deported from the territory of the Russian Federation after serving sentences — including convictions that raise serious doubts about their fairness and legality.
We were removed from prisons, often without proper documents, without explanation, and without the right to defense.
Since April–May 2025, we have been stranded in the buffer zone between Russia and Georgia, at the Dariali (Verkhni Lars) border crossing.
The Russian side refuses to take us back. The Georgian side does not allow us to enter, because we have not formally crossed the border.
We are hostages of a grey zone, where there is no law, no status, and no future.
---
🧍♂️🧍♀️ Who are we?
Among us are 10 women and people with serious health conditions, whose state is worsening by the day.
Some of us haven’t seen our children in 7 years.
Some want only to return to their elderly parents who are waiting in hope.
Some just want to live — without torture, without isolation, without fear.
We are not asking for special treatment. We are asking only for humanity.
---
❗ We respectfully request:
1. To be allowed to cross the Georgian border — via a humanitarian corridor, even temporarily.
2. To be granted temporary stay in Georgia until we can return to Ukraine or transit through.
3. To receive medical assistance for those in urgent need, and to be allowed to live in humane conditions.
4. To allow UN, Red Cross, and international missions to assess our situation and document our individual cases.
---
We are not criminals. We are Ukrainians who have become victims of war, catastrophe, wrongful imprisonment, and impossible choices.
We have not lost our human dignity — even though we are constantly treated as if we are worthless.
Here, in this buffer zone, we are still holding on. We support each other, we take care of each other, and we still believe that justice and compassion exist.
---
🕊️ We appeal to you not only as officials, but as fellow human beings.
This petition may be our last hope.
We beg you: open the corridor. Let us return home. Let us live.
We are not asking for much — only the chance to be human again, in our homeland or on a land that shows mercy.
---
With respect and hope,
97 citizens of Ukraine currently stranded in the buffer zone at the Dariali (Verkhni Lars) checkpoint,
including 10 women, sick, elderly, and vulnerable individuals
1
The Issue
We are 97 citizens of Ukraine.
Most of us were deported from the territory of the Russian Federation after serving sentences — including convictions that raise serious doubts about their fairness and legality.
We were removed from prisons, often without proper documents, without explanation, and without the right to defense.
Since April–May 2025, we have been stranded in the buffer zone between Russia and Georgia, at the Dariali (Verkhni Lars) border crossing.
The Russian side refuses to take us back. The Georgian side does not allow us to enter, because we have not formally crossed the border.
We are hostages of a grey zone, where there is no law, no status, and no future.
---
🧍♂️🧍♀️ Who are we?
Among us are 10 women and people with serious health conditions, whose state is worsening by the day.
Some of us haven’t seen our children in 7 years.
Some want only to return to their elderly parents who are waiting in hope.
Some just want to live — without torture, without isolation, without fear.
We are not asking for special treatment. We are asking only for humanity.
---
❗ We respectfully request:
1. To be allowed to cross the Georgian border — via a humanitarian corridor, even temporarily.
2. To be granted temporary stay in Georgia until we can return to Ukraine or transit through.
3. To receive medical assistance for those in urgent need, and to be allowed to live in humane conditions.
4. To allow UN, Red Cross, and international missions to assess our situation and document our individual cases.
---
We are not criminals. We are Ukrainians who have become victims of war, catastrophe, wrongful imprisonment, and impossible choices.
We have not lost our human dignity — even though we are constantly treated as if we are worthless.
Here, in this buffer zone, we are still holding on. We support each other, we take care of each other, and we still believe that justice and compassion exist.
---
🕊️ We appeal to you not only as officials, but as fellow human beings.
This petition may be our last hope.
We beg you: open the corridor. Let us return home. Let us live.
We are not asking for much — only the chance to be human again, in our homeland or on a land that shows mercy.
---
With respect and hope,
97 citizens of Ukraine currently stranded in the buffer zone at the Dariali (Verkhni Lars) checkpoint,
including 10 women, sick, elderly, and vulnerable individuals
1
The Decision Makers
Petition created on August 4, 2025